Prognostic value of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease over coronary computed tomography angiography findings: comparison with no-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

BACKGROUND: Metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) is the proposed name change for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). This study aimed to investigate the association of cardiovascular disease risk with MASLD and NAFLD in patients who underwent clinically indicated coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA). METHODS: This retrospective study included 2289 patients (60% men; mean age: 68 years) with no history of coronary artery disease who underwent CCTA. The steatotic liver was defined as a hepatic-to-spleen attenuation ratio of < 1.0 on CT just before CCTA. MASLD is defined as the presence of hepatic steatosis along with at least one of the five cardiometabolic risk factors. Adverse CCTA findings were defined as obstructive and/or high-risk plaques. Major adverse cardiac events (MACE) encompassed composite coronary events, including cardiovascular death, acute coronary syndrome, and late coronary revascularization. RESULTS: MASLD and NAFLD were identified in 415 (18%) and 368 (16%) patients, respectively. Adverse CCTA findings were observed in 40% and 38% of the patients with MASLD and with NAFLD, respectively. Adverse CCTA findings were significantly associated with MASLD (p = 0.007) but not NAFLD (p = 0.253). During a median follow-up of 4.4 years, 102 (4.4%) MACE were observed. MASLD was significantly associated with MACE (hazard ratio 1.82, 95% CI 1.18-2.83, p = 0.007), while its association with NAFLD was not significant (p = 0.070). By incorporating MASLD into a prediction model of MACE, including the risk score and adverse CCTA findings, global chi-squared values significantly increased from 87.0 to 94.1 (p = 0.008). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with MASLD are likely to have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease than those with NAFLD. Concurrent assessment of MASLD during CCTA improves the identification of patients at a higher risk of cardiovascular disease among those with clinically indicated CCTA.

Diagnostic improvements of calcium-removal image reconstruction algorithm using photon-counting detector CT for calcified coronary lesions.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the diagnostic performance of a calcium-removal image reconstruction algorithm with photon-counting detector-computed tomography (PCD-CT), a technology that hides only the calcified plaque from the spectral data in coronary calcified lesions. METHODS: This retrospective study included 17 patients who underwent PCD-coronary CT angiography (CCTA) with at least one significant coronary stenosis (≥50 %) with calcified plaque by CCTA and invasive coronary angiography (ICA) performed within 60 days of CCTA. A total of 162 segments with calcified plaque were evaluated for subjective image quality using a 4-point scale. Their calcium-removal images were reconstructed from conventional images, and both images were compared with ICA images as the reference standard. The contrast-to noise ratios for both images were calculated. RESULTS: Conventional and calcium-removal images had a subjective image quality of 2.7 ± 0.5 and 3.2 ± 0.9, respectively (p < 0.001). The percentage of segments with a non-diagnostic image quality was 32.7 % for conventional images and 28.3 % for calcium-removal images (p < 0.001). The segment-based diagnostic accuracy revealed an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of 0.87 for calcium-removal images and 0.79 for conventional images (p = 0.006). Regarding accuracy, the specificity and positive predictive value of calcium-removal images were significantly improved compared with those of conventional images (80.5 % vs. 69.5 %, p = 0.002 and 64.1 % vs. 52.0 %, p < 0.001, respectively). The objective image quality of the mean contrast-to-noise ratio did not differ between the images (13.9 ± 3.6 vs 13.3 ± 3.4, p = 0.356) CONCLUSIONS: Calcium-removal images with PCD-CT can potentially be used to evaluate diagnostic performance for calcified coronary artery lesions.

A Long-Term Survival Case of Coronary Artery Intimal Sarcoma.

Primary cardiac sarcomas are rare diseases with very poor prognoses. In this report, we present a case of coronary artery intimal sarcoma in a patient who survived for a long time after diagnosis. A 57-year-old female underwent percutaneous coronary intervention of the right coronary artery due to acute myocardial infarction caused by thrombotic occlusion and was diagnosed as having coronary artery intimal sarcoma. She underwent surgical resection and coronary artery bypass surgery of the artery, cryothermy coagulation, and postoperative adjuvant chemotherapy for 1 year. After 3 years, focal recurrence was detected in the caudal region of the left ventricular inferior wall. Radiotherapy was performed. The tumor shrank significantly after radiotherapy. Four years later, there was no significant abnormal uptake on positron-emission tomography/computed tomography. At 7 years after diagnosis, when this case report was submitted, the patient was alive and her performance had maintained a good status. Intimal sarcoma occurring in a coronary artery is extremely rare. The efficacy of treatments for cardiac intimal sarcoma, which include surgical resection, chemotherapy and radiotherapy, has been reported to be limited. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of a case of coronary artery intimal sarcoma with long-term survival after comprehensive therapies including surgical resection and radiotherapy.

Association between High Pericoronary Adipose Tissue Computed Tomography Attenuation and Impaired Flow-Mediated Dilation of the Brachial Artery.

AIMS: Pericoronary adipose tissue (PCAT) attenuation on coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) is a noninvasive biomarker for pericoronary inflammation and is associated with cardiac mortality. We aimed to investigate the association between PCAT attenuation and endothelial dysfunction assessed using flow-mediated dilation (FMD). METHODS: A total of 119 outpatients who underwent both coronary CTA and FMD measurements were examined. PCAT attenuation values were assessed at the proximal 40-mm segments of all three major coronary arteries on coronary CTA. Endothelial function was assessed using FMD. Patients were then classified into two groups: those with endothelial dysfunction (FMD ＜4%, n=44) and those without endothelial dysfunction (FMD ≥ 4%, n=75). RESULTS: In all three coronary arteries, PCAT attenuation was significantly higher in patients with endothelial dysfunction than in those without endothelial dysfunction. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that PCAT attenuation in the right coronary artery (odds ratio [OR]=1.543; 95% confidence interval [CI]=1.004-2.369, p=0.048) and left anterior descending artery (OR=1.525, 95% CI=1.004-2.369, p=0.049) was an independent predictor of endothelial dysfunction. Subgroup analysis of patients with adverse CTA findings (significant stenosis and/or high-risk plaque) and those with coronary artery calcium score ＞100 showed that high PCAT attenuation in all three coronary arteries was a significant predictor of endothelial dysfunction. CONCLUSION: High PCAT attenuation was significantly associated with FMD-assessed endothelial dysfunction in patients with suspected coronary artery disease. Our results suggest that endothelial dysfunction is one of the pathophysiological mechanisms linking pericoronary inflammation to cardiac mortality.

Prognostic value of pericoronary adipose tissue attenuation in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease with suspected coronary artery disease.

Pericoronary adipose tissue (PCAT) attenuation on coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) has been emerged as a marker of pericoronary inflammation. We aimed to investigate the prognostic value of PCAT attenuation in patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). We enrolled 232 NAFLD patients with suspected coronary artery disease and underwent coronary CTA. NAFLD was defined by abdominal CT as the ratio of hepatic attenuation to spleen attenuation less than 1.0. PCAT attenuation values were assessed by the crude analysis of mean CT attenuation value of the left anterior descending artery (LAD) and right coronary artery (RCA). As coronary CTA findings, luminal stenosis and high-risk plaque features were examined. Primary outcome was the composite of cardiovascular (CV) death, nonfatal acute coronary syndrome, and hospitalization for heart failure. During a median follow-up of 4.9 years, 17 patients had CV events. LAD-PCAT attenuation in patients with CV events was higher than that without CV events (-66.9 ± 7.0 versus -70.5 ± 6.6; p = 0.032), while RCA-PCAT attenuation was not. LAD-PCAT attenuation and high-risk plaque features were independent predictors of CV events. The addition of LAD-PCAT attenuation to high-risk plaque features increased the C-statistics and global chi-square from 0.66 to 0.75 (p = 0.042) and 6.8 to 12.7 (p = 0.015), respectively. The net reclassification achieved by adding LAD-PCAT attenuation to high-risk plaque features was 0.494 (p = 0.041). High-LAD-PCAT attenuation was an independent predictor of CV events in NAFLD patients, regardless of CTA-verified high-risk plaque features. In addition, LAD-PCAT attenuation had an incremental prognostic value over high-risk plaque features.

Overview of the 86th Annual Scientific Meeting of the Japanese Circulation Society　- Cardiology Spreading Its Wings.

The 86thAnnual Scientific Meeting of the Japanese Circulation Society was held in a web-based format on March 11-13, 2022. In accordance with the internationalization policy of the JCS, the meeting was held with the Asian Pacific Society of Cardiology Congress 2022. The main theme was "Cardiology Spreading its Wings". The number of patients with heart failure and other cardiovascular diseases is increasing dramatically, and the fields dealt with by cardiovascular medicine are also greatly expanding. This conference was both intellectually satisfying and exciting for all participants, who numbered over 14,900. The meeting was completed with great success, and the enormous amount of cooperation and support from all involved was greatly appreciated.

Pathophysiology and Treatment of Diabetic Cardiomyopathy and Heart Failure in Patients with Diabetes Mellitus.

There is a close relationship between diabetes mellitus and heart failure, and diabetes is an independent risk factor for heart failure. Diabetes and heart failure are linked by not only the complication of ischemic heart disease, but also by metabolic disorders such as glucose toxicity and lipotoxicity based on insulin resistance. Cardiac dysfunction in the absence of coronary artery disease, hypertension, and valvular disease is called diabetic cardiomyopathy. Diabetes-induced hyperglycemia and hyperinsulinemia lead to capillary damage, myocardial fibrosis, and myocardial hypertrophy with mitochondrial dysfunction. Lipotoxicity with extensive fat deposits or lipid droplets is observed on cardiomyocytes. Furthermore, increased oxidative stress and inflammation cause cardiac fibrosis and hypertrophy. Treatment with a sodium glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitor is currently one of the most effective treatments for heart failure associated with diabetes. However, an effective treatment for lipotoxicity of the myocardium has not yet been established, and the establishment of an effective treatment is needed in the future. This review provides an overview of heart failure in diabetic patients for the clinical practice of clinicians.

High pericoronary adipose tissue attenuation on computed tomography angiography predicts cardiovascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: post-hoc analysis from a prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Pericoronary adipose tissue (PCAT) attenuation on coronary computed tomography angiography (CTA) is a non-invasive biomarker for pericoronary inflammation. We aimed to investigate the prognostic value of PCAT attenuation in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). METHODS: We included 333 T2DM patients (mean age, 66 years; male patients, 211; mean body mass index, 25 kg/m2) who underwent clinically indicated coronary CTA and examined their CT findings, coronary artery calcium score, pericardial fat volume, stenosis (> 50% luminal narrowing), high-risk plaque features of low-attenuation plaque and/or positive remodelling and/or spotty calcification, and PCAT attenuation. We assessed PCAT attenuation in Hounsfield units (HU) of proximal 40-mm segments of the left anterior descending artery (LAD) and right coronary artery (RCA). Cardiovascular events were defined as cardiac death, hospitalisation for acute coronary syndrome, late coronary revascularisation, and hospitalisation for heart failure. RESULTS: During a median follow-up of 4.0 years, we observed 31 cardiovascular events. LAD-PCAT attenuation was significantly higher in patients with cardiovascular events than in those without (- 68.5 ± 6.5 HU vs - 70.8 ± 6.1 HU, p = 0.045), whereas RCA-PCAT attenuation was not (p = 0.089). High LAD-PCAT attenuation (> - 70.7 HU; median value) was significantly associated with cardiovascular events in a model that included adverse CTA findings, such as significant stenosis and/or high-risk plaque (hazard ratio; 2.69, 95% confidence interval; 1.17-0.20, p = 0.020). After adding LAD-PCAT attenuation to the adverse CTA findings, the C-statistic and global chi-square values increased significantly from 0.65 to 0.70 (p = 0.037) and 10.9-15.0 (p = 0.043), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In T2DM patients undergoing clinically indicated coronary CTA, high LAD-PCAT attenuation could significantly predict cardiovascular events. This suggests that assessing LAD-PCAT attenuation can help physicians identify high-risk T2DM patients.

Prognostic value of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease for predicting cardiovascular events in patients with diabetes mellitus with suspected coronary artery disease: a prospective cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Risk stratification of cardiovascular events in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) has not been established. Coronary artery calcium score (CACS) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are independently associated with cardiovascular events in T2DM patients. This study examined the incremental prognostic value of NAFLD assessed by non-enhanced computed tomography (CT) in addition to CACS and Framingham risk score (FRS) for cardiovascular events in T2DM patients. METHODS: This prospective pilot study included 529 T2DM outpatients with no history of cardiovascular disease who underwent CACS measurement because of suspected coronary artery disease. NAFLD was defined on CT images as a liver:spleen attenuation ratio < 1.0. Cardiovascular events were defined as cardiovascular death, nonfatal myocardial infarction, late coronary revascularization, nonfatal stroke, or hospitalization for heart failure. RESULTS: Among 529 patients (61% men, mean age 65 years), NAFLD was identified in 143 (27%). Forty-four cardiovascular events were documented during a median follow-up of 4.4 years. In multivariate Cox regression analysis, NAFLD, CACS, and FRS were associated with cardiovascular events (hazard ratios and 95% confidence intervals 5.43, 2.82-10.44, p < 0.001; 1.56, 1.32-1.86, p < 0.001; 1.23, 1.08-1.39, p = 0.001, respectively). The global χ2 score for predicting cardiovascular events increased significantly from 27.0 to 49.7 by adding NAFLD to CACS and FRS (p < 0.001). The addition of NAFLD to a model including CACS and FRS significantly increased the C-statistic from 0.71 to 0.80 (p = 0.005). The net reclassification achieved by adding CACS and FRS was 0.551 (p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: NAFLD assessed by CT, in addition to CACS and FRS, could be useful for identifying T2DM patients at higher risk of cardiovascular events.

Combination therapy with pemafibrate (K-877) and pitavastatin improves vascular endothelial dysfunction in dahl/salt-sensitive rats fed a high-salt and high-fat diet.

BACKGROUND: Statins suppress the progression of atherosclerosis by reducing low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels. Pemafibrate (K-877), a novel selective peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor α modulator, is expected to reduce residual risk factors including high triglycerides (TGs) and low high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol during statin treatment. However, it is not known if statin therapy with add-on pemafibrate improves the progression of atherosclerosis. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of combination therapy with pitavastatin and pemafibrate on lipid profiles and endothelial dysfunction in hypertension and insulin resistance model rats. METHODS: Seven-week-old male Dahl salt-sensitive (DS) rats were divided into the following five treatment groups (normal diet (ND) plus vehicle, high-salt and high-fat diet (HD) plus vehicle, HD plus pitavastatin (0.3 mg/kg/day), HD plus pemafibrate (K-877) (0.5 mg/kg/day), and HD plus combination of pitavastatin and pemafibrate) and treated for 12 weeks. At 19 weeks, endothelium-dependent relaxation of the thoracic aorta in response to acetylcholine was evaluated. RESULTS: After feeding for 12 weeks, systolic blood pressure and plasma levels of total cholesterol were significantly higher in the HD-vehicle group compared with the ND-vehicle group. Combination therapy with pitavastatin and pemafibrate significantly reduced systolic blood pressure, TG levels, including total, chylomicron (CM), very LDL (VLDL), HDL-TG, and cholesterol levels, including total, CM, VLDL, and LDL-cholesterol, compared with vehicle treatment. Acetylcholine caused concentration-dependent relaxation of thoracic aorta rings that were pre-contracted with phenylephrine in all rats. Relaxation rates in the HD-vehicle group were significantly lower compared with the ND-vehicle group. Relaxation rates in the HD-combination of pitavastatin and pemafibrate group significantly increased compared with the HD-vehicle group, although neither medication alone ameliorated relaxation rates significantly. Western blotting experiments showed increased phosphorylated endothelial nitric oxide synthase protein expression in aortas from rats in the HD-pemafibrate group and the HD-combination group compared with the HD-vehicle group. However, the expression levels did not respond significantly to pitavastatin alone. CONCLUSIONS: Combination therapy with pitavastatin and pemafibrate improved lipid profiles and endothelial dysfunction in hypertension and insulin resistance model rats. Pemafibrate as an add-on strategy to statins may be useful for preventing atherosclerosis progression.

Coronary lesion characteristics with mismatch between fractional flow reserve derived from CT and invasive catheterization in clinical practice.

High diagnostic performance of noninvasive fractional flow reserve computed from CT (FFR-CT) was recently reported in prospective multicenter trials. The aims of this study were to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of FFR-CT in clinical practice and to examine the lesion characteristics showing a mismatch between FFR-CT and invasive FFR. A total of 20 patients (29 vessels) with suspected coronary artery disease were included. All patients underwent invasive coronary angiography and invasive FFR according to coronary artery CT angiography (CCTA) findings. The same raw data used for CCTA were used to evaluate FFR-CT. Results from FFR-CT were compared with invasively measured FFR. A positive ischemia was defined as FFR <0.80. Analyses from three vessels in two patients were not evaluated because of severe calcification or motion artifacts. The diagnostic accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity of FFR-CT per-vessel basis were 81, 100, and 69 %, respectively. To find the reason for mismatch in positive ischemia, lesion characteristics determined with CCTA were compared between the matched group and the mismatched group. A significant difference in bifurcation lesions with positive remodeling was observed between the matched group and the mismatched group (p < 0.01). The high sensitivity of FFR-CT may provide an additional support to the use of CCTA, although particular attention should be paid when using FFR-CT in bifurcation lesions with positive remodeling.

Reproducibility and clinical potential of myocardial mass at risk calculated by a novel software utilizing cardiac computed tomography information.

To select the best revascularization strategy a correct understanding of the ischemic territory and the coronary anatomy is crucial. Stress myocardial perfusion single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) is the gold standard to assess ischemia, however, SPECT has important limitations such as lack of coronary anatomical information or false negative results due to balanced ischemia in multi-vessel disease. Angiographic scores are based on anatomical characteristics of coronary arteries but they lack information on the extent of jeopardized myocardium. Cardiac computed tomography (CCT) has the ability to evaluate the coronary anatomy and myocardium in one sequence, which is theoretically the ideal method to assess the myocardial mass at risk (MMAR) for any target lesion located at any point in the coronary tree. In this study we analyzed MMAR of the three main coronary arteries and three major side branches; diagonal (Dx), obtuse marginal (OM), and posterior descending artery (PDA) in 42 patients with normal coronary arteries using an algorithm based on the Voronoi method. The distribution of MMAR among the three main coronary arteries was 44.3 ± 5.6 % for the left anterior descending artery, 28.2 ± 7.3 % for the left circumflex artery, and 26.8 ± 8.6 % for the right coronary artery. MMAR of the three major side branches was 11.3 ± 3.9 % for the Dx, 12.6 ± 5.2 % for the OM and 10.2 ± 3.4 % for the PDA. Intra- and inter-observer analysis showed excellent correlation (r = 0.97; p < 0.0001 and r = 0.95; p < 0.0001, respectively). In conclusion, CCT-based MMAR assessment is reliable and may offer important information for selection of the optimal revascularization procedure.

Incidence and outcomes of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in the eastern part of Yamaguchi prefecture.

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the factors related to poor prognosis of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest patients in one local area of Japan. From May 1, 2002 to April 30, 2008, a total of 442 patients with cardiopulmonary arrest were transferred for resuscitation to the National Hospital Organization, Iwakuni Clinical Center. Of 325 patients with cardiopulmonary arrest of cardiac etiology, 126 patients were witnessed by a bystander. However, only 37 received bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation, 13 had shockable cardiac rhythm, 3 survived 1 month, and 2 had a good neurological discharge. Multivariate analysis of overall cardiac arrest showed that 1-month survival and neurologically favorable discharge were associated with bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation (P=0.049 and 0.013) and initial shockable cardiac rhythm (P=0.001 and 0.007). In this region, the survival rate for patients with cardiopulmonary arrest was lower than that reported in other areas, probably because fewer patients received bystander CPR or had shockable cardiac rhythm. This may result from CPR being less popularized in this region than in other areas, suggesting that raising the awareness of CPR would improve the survival rate.