Semi-quantitative metabolic values on FDG PET/CT including extracardiac sites of disease as a predictor of treatment course in patients with cardiac sarcoidosis.

BACKGROUND: Cardiac sarcoidosis is associated with major adverse cardiac events including cardiac arrest, for which anti-inflammatory treatment is indicated. Oral corticosteroid is the mainstay among treatment options; however, adverse effects are a major concern with long-term use. It would be beneficial for providers to predict treatment response and prognosis for proper management strategy of sarcoidosis, though it remains challenging. Fluorine (F)-18 fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG)-positron emission tomography(PET)/computed tomography(CT) has an advantage over anatomical imaging in providing semi-quantitative functional parameters such as standard uptake value (SUV), metabolic volume, and total lesion glycolysis (TLG), which are well-established biomarkers in oncology. However, the relationship between these parameters and treatment response has not been fully investigated in cardiac sarcoidosis. Also, the prognostic value of extracardiac active inflammation noted on FDG-PET/CT in the setting of cardiac sarcoidosis is unclear. The aim of this retrospective study was to investigate the prognostic value of semi-quantitative values of both cardiac and extracardiac disease sites derived from FDG-PET/CT in predicting treatment course in cardiac sarcoidosis. METHODS: Sixteen consecutive patients with suspected cardiac sarcoidosis, who demonstrated abnormal myocardial activity on cardiac-inflammation FDG-PET/CT encompassing the entire chest/upper abdomen and subsequently underwent corticosteroid therapy for diagnosis of active cardiac sarcoidosis, were included. Semi-quantitative values of hypermetabolic lesions were derived from all visualized organ system and were compared to daily corticosteroid dose at 6 months. RESULTS:  Of the 16 patients, 81.3% (13/16) of the patients showed extracardiac involvement. The lesion with the greatest SUV was identified in the heart in 11 patients (68.7%), in the liver in 1 patient (6.3%), and in lymph nodes in 4 patients (25%). The maximum SUV across all visualized organ systems including the heart were 8.8 ± 3.1 for the patients with corticosteroid dose ≤ 10 mg and 12.5 ± 3.3 for those with > 10 mg (P = 0.04). Metabolic volume and TLG across all visualized organ systems or any values in the heart alone showed no significant statistical difference between the two groups. CONCLUSIONS: Maximum SUV across all involved organ-systems of the chest and upper abdomen, not that of the heart alone, could be a predictor of treatment course of steroid therapy at 6 months in patients with active cardiac sarcoidosis.

Risk assessment of patients with clinical manifestations of cardiac sarcoidosis with positron emission tomography and magnetic resonance imaging.

BACKGROUND: Prior studies have shown that late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) on cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) and fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) confer incremental risk assessment in patients with cardiac sarcoidosis (CS). However, the incremental prognostic value of the combined use of LGE and FDG compared to either test alone has not been investigated, and this is the aim of the present study. METHODS: Retrospective observational study of 56 symptomatic patients with high clinical suspicion for CS who underwent LGE-CMR and FDG-PET and were followed for the occurrence of death and/or malignant ventricular arrhythmias (VA). RESULTS: The combination of PET and CMR yielded the following groups: 1) LGE-negative/normal-PET (n=20), 2) LGE-positive/abnormal-FDG (n=20), and 3) LGE-positive/normal FDG (n=16). After a median follow-up of 2.6years (IQR 1.2-4.1), 16 patients had events (7 deaths, 10 VA). All, but 1, events occurred in patients with LGE. LGE-positive/abnormal-FDG (7 events, HR 10.1 [95% CI 1.2-84]; P=0.03) and LGE-positive/normal-FDG (8 events, HR 13.3 [1.7-107]; P=0.015) patients had comparable risk of events compared to the reference LGE-negative/normal-PET group. In adjusted Cox-regression analysis, presence of LGE (HR 18.1 [1.8-178]; P=0.013) was the only independent predictor of events. CONCLUSION: CS patients with LGE alone or in association with FDG were at similar risk of future events, which suggests that outcomes may be driven by the presence of LGE (myocardial fibrosis) and not FDG (inflammation).

Patient and process factors associated with all-cause 30-day readmission among patients with heart failure.

PURPOSE: To explore the patient and process factors associated with all-cause 30-day readmission after heart failure (HF) hospitalization and develop recommendations to reduce readmissions of patients with HF. DATA SOURCES: A retrospective, cohort study of 239 patients ages 18 years and older was performed using electronic medical chart review. All patients were discharged from the medical center between July 1, 2009 and June 30, 2010 with a principal diagnosis of HF. Patient and process factors were compared in readmitted and non-readmitted groups. CONCLUSIONS: Renal failure/insufficiency was the only factor significantly associated with all-cause 30-day readmission among patients with HF. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Assessment of renal function during hospitalization will help identify patients with HF at high risk for all-cause 30-day readmission. Give careful consideration to the timing of discharge of patients who appear otherwise ready for discharge but still have creatinine levels above their baseline. Careful follow-up is needed for patients with impaired renal function.

Application of appropriate use criteria for stress myocardial perfusion imaging at two academic medical centers: compliance and association with image findings.

PURPOSE: Explore the extent to which stress myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) studies for coronary heart disease detection met published appropriate use criteria (AUC), and the association between AUC classification and image findings. DATA SOURCES: Retrospective, descriptive review of stress studies performed at the University of Washington Medical Center (UWMC n= 1377) and the Veterans Health Administration of Puget Sound (VA n= 1445) in the 31 months following AUC publication. CONCLUSIONS: At UWMC and VA, 69% and 89% of MPI studies, respectively, were classified as appropriate, 16% and 3% as inappropriate, and 15% and 8% as uncertain. All differences were significant, p < .001. At UWMC, 11% of appropriate studies and 10% of inappropriate or uncertain studies were abnormal (demonstrating myocardial ischemia or myocardial infarction), p= .93; these analyses were not performed on VA studies. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Most studies at both sites were classified as appropriate. At UWMC, the likelihood of a study classified as appropriate demonstrating an abnormality was not significantly different from a study classified as uncertain or inappropriate. AUC are imperfect tools but are increasingly created and referenced; as such, it is vital that practicing nurse practitioners are knowledgeable about their creation, application, and evaluation.

Screening stress myocardial perfusion imaging and eligibility for liver transplantation.

Screening for coronary artery disease is common practice in the evaluation of liver transplantation candidates. However, it is unclear whether coronary screening influences transplantation eligibility. We sought to determine the association between screening stress myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) results and the eligibility for liver transplantation. Within a retrospective cohort of liver transplantation candidates referred for screening stress MPI at a single institution from April 1998 to February 2004, we obtained the baseline characteristics, stress MPI results, transplantation eligibility, and transplantation denial criteria by chart review. Of 294 patients (39%) denied transplantation, the denial criteria were multifactorial for 91 (31%) of the candidates. Compared to candidates with low-risk stress MPI results, the odds of being denied transplantation were the same for candidates with intermediate-risk MPI results (odds ratio 0.93, 95% confidence interval 0.45 to 1.82) or high-risk MPI results (odds ratio 1.42, 95% confidence interval 0.54 to 3.73). This lack of association persisted in our analysis with additional stratification of stress MPI results into negative, positive-low-risk, positive-intermediate-risk, and positive-high-risk. In conclusion, the screening stress MPI results were not associated with liver transplantation eligibility. The large number of competing factors considered before transplantation listing and the low proportion of positive stress MPI results suggests that targeting screening to patients deemed otherwise acceptable for transplantation might increase the influence of stress MPI findings on transplantation eligibility.

Understanding why patients delay seeking care for acute coronary syndromes.

BACKGROUND: Better insight into the psychosocial factors associated with prehospital delays in seeking care for acute coronary syndromes is needed to inform the design of future interventions. Delay in presenting for care after the onset of symptoms is common, limits the potential benefit of acute reperfusion, and has not been reduced by interventions tested thus far. METHODS AND RESULTS: Seven hundred ninety-six patients with suspected ischemic heart disease scheduled for clinically indicated imaging stress tests completed questionnaires concerning psychological distress and attachment styles (worthiness to receive care, trustworthiness of others to provide care). The primary dependent variable for this study was response to a question from the rapid early action for coronary treatment trial concerning intention to "wait until very sure" before seeking care for a possible "heart attack." Responses to this question were strongly associated with actual emergency department-reported and self-reported care delay in the rapid early action for coronary treatment trial. In multivariable ordinal regression models, a more negative view of the trustworthiness of others, greater physical limitations from angina, and no previous revascularization were independently associated with increased intention to wait to seek care for a myocardial infarction. Intention to wait was not associated with inducible ischemia or self-perceived risk of myocardial infarction. CONCLUSIONS: Intention to delay seeking care for acute coronary syndromes is associated with a patient's view of the trustworthiness of others, previous experience with revascularization, and functional limitations, even after adjustment for objective and perceived acute coronary syndromes risk. These findings provide insight into novel factors contributing to longer delay times and may inform future interventions to reduce delay time.

Psychosocial modulators of angina response to myocardial ischemia.

BACKGROUND: Although angina is often caused by atherosclerotic obstruction of the coronary arteries, patients with similar amounts of myocardial ischemia may vary widely in their symptoms. We sought to compare clinical and psychosocial characteristics associated with more frequent angina after adjusting for the amount of inducible ischemia. METHODS AND RESULTS: From 2004 to 2006, 788 consecutive patients undergoing single-photon emission computed tomography stress perfusion imaging at 2 Seattle hospitals were assessed for their frequency of angina over the previous 4 weeks with the Seattle Angina Questionnaire and for a broad range of psychosocial characteristics. Among patients with demonstrable ischemia on single-photon emission computed tomography (summed difference score >or=2; n=191), angina frequency was categorized as none (Seattle Angina Questionnaire score=100; n=68), monthly (score=61 to 99; n=66), and weekly or daily (score=0 to 60; n=57). Using multivariable ordinal logistic regression, increasing angina was significantly associated with a history of coronary revascularization (odds ratio 2.24, 95% confidence interval 1.19 to 4.19), anxiety (odds ratio 4.72, 95% confidence interval 1.91 to 11.66), and depression (odds ratio 3.12, 95% confidence interval 1.45 to 6.69) after adjustment for the amount of inducible ischemia. CONCLUSIONS: Among patients with a similar burden of inducible ischemia, a history of coronary revascularization and current anxiety and depressive symptoms were associated with more frequent angina. These results support the study of angina treatment strategies that aim to reduce psychosocial distress in conjunction with efforts to lessen myocardial ischemia.

Angina pectoris during daily activities and exercise stress testing: The role of inducible myocardial ischemia and psychological distress.

Physicians often consider angina pectoris to be synonymous with myocardial ischemia. However, the relationship between angina and myocardial ischemia is highly variable and we have little insight into the sources of this variability. We investigated the relationship of inducible myocardial ischemia on SPECT stress perfusion imaging to angina reported with routine daily activities during the previous four weeks (N=788) and to angina reported during an exercise stress test (N=371) in individuals with confirmed or suspected coronary disease referred for clinical testing. We found that angina experienced during daily life is more strongly and consistently associated with psychological distress and the personal threat associated with angina than with inducible myocardial ischemia. In multivariable models, the presence of any angina during routine activities over the prior month was significantly associated with age, perceived risk of myocardial infarction, and anxiety when compared to those with no reported angina in the past month. Angina during daily life was not significantly associated with inducible myocardial ischemia on stress perfusion imaging in bivariate or multivariable models. In contrast, angina experienced during exercise stress testing was significantly related to image and ECG ischemia, though it was also significantly associated with anxiety. These results suggest that angina frequency over the previous four weeks is more strongly associated with personal threat and psychosocial distress than with inducible myocardial ischemia. These results lend support to angina treatment strategies that aim to reduce threat and distress as well as to reduce myocardial ischemia.