Plasma fibrinogen levels and restenosis after primary percutaneous coronary intervention

Hemostatic Profiles of Patients Who Underwent Transcatheter Versus Surgical Aortic Valve Replacement Versus Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Guidelines for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) antithrombotic prophylaxis are extrapolated predominantly from percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) data. Here, we examined temporal coagulation changes occurring in the early perioperative period to determine the pathobiologic validity of this supposition. This was a prospective observational study of consecutive patients who underwent transfemoral TAVR (n = 27), PCI (n = 12), or surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) requiring cardiopulmonary bypass and cross-clamping (n = 12). Blood samples were taken at 4 time points: T1 (baseline), after general anesthesia or sedation; T2, after heparin administration; T3, at the end of the procedure; and T4, 6 hours after the procedure. The samples were assessed concurrently using standard laboratory coagulation tests and viscoelastic tests of whole blood clotting, including the latest generation thromboelastometry (ROTEM sigma) and thromboelastometry (TEG 6s). Patients in the TAVR cohort were older and a had lower baseline hemoglobin level than patients in the PCI and SAVR cohorts. The baseline platelet function was similar between the TAVR and PCI cohorts and impaired in the SAVR cohort Figure S1. The baseline hemostatic measures were comparable among cohorts. Regarding the per-patient change from baseline, the TAVR cohort showed an overall more prothrombotic state than the other cohorts, with the most marked differences from the SAVR cohort after intraoperative heparin administration and from the PCI cohorts 6 hours after the procedure. In addition, the ROTEM and TEG parameters were well correlated but not interchangeable. In conclusion, patients who underwent TAVR have a more prothrombotic hemostatic profile than PCI and SAVR patients. These findings question the current guidelines that extrapolate antithrombotic regimens from PCI to TAVR settings.

Assessment of the relationship between plasma fibrinogen-to-albumin ratio and slow coronary flow phenomenon in patients without obstructive coronary artery disease

BACKGROUND

Prior studies have suggested that the chronic inflammatory response has an important role in the pathophysiology of slow coronary flow phenomenon (SCFP). However, data are scarce regarding the role of plasma fibrinogen-to-albumin ratio (PFAR) in patients having SCFP without obstructive coronary artery disease (CAD). In this study, we investigated the relationship between PFAR and the presence of SCFP in patients without obstructive CAD.

METHODS

From January 2021 to January 2023, we consecutively recruited 1085 patients without obstructive CAD according to the diagnostic and exclusion criteria. In total, SCFP was diagnosed in 70 patients. A 1:2 age-matched case-control study was then conducted using comparators without SCFP. Ultimately, this study enrolled 70 patients with angiographically normal coronary arteries and SCFP, along with 140 comparators with angiographically normal coronary arteries and normal coronary flow. Plasma fibrinogen and albumin levels were measured, and the PFAR was then calculated for each patient.

RESULTS

PFARs were significantly greater in the SCFP group than in the comparators with normal coronary flow (82.8 ± 15.4 vs 73.1 ± 19.5, p < 0.001). PFAR increased with increasing numbers of vessels affected by SCFP. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that PFAR was an independent predictor of SCFP (odds ratio: 1.818, p = 0.015). Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis indicated that PFAR showed a better predictive value of SCFP than fibrinogen or albumin, although not significantly (p > 0.05).

CONCLUSION

PFAR is an independent predictor of SCFP in patients without obstructive CAD. PAFR could improve the predictive value of SFCP than albumin or fibrinogen alone, but not significantly.

The relationship between fibrinogen-to-albumin ratio and in-stent restenosis in patients with coronary artery disease undergoing drug-eluting stenting

BACKGROUND

In-stent restenosis (ISR) remains a significant clinical problem in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) treated with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Recent studies identified the fibrinogen-to-albumin ratio (FAR) as a novel inflammatory marker to predict inflammation in chronic diseases. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between FAR and ISR in patients with DES implantation.

METHODS

A total of 506 consecutive CAD patients were enrolled. Subjects history of successful native vessel PCI with DES at least 12 months prior to undergoing repeat angiography for chest pain. Patients were divided between ISR group (n = 125) and no-ISR group (n = 381). ISR was defined as luminal stenosis ≥50% located within the stent or up to 5 mm beyond the stent edges by the quantitative coronary analysis. Laboratory parameters were measured before angiography. Significant factors associated with ISR were evaluated by multivariate logistic regression analysis.

RESULTS

Baseline characteristics were similar between the ISR and no-ISR groups. The ISR group had significantly higher FAR level compared with the no-ISR group (73.26 ± 17.68 vs. 64.90 ± 15.88, P < 0.05). Furthermore, the ISR group had significantly lower albumin level and higher prevalence of diabetes mellitus compared to no-ISR (P < 0.05). In a multivariate analysis, FAR (odds ratio [OR] = 1.039, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.024-1.054), albumin (OR = 0.923, 95% CI = 0.389-0.977) and diabetes mellitus (OR = 2.663, 95% CI = 1.587-4.468) were significantly associated with ISR.

CONCLUSION

FAR is significantly associated with the development of ISR in CAD patients undergoing PCI with DES implantation.

Comparison of prognostic significance between serum fibrinogen and Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events score for prognosis of patients with non-ST-elevation acute coronary syndromes undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention

OBJECTIVE

An elevated fibrinogen level has been demonstrated to be a predictor of adverse coronary heart disease outcome. This study aimed to assess whether fibrinogen is a useful marker to predict the prognosis of patients with non-ST-elevation acute coronary syndromes (NSTE-ACS) undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Additionally, the prognostic accuracy of fibrinogen level was compared with that of the Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) score.

METHODS

A total of 1211 patients with NSTE-ACS undergoing PCI were analyzed in a prospective cohort study. The enrolled patients were divided into a low fibrinogen group (n = 826, fibrinogen ≤ 3.49 mg/dl) and a high fibrinogen group (n = 385, fibrinogen > 3.49 mg/dl) based on a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. The clinical endpoints were death and death/nonfatal reinfarction. An ROC curve analysis was performed and the area under the curve with a 95% confidence interval (CI) was derived and compared with those for the GRACE score to determine the diagnostic value of the serum fibrinogen level.

RESULTS

Multivariate analysis showed that an elevated baseline fibrinogen level was an independent predictor of death/nonfatal reinfarction (hazard ratio = 1.498, 95% CI: 1.030-2.181, P = 0.035). The prognostic performance of fibrinogen was equivalent to that of the GRACE system in predicting clinical endpoints (C-statistic: z = 1.486, P = 0.14).

CONCLUSION

Fibrinogen is an independent predictor of death/nonfatal reinfarction in patients with NSTE-ACS undergoing PCI, and its accuracy is similar to that of the GRACE system.

Improving equivalence in fibrinogen evaluation between the prothrombin time-derived fibrinogen assay and Clauss method using a pooled plasma calibrator

AIMS

Both the Clauss and prothrombin time-derived fibrinogen (PT-Fib) methods have widely been used in fibrinogen (Fib) evaluation. We aimed to improve the interchangeability between these two methods.

METHODS

Thirty fresh plasmas of low, normal and high Fib concentration were mixed to prepare the pooled human plasma. The Fib concentration was assessed by the Clauss method. The PT-Fib values were further recalibrated by the assigned plasma pools and the precision, linearity and reference intervals were verified according to the guidelines of American Society for Clinical and Laboratory Standards (CLSI) EP15-A and EP6-A documents. Finally, the recalibrated PT-Fib method was compared with Clauss method by the simultaneous Fib test of total 5259 coagulation samples.

RESULTS

The results indicated that the recalibrated PT-Fib method can detect the Fib concentration with clinically acceptable third-order linearity in the range of 1.27-8.00 g/L. Only one result out of 39 healthy people tested using the recalibrated PT-Fib method did not fall within the reference range defined by the manufacturer. We also found more than 99% of results between these two methods were interchangeable in the range of 1.51-8.00 g/L. The disagreement between these two methods was found only in patients with certain underlying conditions.

CONCLUSIONS

After recalibration, the consistency between the PT-Fib and Clauss methods was enhanced and the interchangeability was improved. The application of the recalibrated PT-Fib method provided accurate and reliable results with the manufacturer-provided reagents and improved detection speed and cost-effectiveness.

Time course of haemostatic effects of fibrinogen concentrate administration in aortic surgery

Background

There is currently a contrast between the demonstrated benefits of fibrinogen concentrate in correcting bleeding and reducing transfusion, and its perceived thrombogenic potential. This analysis evaluates the effects of fibrinogen concentrate on coagulation up to 12 days after administration during aortic surgery.

Methods

We performed a post hoc analysis of a prospective, randomized, double-blind, controlled trial of fibrinogen concentrate as first-line haemostatic therapy in aortic surgery. After cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and protamine administration, subjects with coagulopathic bleeding received fibrinogen concentrate or placebo. The placebo group received allogeneic blood products, including fresh-frozen plasma (FFP; n=32); the fibrinogen concentrate group received fibrinogen concentrate alone (FC; n=14), or fibrinogen concentrate followed by allogeneic blood products (FC+FFP; n=15). Plasma fibrinogen, fibrin-based clotting (ROTEM^®-based FIBTEM assay), and peri- and postoperative haematological and coagulation parameters were compared.

Results

Plasma fibrinogen and FIBTEM maximum clot firmness (MCF) decreased ∼50% during CPB but were corrected by FC or FC+FFP. At last suture, the highest values for plasma fibrinogen (360 mg dl⁻¹) and FIBTEM MCF (22 mm) were within normal ranges—below the acute phase increases observed after surgery. In patients receiving only FFP as a source of fibrinogen, these parameters recovered marginally by last suture (P<0.001 vs FC and FC+FFP). All groups displayed comparable haemostasis at 24 h post-surgery. Fibrinogen concentrate did not cause alterations of other haemostasis parameters.

Conclusions

Fibrinogen concentrate provided specific, significant, short-lived increases in plasma fibrinogen and fibrin-based clot firmness after aortic surgery.