Long-term follow-up after bypass surgery or coronary stenting in elderly with multivessel disease

Management of Acute Coronary Syndromes in Older People: Comprehensive Review and Multidisciplinary Practice-Based Recommendations

Managing health care for older adults aged 75 years and older can pose unique challenges stemming from age-related physiological differences and comorbidities, along with elevated risk of delirium, frailty, disability, and polypharmacy. This review is aimed at providing a comprehensive analysis of the management of acute coronary syndromes (ACS) in older patients, a demographic substantially underrepresented in major clinical trials. Because older patients often exhibit atypical ACS symptoms, a nuanced diagnostic and risk stratification approach is necessary. We aim to address diagnostic challenges for older populations and highlight the diminished sensitivity of traditional symptoms with age, and the importance of biomarkers and imaging techniques tailored for older patients. Additionally, we review the efficacy and safety of pharmacological agents for ACS management in older people, emphasizing the need for a personalized and shared decision-making approach to treatment. This review also explores revascularization strategies, considering the implications of invasive procedures in older people, and weighing the potential benefits against the heightened procedural risks, particularly with surgical revascularization techniques. We explore the perioperative management of older patients experiencing myocardial infarction in the setting of noncardiac surgeries, including preoperative risk stratification and postoperative care considerations. Furthermore, we highlight the critical role of a multidisciplinary approach involving cardiologists, geriatricians, general and internal medicine physicians, primary care physicians, and allied health, to ensure a holistic care pathway in this patient cohort.

Comparing outcomes between coronary artery bypass grafting and percutaneous coronary intervention in octogenarians with left main or multivessel disease

Mechanisms of coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) differ as CABG provides surgical collateralization and may prolong life by preventing future myocardial infarctions (MI). However, CABG benefits are unclear in octogenarians, where surgical risk is often perceived as higher and PCI is chosen more liberally. We performed a meta-analysis of studies comparing outcomes in octogenarians with left main or multivessel disease who underwent CABG or PCI. Primary outcome was late mortality (> 5 years). Secondary outcomes were perioperative mortality, MI, re-revascularization (R-R), acute renal failure (ARF), and stroke. Fourteen studies with 17,942 patients were included. CABG was associated with lower late mortality (hazard ratio, HR: 1.23, 95% confidence interval: CI 1.05-1.44, p < 0.01). In the pooled Kaplan-Meier analysis CABG showed significantly lower risk of death in the follow-up compared to PCI (HR: 1.08, 95%CI 1.02-1.41, p = 0.005). Landmark analyses confirmed the survival advantage of CABG over PCI after 21.5 months of follow-up (HR: 1.31, 1.19-1.44, p < 0.0001), but suggested advantage of PCI over CABG in the first 30-days (HR: 0.72, 0.64-0.82, p < 0.0001) and comparable survival from 1 to 21.5 months (HR: 0.98, 0.92-1.05, p = 0.652). We found lower risk for MI and R-R after CABG but higher perioperative mortality and no differences in ARF and stroke. CABG appears superior to PCI over time in octogenarians with complex CAD. This survival advantage is associated with fewer events of MI and R-R; however, it comes with an increased risk in perioperative mortality.

Acute Coronary Syndrome after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: State of the Problem and Clinical Practice Data

Aim. To study the prevalence, clinical and endovascular predictors, causes and timing of the development of acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in patients who had previously undergone percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), as well as the clinical features of the disease and lipid spectrum parameters.

Material and methods. The prospective study included 768 patients successively hospitalized from 01.01.2019 to 01.01.2020 in the Regional cardiovascular center, undergoing to emergency coronary angiography.

Results. The main group included 768 patients who underwent emergency coronary angiography for ACS. 90 of them had previously undergone PCI (11.7%). Men prevailed (66.7%), the average age was 62 years. 25.5% of patients underwent ACS within a year after coronary stenting, the mean time from PCI to ACS was 43 months. Most often, there was ACS without ST segment elevation (80%). The results of a retrospective analysis of the first PCI showed that 89.7% of patients underwent urgent PCI, 77.8% of patients received bare metal stents. In 67.1% of patients, 1 stent was implanted, the average diameter was 3.2 mm, the average length was 22 mm. Thromboaspiration was performed in 12% of cases, predilatation in 25%, and NC postdilation in 41.3% of cases. Complications of PCI developed in 9% of patients. Stent thrombosis was diagnosed in 7.8% of cases, significant restenosis in 35.6%. Repeated stenting due to ACS was performed in 64.4% of patients, of which 74.6% received 1 stent; average diameter 3.4 mm, average length 24.0 mm. Predilatation was performed in 52.9% of cases, thromboaspiration – in 41.2%, and NC-postdilation – in 86.7% of cases. Complications of PCI developed in 10%. In addition, 99% of patients had significant dyslipidemia. The average cholesterol level was 4.91 mmol/L, the average low-density lipoprotein level was 2.94 mmol/L.

Conclusion. Patients after PCI are 12% of group with ACS in clinical practice of the Regional Vascular Center. The most common predictor of recurrent atherothrombotic events is bare metal stent implantation as well as dyslipidemia.

Long-term effects of percutaneous coronary intervention versus coronary artery surgery in elderly with multi-vessel coronary artery disease

BACKGROUND

The most prevalent illness among the elderly is coronary artery disease (CAD), and most of this population present with multi-vessel CAD which constitutes a common management difficulty among elderly people. This study aimed to compare long-term consequences of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) versus coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) revascularization in elderly patients with multi-vessel coronary artery disease.

RESULTS

This retrospective study evaluated 100 elderly patients with multi-vessel CAD divided into two groups, group 1 the PCI group and group 2 the CABG group. The main findings of the study showed that CABG group had a longer hospital stay than the PCI group (8.16 vs. 2.02 days; P < 0.001). A considerably higher mean residual SYNTAX score was observed in the PCI group than CABG group which was 1.15 and 0.2, respectively (p-value < 0.001). The in-hospital major adverse cardiac events rate (MACE) in both groups was not statistically significant. Regarding the in-hospital mortality rate, although it was higher in the CABG group (6%) versus 2% in the PCI group, yet it was not statistically significant. The long-term MACE in this study revealed that 12.2% of PCI patients had heart failure compared to 6.4% in the CABG group, which was statistically insignificant. In the long-term follow-up, the revascularization rate of CABG group was higher than the PCI group; however, it was statistically insignificant. CABG group had a higher rate of stroke than PCI group being 4.3% and 2%, respectively; yet this difference was not statistically considerable. The long-term mortality rate among the PCI and CABG group was 10.2% and 4.3%, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS

Elderly patients with multi-vessel CAD, PCI with stenting, and CABG were statistically equivalent in long-term death and MI rates, stroke, repeat revascularization. A non-statistically notable distinction between the two groups as regards MACE, composite of death or MI, and all-cause mortality was found. This may have implication on choice of management strategy among elderly patients with multi-vessel CAD.

Early and Mid-Term Outcomes of Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting in Adults With Congenital Heart Disease

Atherosclerotic coronary artery disease (CAD) is well-studied in acquired cardiac diseases; however, little data exist regarding outcomes of adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) with CAD. This study examined patients who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) during repair of ACHD. This was a retrospective study of patients who underwent CABG for CAD concomitant with ACHD repair 1972-2021. Demographic information, ACHD diagnosis, surgical history, operative details, and outcomes were analyzed. Data are presented as median (interquartile range [IQR]). 157 patients were identified with a median age of 63 (IQR 17) years. Left anterior descending (LAD) was the predominant diseased artery (109 patients [69%]); of those 83 (76%) were treated with mammary artery. 90 (57.3%) patients had 1 bypass, 42 (26.7%) 2, 19 (12%) 3, and 6 (3.8%) had 4. There has been no early mortality since 1988. There was no long-term survival difference between the patients with LAD disease treated with mammary compared to vein (P = 0.68), but early mortality was higher in those treated with vein (10.3% vs 0%, P = 0.018). Late recurrent angina was found in 18 patients (12%) and recurrent CAD found in 17 patients (11%), with 16 patients (10%) requiring CAD reintervention. At most recent follow-up (7.2 [IQR 11.4] years), 101 (64.3%) patients were deceased at 10 (IQR 13.1) years after surgery. Surgical revascularization for CAD may be necessary during the treatment of ACHD, most commonly for LAD disease. Early mortality was low in recent decades. Continued surveillance for recurrent CAD is required.