Prevalence and predictors of coronary artery disease in patients undergoing carotid artery stenting

Carotid Artery Stenosis: A Look Into the Diagnostic and Management Strategies, and Related Complications

Carotid stenosis (CS) is a buildup of atherosclerotic plaque within the artery leading to a wide range of symptoms, from mild symptoms, including blurred vision and confusion, to much more life-threatening presentations, including paralysis due to stroke. The presentation is insidious, with symptoms exhibiting predominantly at severe stenosis; hence the emphasis is placed on the importance of early diagnosis, treatment, and lifestyle modifications. CS is seen undergoing almost the same pathogenesis of any atherosclerotic plaque formation, from endothelial damage of the artery lumen to the formation of a fibrous cap with a foam cell, lipid-filled core. The findings of our review article were consistent with the recent literature, depicting that comorbid hypertension, diabetes, and chronic kidney disease (CKD), and lifestyle aspects, including smoking and diet, played the most salient role in plaque development. Among several imaging modalities, duplex ultrasound (DUS) imaging is the widely preferred method in clinical practice. Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and carotid stenting are the primarily advocated procedures for symptomatic severe stenosis, with similar long-term outcomes. Although, earlier clinical trials showed promising results in mitigating the risk of stroke among asymptomatic severe CS with surgical intervention. However, recent advancements have shifted the focus to medical management alone due to comparable results among the asymptomatic population. Both surgical and medical regimens are beneficial in treating patients, but it is still an ongoing debate as to which is predominantly superior. The currently advancing trials and research will help elucidate definitive guidelines. However, the massive impact of lifestyle modifications advocates some degree of individualized multidisciplinary management strategies.

Carotid Intraplaque Neovascularization and Future Vascular Events in Patients With Asymptomatic Carotid Stenosis

Objective: Intraplaque neovascularization is a marker of plaque vulnerability and is used to predict the risk of future vascular events in patients with symptomatic carotid stenosis; however, its association with asymptomatic carotid stenosis has not been prospectively evaluated. Therefore, this study aimed to explore the association between intraplaque neovascularization assessed using contrast-enhanced ultrasound and the occurrence of future ischemic events in asymptomatic patients diagnosed with carotid stenosis.

Methods: We recruited patients with asymptomatic carotid stenosis from our center. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound was performed at baseline. The outcomes were ischemic stroke and cardiovascular events. We plotted Kaplan-Meier survival curves and performed a log-rank test to compare endpoint event probability in patients with and without grade 2 intraplaque neovascularization. Univariate and multivariate Cox proportional hazards models were used to assess predictors of future vascular events.

Results: The data of 50 participants were included in the analysis (median follow-up, 43.7 months). Endpoint events occurred in 12 participants (24%). The Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed that patients with grade 2 intraplaque neovascularization had a higher probability of future vascular events than those with grades 0 and 1 (p < .05). Grade 2 intraplaque neovascularization (hazard ratio: 4.530, 95% confidence interval, 1.337–15.343, p < .05) was an independent predictor of future vascular events in patients with asymptomatic carotid stenosis.

Conclusion: Grade 2 intraplaque neovascularization assessed using contrast-enhanced ultrasound independently predicted future ischemic events in patients with asymptomatic carotid stenosis, and contrast-enhanced ultrasound may be an effective screening method to identify high-risk subgroups of patients with asymptomatic carotid stenosis.

Survival and Prognostic Factors After Carotid Artery Stenting in Patients with Concomitant Coronary Disease

AIM: The aim of the study was to analyze the prognostic factors in patients after carotid artery stenting (CAS). METHODS: In 329 patients after CAS, the median survival (MS) and overall survival (OS) were calculated for a follow-up period of 2–101 months. All patients underwent coronary angiography before carotid stenting and, if indicated, coronary revascularization. Four groups of factors were analyzed: Carotid disease, coronary artery disease (CAD), underlying cardiac pathology, and concomitant diseases. RESULTS: MS in all patients was 86 months, OS at 1, 3, 5, and 9 years was - 94%, 85%, 73%, and 51%, respectively. Event free survival was 85 months. Log Rank-Mantel-Cox analysis demonstrated significantly reduced MS in 21 tested factors, most of them related to CAD. Two-step multifactorial Cox regression analysis defined only 7 of them as independent prognostic factors for the survival of patients after CAS: Left main stenosis, complete revascularization, late myocardial infarction, stroke, age over 70 years, valvular disease, and carotid score. CONCLUSION: Survival of patients after CAS is limited mainly by CAD and underlying cardiac pathology. Staged revascularization treatment strategy may improve the prognosis and survival of patients with both carotid and coronary disease.

Contralateral Carotid Stenosis is a Predictor of Long-term Adverse Events in Carotid Endarterectomy

Contralateral carotid stenosis (clCS) has been described as a perioperative predictor of mortality after carotid endarterectomy (CEA). However, its predictive value on long-term cardiovascular events remains controversial. The study aims to assess the potential role of clCS as a long-term predictor of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) in patients who underwent CEA. From January 2012 to July 2020, patients undergoing CEA under regional anesthesia for carotid stenosis in a tertiary care and referral center were eligible from a prospective database, and a post hoc analysis was performed. The primary outcome consisted in the occurrence of long-term MACE. Secondary outcomes included all-cause mortality, stroke, myocardial infarction, acute heart failure, and major adverse limb events. A total of 192 patients were enrolled. With a median 50 months follow-up, chronic kidney disease (CKD) (mean survival time (MST) 51.7 vs. 103.3, p<0.010) and peripheral artery disease (PAD) (MST 75.1 vs. 90.3, p=0.001) were associated with decreased survival time. After propensity score matching (PSM), CKD (MST 49.1 vs. 106.0, p=0.001) and PAD (MST 75.7 vs. 94.0, p=0.001) maintained this association. On multivariate Cox regression analysis, contralateral stenosis was associated with higher MACE (hazard ratio (HR) = 2.035; 95% CI: 1.113-3.722, p=0.021 and all-cause mortality (HR = 2.564; 95% CI: 1.276-5,152 p=0.008). After PSM, only all-cause mortality (HR 2.323; 95% CI: 0.993-5.431, p=0.052) maintained a significant association with clCS. On multivariable analysis, clCS (aHR 2.367; 95% CI: 1.174-4.771, p=0.016), age (aHR 1.039, 95% CI: 1.008-1.070), CKD (aHR 2.803; 95% CI: 1.409-5.575, p=0.003) and PAD (aHR 3.225, 95% CI: 1.695-6.137, p<0.001) were independently associated with increased all-cause mortality. Contrary to MACE, clCS is a strong predictor of long-term all-cause mortality after CEA. However, MACE risk may compromise CEA benefits by other competitive events. Therefore, further studies are needed to establish the role of clCS on postoperative events and on patients' specific assessments in order to determine the best medical treatment and easy access to surgical intervention.

Risk of a coronary event in patients after ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack

Coronary artery disease (CAD) together with stroke are the leading causes of death worldwide, and together, they pre-sent a health and economic burden. Ischemic stroke survivors and patients who suffered transient ischemic attack (TIA) have a higher prevalence of coronary atherosclerosis, and they have a relatively high risk of myocardial infarcti-on and nonstroke vascular death. Pubmed was searched for studies focused on investigating coronary atherosclerosis in ischemic stroke survivors or patients who suffered TIA and their cardiovascular risk assessment. There were corona-ry plaques in 48%-70% of stroke survivors without a known history of CAD, and significant stenosis of at least one coronary artery can be found in 31% of these patients. CAD is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in stroke survivors. Detection and treatment of silent CAD may improve the long-term outcome and survival of these patients.

Safety of different carotid artery revascularization strategies in the coronary artery bypass graft population: study protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis

BACKGROUND

Concomitant significant carotid artery occlusive diseases (CAOD) increase the risk of perioperative stroke and death in patients who undergo coronary artery bypass graft (CABG). Although several surgical strategies can be used in the management of such patients, controversy still surrounds which is the best option for CABG patients with accompanying CAOD.

METHODS

Literature searches will be conducted covering articles published in PubMed, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Web of Science, and Embase between January 1989 and December 2019. Search results will be limited to articles published in English. Six surgical strategies using carotid endarterectomy (CEA) or carotid artery stenting (CAS) with different timings (i.e., before, after, or combined with CABG) will be evaluated. Randomized controlled trials and non-randomized studies comparing these strategies will be included. The quality of studies will be critically appraised using the Cochrane risk-of-bias tool or ROBINS-I tool. Since CEA and CAS have comparable effectiveness for the treatment of significant CAOD, we will integrate direct and indirect evidence using network meta-analysis (NMA) to create hierarchies of the six surgical strategies based on their perioperative safety. The primary outcomes will be the probability of perioperative stroke and the probability of perioperative death. Additionally, we will analyze the probability of perioperative myocardial infarction (MI) as a secondary outcome. Pairwise meta-analyses and Bayesian network meta-analyses will be performed for all related outcome measures. Subgroup analyses, sensitivity analyses, and network meta-regression will be conducted to assess the robustness of the findings.

DISCUSSION

This NMA will summarize the direct and indirect evidence of perioperative safety with the aim of providing a ranking of the various surgical strategies. The results of this meta-analysis will provide useful information on optimal surgical management of CABG patients with concomitant significant CAOD.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER

PROSPERO CRD42020162611.

Antithrombotic treatment of asymptomatic carotid atherosclerosis: a medical dilemma

Carotid artery atherosclerosis (CAAS) is a common finding in asymptomatic subjects evaluated for cardiovascular (CV)-risk stratification. Besides the careful control of CV-risk factors, antithrombotic agents, and in particular aspirin, may be considered for primary prevention in patients at CV-risk. However, there is strong controversy on the use of aspirin in primary prevention. Even if several studies confirmed the association between CAAS and CV-events, CAAS is not universally recognized as an independent risk factor and the choice to use aspirin as primary prevention in these patients remains a medical dilemma. Here we review the available evidence on the prognostic value of asymptomatic CAAS for major CV-events and on the utility of antithrombotic agents in this population. We conclude that the detection of asymptomatic CAAS can not be considered as a direct indication to carry out primary prophylaxis with antithrombotic drugs, and the choice to use aspirin should be made only after the careful estimate of the individual's CV-and hemorrhagic risk.

Subclinical left ventricular dysfunction assessed by two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography in asymptomatic patients with carotid stenosis

The relationship between subclinical left ventricular (LV) dysfunction and atherosclerosis may have been underestimated in the past, which might be responsible for the high incidence of premature death in individuals with carotid stenosis. We sought to evaluate the underlying myocardial dysfunction in asymptomatic carotid stenosis patients using speckle tracking echocardiography (STE). Fifty patients with carotid stenosis ≥ 50% and a preserved LV ejection fraction (LVEF), and 45 controls without carotid stenosis who were matched in terms of vascular comorbidities were enrolled. All participants underwent carotid ultrasound and echocardiographic examination. The global LV longitudinal strain (GLS) was measured using STE. Compared with the control group, the e' of the mitral annular velocity and GLS were decreased in asymptomatic carotid stenosis patients (p < 0.05), however, the LVEF was well preserved. Based on a predefined cutoff for subclinical LV systolic dysfunction that was defined at a GLS <  - 18%, this dysfunction was detected in 22 patients with carotid stenosis (44%) and in 10 patients in the control group (22%) (p < 0.05). The GLS was negatively correlated with the levels of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (r =  - 0.356, p < 0.05) and triglyceride (r =  - 0.396, p < 0.05). In conclusion, LV diastolic and systolic functioning were significantly decreased in patients with asymptomatic carotid stenosis, and dyslipidemia likely contributed to the subclinical LV dysfunction in these patients. Our findings indicated the importance of detecting LV subclinical dysfunction and early intervention in this patient population.

Comorbidities and Health-Related Quality of Life Following Revascularization for Asymptomatic Critical Internal Carotid Artery Stenosis Treated with Carotid Endarterectomy or Angioplasty with Stenting

Background

This study aimed to evaluate the relationship between existing comorbidities and the effectiveness of revascularization of asymptomatic critical internal carotid artery (ICA) stenosis treated with carotid endarterectomy (CEA) or carotid artery stenting (CAS) and short-term and long-term outcome in terms of health-related quality of life (HRQoL).

Material/Methods

Patients with asymptomatic critical ICA stenosis (n=62) included a group treated with CEA (n=31) and a group treated with CAS (n=31). A Health Assessment Questionnaire designed for this study was used to assess ten comorbidities, and the Short Form 36 Health Survey Questionnaire (SF-36) was used to evaluate HRQoL following CEA and CAS.

Results

Three comorbidities significantly influenced the effectiveness of revascularization in all patients studied who underwent CEA and CAS, which included symptomatic atherosclerosis in other vascular areas (p=0.048), coronary artery disease (CAD) (p=0.004), and previous myocardial infarction (MI) (p=0.004). In the CEA group, CAD and previous MI were significant comorbidities (p=0.002), when compared with the CAS group (p=0.635). In the CAS group, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) was a significant comorbidity in terms of outcome (p=0.025).

Conclusions

The comorbidities of atherosclerotic vascular disease, CAD, and previous MI had a significant influence of the effectiveness of the revascularization and postoperative HRQoL in all patients studied with asymptomatic critical ICA stenosis who were treated with CEA and CAS. When the two groups were compared, CAD and previous MI were significant comorbidities in the CEA group, and COPD was a significant comorbidity in the CAS group.