The impact of cardiovascular comorbidities associated with risk for left heart disease on idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension: Data from the Hellenic Pulmonary Hypertension Registry (HOPE)

Whereas younger female patients were diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary arterial hypertension (IPAH) in 1980s, it is now frequently encountered in elderly patients with cardiovascular comorbidities (CVCs) associated with increased risk for left heart disease. We present data until November 2019 regarding specific features and clinical outcomes of IPAH population from the Hellenic Pulmonary Hypertension Registry (HOPE). Patients were divided into two groups based on the presence of ≥ or <3 CVCs, arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus, obesity, presence of coronary artery disease, or atrial fibrillation. Overall, 77 patients with IPAH (55.1 [interquartile range, IQR: 24.1] years, 62.8% women) have been recorded. Fifteen patients (19.2%) had ≥3 CVCs, while 25 (32%) were over 65 years old. Patients with ≥3 CVCs were older, presented an almost equal female to male ratio, walked less in 6‐min walk test, and had lower mean arterial pulmonary pressure and pulmonary vascular resistance at baseline than patients with less CVCs. Fewer patients with ≥3 CVCs received PAH‐specific treatment compared to patients with less comorbidities (n = 11 [73.3%] versus n = 58 [95.5%], p = 0.02). During a median follow‐up period of 3.8 (IQR: 2.7) years, 18 patients died (all‐cause mortality 24.3%). Male sex and older age were independent predictors of mortality and/or lung transplantation, while CVCs did not have a significant impact on clinical outcomes. In this nationwide, register‐based study, the epidemiology of IPAH involves older patients with CVCs, who seem to have less hemodynamic compromise, but worse functional impairment and are treated less aggressively with PAH pharmacotherapy.

Epidemiology and initial management of pulmonary arterial hypertension: real-world data from the Hellenic pulmOnary hyPertension rEgistry (HOPE)

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a heterogenous clinical entity with poor prognosis, despite recent major pharmacological advances. To increase awareness about the pathophysiology, epidemiology, and management of the disease, large national registries are required. The Hellenic pulmOnary hyPertension rEgistry (HOPE) was launched in early 2015 and enrolls patients from all pulmonary hypertension subgroups in Greece. Baseline epidemiologic, diagnostic, and initial treatment data of consecutive patients with PAH are presented in this article. In total, 231 patients with PAH were enrolled from January 2015 until April 2018. At baseline, about half of patients with PAH were in World Health Organization functional class II. The majority of patients with PAH (56.7%) were at intermediate 1-year mortality risk, while more than one-third were low-risk patients, according to an abbreviated risk stratification score. Half of patients with PAH were on monotherapy, 38.9% received combination therapy, while prostanoids were used only in 12.1% of patients. In conclusion, baseline data of the Greek PAH population share common characteristics, but also have some differences with other registries, the most prominent being a better functional capacity. This may reflect earlier diagnosis of PAH that in conjunction with the increased proportion of patients with atypical PAH could partially explain the preference for monotherapy and the limited use of prostanoids in Greece. Nevertheless, early, advanced specific therapy is strongly recommended.

P301Preserved global longitudinal strain predicts left ventricular reverse remodeling one year after edge-to-edge mitral valve repair in functional mitral regurgitation

Background

Percutaneous edge-to-edge mitral valve repair (PMVR) has emerged as an effective treatment modality for high surgical risk patients with severe functional mitral regurgitation (FMR). Novel echocardiographic parameters, such as deformation imaging and their predictive significance have not been analyzed in this group of patients.

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to identify echocardiographic predictors of response in patients with FMR undergoing PMVR.

Methods

We retrospectively analyzed 44 consecutive patients with ischemic or dilated cardiomyopathy, reduced ejection fraction and severe functional MR (FMR), aged 71±9 years, 71% males, LVEF 30.9±8.7%, mitral valve effective regurgitant orifice area (EROA)>20mm2, regurgitant volume (RV) >30ml and logistic EuroSCORE 22±14.7%. At baseline and 1-year after PMVR we assessed echocardiographic parameters such as LV longitudinal strain (LVGLS) and peak left atrial longitudinal strain (PALS) using speckle tracking echocardiography, LV end-systolic and end-diastolic volumes (LVESV, LVEDV), LA volume, MR severity by Doppler echocardiography along with BNP levels, NYHA class and 6 minute walking distance.

Results

One year after edge-to-edge repair there was a significant reduction of MR (74.2% had mild to moderate MR, 22.6% moderate-to-severe MR and 3.2% severe MR) and BNP levels (933±943pg/ml to 669±824pg/ml), improvement of NYHA class (3.11±0.55 to 2.0±0.6, P<0.05) and increase of the 6 minute walking distance (251±141 to 296±148m, P<0.05). LA volume was reduced (132.5±62.1ml to 115.2±57.7ml) and PALS was improved (6.89±3.47 to 7.94±5.27) (P<0.05 for all comparisons). Baseline LVGLS did not change significantly post intervention (−8.8±4.1 vs. −8.8±3.9, P=0.7) but the baseline value predicted the percentage difference in LVEDV (r=−0.61, P<0.01), LVESV (r=−0.47, P=0.03), BNP (r=0.45, P=0.04) and NYHA class (r=0.63, P<0.01). The best reverse LV remodeling was found in patients with GLS better than −10% and the trend was that the better the GLS the greater the LVEDV and LVESV reduction post-intervention. Additionally, patients with GLS between −10% and −5% had the largest improvement in BNP (P<0.05) and NYHA class (P=0.005).

Conclusions

Edge-to-edge repair is effective in reducing MR in patients with severe functional MR and has a positive impact in patients' clinical status at one year follow up. A preserved LVGLS seems to be a good predictor of reverse modeling and clinical improvement post intervention.

Nocturnal hypertension: poor correlation with office blood pressure but strong prognostic factor for target organ damage

INTRODUCTION

We investigated the correlation between systolic and diastolic nocturnal blood pressure (BP) values and office BP values, as well as parameters of 24-hour ambulatory BP monitoring, in patients with hypertension. In addition, we compared nocturnal hypertensives with nocturnal normotensives regarding their demographic, clinical, and laboratory characteristics, as well as other data from 24-hour BP monitoring.

METHODS

The study included 182 consecutive patients who had newly diagnosed, never treated, uncomplicated arterial hypertension. Blood samples were obtained from all patients for the determination of glycaemic and lipidaemic profiles. All underwent a complete echocardiographic examination, including tissue Doppler imaging, measurement of carotid intima-media thickness, measurement of carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity, and determination of the augmentation index of reflected waves (Aix@75), as well as 24-hour ambulatory BP monitoring. The population was divided into nocturnal normotensives (NN, n=77) and nocturnal hypertensives (NH, n=105, nocturnal BP >120/70 mmHg).

RESULTS

Although the NH did not differ from the NN as regards the classical cardiovascular risk factors, they showed an excessive inotropic response to exercise (61.9% vs. 22.7%, p=0.028), higher levels of serum uric acid (5.5 ± 1.56 mg/dl vs. 4.7 ± 1.36 mg/dl, p=0.003), as well as greater arterial stiffness, as expressed by a higher carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (8.6 ± 1.6 m/s vs. 7.9 ± 1.4 m/s, p=0.009), and a greater carotid intima-media thickness (0.74 ± 0.17 mm vs. 0.68 ± 0.15 mm, p=0.007). In addition, although the two groups did not differ significantly as regards office BP values and did not show strong correlations between nocturnal and office BP, both nocturnal diastolic and, especially, systolic BP showed strong correlations with levels of serum uric acid and with subclinical lesions in the heart, central aorta, peripheral vessels, and renal vasculature.

CONCLUSIONS

Nocturnal BP is poorly correlated with office BP values. However, the presence of nocturnal hypertension is associated with morphological and functional disturbances of the cardiovascular net. 24-hour ambulatory BP monitoring is an essential tool for revealing this subgroup of hypertensive patients who are at increased cardiovascular risk.

Cardiac tamponade due to post-cardiac injury syndrome in a patient with severe haemophilia A and HIV-1 infection

An 18-year-old man with severe haemophilia A (FVIII:C < 1%) and human immunodeficiency virus 1 (HIV-1) infection was admitted to the hospital with fever and chest pain for 7 days. Eight weeks prior to his admission he had an accident for which he underwent, at another hospital, clinical and laboratory examination that revealed bone fractures of the nose cavity, and he was given factor VIII concentrates for seven days due to nasal bleeding. On admission, chest roentgenogram showed a large cardiac silhouette and echocardiography confirmed the presence of a large quantity of pericardial fluid. A presumptive diagnosis of the post-cardiac injury syndrome was made and he was given anti-inflammatory drugs plus infusion of recombinant factor VIII concentrate (35 units kg-1 b.i.d.). On the seventh day he exhibited cardiac tamponade for which he underwent subxiphoid pericardiotomy with drainage of approximately 1500 mL of bloody exudate. He had an uncomplicated recovery and 10 days later he left hospital. He was given a continuous prophylactic treatment of 15 units kg-1 of recombinant FVIII every 2 days for 6 months, and 30 months after this episode the patient is free of any symptom.