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Journal of Pain Research 2024Herpes zoster (HZ) typically manifests in the acute phase with distinct blisters and severe neuropathic pain. Remarkably, a subset of patients initially presents with...
BACKGROUND
Herpes zoster (HZ) typically manifests in the acute phase with distinct blisters and severe neuropathic pain. Remarkably, a subset of patients initially presents with only a mild skin rash and moderate pain that gradually intensifies, following a parabolic pattern. Despite being frequently observed in clinical settings, the underlying causes of this trajectory and its potential connection with post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN) remain unclear.
METHODS
To investigate this phenomenon in-depth, we conducted a meticulous retrospective study involving 529 eligible HZ patients. All these patients sought medical care at the Third Central Hospital of Tianjin, China, between January 2020 and December 2023.
RESULTS
The research identified that 14.6% of the sample (77 patients) experienced pain scores aligning with a parabolic curve. This trend was significantly more prevalent in patients aged 60 and above, accounting for 90.9% of this group, and demonstrated a positive correlation with age. Moreover, 87.0% of these patients had pre-existing medical conditions, highlighting the potential role of comorbidities in influencing the pain trajectory. A concerning 45.5% of patients sought medical attention more than seven days after the onset of symptoms, a delay that could exacerbate neurological damage. Notably, among those following a parabolic pain pattern, 66.2% eventually developed PHN, a considerably higher rate compared to the broader patient population.
CONCLUSION
We emphasize that healthcare practitioners meticulously assess patients who initially report lower pain scores for high-risk factors potentially leading to parabolic pain increases, including being over 60 years old, having comorbid conditions, and delaying medical consultation beyond seven days from symptom onset. Early implementation of supplementary pain management therapies may mitigate the risk of PHN development and enhance the quality of life for patients. This study furnishes clinicians with a deeper understanding of the variations in HZ-related pain trajectories, promising to improve treatment approaches and prognoses for HZ patients while paving the way for enriched clinical practice in the future.
PubMed: 38939514
DOI: 10.2147/JPR.S461590 -
JACC. Advances Sep 2023Preprocedural anxiety may have detrimental effects both cognitively and physiologically.
BACKGROUND
Preprocedural anxiety may have detrimental effects both cognitively and physiologically.
OBJECTIVES
The objective of this study was to determine the association between state (situational) and trait (persistent in everyday life) anxiety and differences between the adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) and acquired heart disease populations.
METHODS
The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory and financial stress scale were administered to adults with acquired and CHD at 4 tertiary referral centers in the United States prior to cardiac catheterization. Student's -test and least absolute shrinkage and selection operator regression analyses were used to assess differences in anxiety between groups and identify the optimal model of predictors of anxiety.
RESULTS
Of the 291 patients enrolled, those with CHD (n = 91) were younger (age 41.3 ± 16.3 years vs 64.7 ± 11.3 years, < 0.001), underwent more cardiac surgeries ( < 0.001), and had higher levels of trait anxiety (t[171] = 2.62, = 0.001, d = 0.33). There was no difference in state anxiety between groups (t[158.65] = 1.37, = 0.17, d = 0.18). State anxiety was singularly associated with trait anxiety. Trait anxiety was negatively associated with age and positively associated with state anxiety and financial stress. Patients with CHD of great complexity were more trait ([2,88] = 4.21, = 0.02) and state anxious ([2,87] = 4.59, = 0.01), though with relatively small effect size.
CONCLUSIONS
Trait anxiety levels are higher in the ACHD population and directly associated with state anxiety. Specialists caring for ACHD patients should not only recognize the frequency of trait anxiety but also high-risk subgroups that may benefit from psychological or social interventions to reduce preprocedural anxiety.
PubMed: 38939501
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacadv.2023.100589 -
JACC. Advances Sep 2023Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, largely dominated by ischemic heart diseases (IHDs). Social determinants of health, including...
BACKGROUND
Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality, largely dominated by ischemic heart diseases (IHDs). Social determinants of health, including geographic, psychosocial, and socioeconomic factors, influence the development of IHD.
OBJECTIVES
This study aimed to evaluate yearly trends and disparities in IHD mortality and to assess the impact of social vulnerability.
METHODS
We performed cross-sectional analyses using United States county-level mortality data and social vulnerability index (SVI) obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention databases. Age-adjusted mortality rates (AAMRs) per 100,000 population were compared between aggregated U.S. county groups, stratified by demographic information and SVI quartiles. Log-linear regression models were used to identify mortality trends from 1999 to 2020, with inflection points determined through the Monte-Carlo permutation test.
RESULTS
We identified a total of 9,108,644 deaths related to IHD between 1999 and 2020. Overall AAMR decreased from 194.6 in 1999 to 91.8 in 2020. Males (AAMR: 161.51) and Black (AAMR: 141.49) populations exhibited higher AAMR compared to females (AAMR: 93.16) and White (AAMR: 123.34) populations, respectively. Disproportionate AAMRs were observed among nonmetropolitan (AAMR: 136.17) and Northeastern (AAMR: 132.96) regions. Counties with a higher SVI experienced a greater AAMR, with a cumulative excess of 20.91 deaths per 100,000 person-years associated with increased social vulnerability.
CONCLUSIONS
Despite a decline in IHD mortality from 1999 to 2020, disparities persisted among racial, gender, and geographic subgroups. A higher SVI was linked to increased IHD mortality. Policy interventions should prioritize integrating the SVI into health care delivery systems to effectively address these disparities.
PubMed: 38939497
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacadv.2023.100577 -
JACC. Advances Feb 2024With a growing body of evidence that now links environmental pollution to adverse cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes, pollution has emerged as an important risk... (Review)
Review
With a growing body of evidence that now links environmental pollution to adverse cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes, pollution has emerged as an important risk factor for CVD. There is thus an urgent need to better understand the role of pollution in CVD, key pathophysiological mechanisms, and to raise awareness among health care providers, the scientific community, the general population, and regulatory authorities about the CV impact of pollution and strategies to reduce it. This article is part 2 of a 2-part state-of-the-art review on the topic of pollution and CVD-herein we discuss major environmental pollutants and their effects on CVD, highlighting pathophysiological mechanisms, and strategies to reduce CVD risk.
PubMed: 38939394
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacadv.2023.100815 -
JACC. Advances Feb 2024Prenatal urban environmental exposures have been associated with blood pressure in children. The dynamic of these associations across childhood and later ages is unknown.
BACKGROUND
Prenatal urban environmental exposures have been associated with blood pressure in children. The dynamic of these associations across childhood and later ages is unknown.
OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this study was to assess associations of prenatal urban environmental exposures with blood pressure trajectories from childhood to early adulthood.
METHODS
Repeated measures of systolic blood pressure (SBP) and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were collected in up to 7,454 participants from a UK birth cohort. Prenatal urban exposures (n = 43) covered measures of noise, air pollution, built environment, natural spaces, traffic, meteorology, and food environment. An exposome-wide association study approach was used. Linear spline mixed-effects models were used to model associations of each exposure with trajectories of blood pressure. Replication was sought in 4 independent European cohorts (up to 9,261).
RESULTS
In discovery analyses, higher humidity was associated with a faster increase (mean yearly change in SBP for an interquartile range increase in humidity: 0.29 mm Hg/y, 95% CI: 0.20-0.39) and higher temperature with a slower increase (mean yearly change in SBP per interquartile range increase in temperature: -0.17 mm Hg/y, 95% CI: -0.28 to -0.07) in SBP in childhood. Higher levels of humidity and air pollution were associated with faster increase in DBP in childhood and slower increase in adolescence. There was little evidence of an association of other exposures with change in SBP or DBP. Results for humidity and temperature, but not for air pollution, were replicated in other cohorts.
CONCLUSIONS
Replicated findings suggest that higher prenatal humidity and temperature could modulate blood pressure changes across childhood.
PubMed: 38939392
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacadv.2023.100808 -
Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive... 2024The rise in the elderly population has brought attention to mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Sleep disorders also affect many older adults, indicating an important area...
INTRODUCTION
The rise in the elderly population has brought attention to mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Sleep disorders also affect many older adults, indicating an important area of research for disturbed sleep and faster brain aging. This population-based study aimed to investigate the association of several sleep indicators with cognitive performance.
METHODS
This cross-sectional study focused on adults over 50 in the Ardakan Cohort Study on Aging (ACSA). MCI was evaluated using the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and the Abbreviated Mental Test score (AMTS) in literate and illiterate individuals. Sleep characteristics were collected using the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Epworth Sleepiness Scale, and Berlin questionnaire. The logistic regression models were used to analyze the data.
RESULTS
Overall, 3,380 literate and 1,558 illiterate individuals were included. In both groups, participants with MCI had a significantly higher PSQI global score ( < 0.05). Also, among the literate individuals, a significantly higher risk of having sleep-disordered breathing and poor sleep quality was observed in participants with MCI ( < 0.05). In illiterate individuals, higher sleep latency than 15 min increased odds of MCI ( < 0.05). However, after adjusting for all variables, only literate individuals with a sleep duration of more than 8 h had 66 percent increased odds of having MCI ( = 0.033).
CONCLUSION
Sleep duration might be associated with cognitive function in the older Iranian population. Our findings underscore the importance of considering sleep patterns in relation to cognitive health.
PubMed: 38939100
DOI: 10.1159/000539060 -
JACC. Advances Jul 2023Reports of long-term mortality and reintervention after transposition of the great arteries with intact ventricular septum treatment, although favorable, are mostly...
BACKGROUND
Reports of long-term mortality and reintervention after transposition of the great arteries with intact ventricular septum treatment, although favorable, are mostly limited to single-center studies. Even less is known about hospital resource utilization (days at hospital) and the impact of treatment choices and timing on outcomes.
OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this study was to describe survival, reintervention and hospital resource utilization after arterial switch operation (ASO) in a national dataset.
METHODS
Follow-up and life status data for all patients undergoing ASO between 2000 and 2017 in England and Wales were collected and explored using multivariable regressions and matching.
RESULTS
A total of 1,772 patients were identified, with median ASO age of 9.5 days (IQR: 6.5-14.5 days). Mortality and cardiac reintervention at 10 years after ASO were 3.2% (95% CI: 2.5%-4.2%) and 10.7% (95% CI: 9.1%-12.2%), respectively. The median time spent in hospital during the ASO spell was 19 days (IQR: 14, 24). Over the first year after the ASO patients spent 7 days (IQR: 4-10 days) in hospital in total, decreasing to 1 outpatient day/year beyond the fifth year. In a subgroup with complete risk factor data (n = 652), ASO age, and balloon atrial septostomy (BAS) use were not associated with late mortality and reintervention, but cardiac or congenital comorbidities, low weight, and circulatory/renal support at ASO were. After matching for patient characteristics, BAS followed by ASO and ASO as first procedure, performed within the first 3 weeks of life, had comparable early and late outcomes, including hospital resource utilization.
CONCLUSIONS
Mortality and hospital resource utilization are low, while reintervention remains relatively frequent. Early ASO and individualized use of BAS allows for flexibility in treatment choices and a focus on at-risk patients.
PubMed: 38939004
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacadv.2023.100407 -
JACC. Advances Jun 2024Tragically, preeclampsia is a leading cause of pregnancy-related complications and is linked to a heightened risk for morbid and fatal cardiovascular disease (CVD)... (Review)
Review
Tragically, preeclampsia is a leading cause of pregnancy-related complications and is linked to a heightened risk for morbid and fatal cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes. Although the mechanism connecting preeclampsia to CVD risk has yet to be fully elucidated, evidence suggests distinct pathways of early and late preeclampsia with shared CV risk factors but with profound differences in perinatal and postpartum risk to the mother and infant. In early preeclampsia, <34 weeks of gestation, systemic vascular dysfunction contributes to near-term subclinical myocardial damage. Hypertrophy and diastolic abnormalities persist postpartum and contribute to early onset heart failure (HF). This HF risk remains elevated decades later and contributes to premature death. Black women are at the highest risk of preeclampsia and HF. These findings support closer monitoring of women postpartum, especially for those with early and severe preeclampsia to control chronic hypertension and reduce the potentially preventable sequelae of heightened CVD and HF risk.
PubMed: 38938863
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacadv.2024.100980 -
JACC. Advances Jun 2024In 2022, the Life's Simple 7 (LS7) score was replaced with the Life's Essential 8 (LE8) score as a tool to measure cardiovascular health. The risk prediction values of...
BACKGROUND
In 2022, the Life's Simple 7 (LS7) score was replaced with the Life's Essential 8 (LE8) score as a tool to measure cardiovascular health. The risk prediction values of LE8 and LS7 scores for mortality have not been compared. Additionally, the risk prediction value of these scores has not been compared with the pooled cohort equations (PCE) in individuals aged 40 to 79 years.
OBJECTIVES
This study compared the risk prediction value of the: 1) LE8 and LS7 scores in the overall population; and 2) LE8 score, LS7 score, and PCE in the 40- to 79-year-old age group for all-cause and cardiovascular mortality in a nationally representative US population.
METHODS
The LS7 and LE8 scores and the PCE were calculated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey cycles 2007 to 2018. All-cause and cardiovascular mortality were identified by linking the participants to the National Death Index. The C-statistics of the respective weighted Cox models were used to compare the risk prediction value of the standardized scores.
RESULTS
Among 21,721 individuals included, the C-statistics for all-cause mortality were 0.823 (95% CI: 0.803-0.843) and 0.819 (95% CI: 0.799-0.838) in the LE8 and LS7 score-based models, respectively. The C-statistics for cardiovascular mortality were 0.887 (95% CI: 0.857-0.905) for the LE8 score-based model and 0.883 (95% CI: 0.861-0.905) for the LS7 score-based model. Among 12,943 individuals aged 40 to 79 years, the C-statistics for the outcome of all-cause mortality were 0.756 (95% CI: 0.732-0.779), 0.674 (95% CI: 0.646-0.701), and 0.681 (95% CI: 0.656-0.706) for the PCE, LS7 score, and LE8 score-based models, respectively.
CONCLUSIONS
The LS7 and LE8 scores had similar risk prediction values for all-cause and cardiovascular mortality. Among 40- to 79-year-old individuals, the PCE had better risk discrimination in the LE8 and LS7 scores in predicting all-cause mortality.
PubMed: 38938862
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacadv.2024.100945 -
JACC. Advances Jun 2024Cardiogenic shock (CS) in the setting of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Frailty is a common comorbidity in patients...
BACKGROUND
Cardiogenic shock (CS) in the setting of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Frailty is a common comorbidity in patients with cardiovascular disease and is also associated with adverse outcomes. The impact of preexisting frailty at the time of CS diagnosis following AMI has not been studied.
OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of frailty in patients admitted with AMI complicated by CS (AMI-CS) hospitalizations and its associations with in-hospital outcomes.
METHODS
We retrospectively analyzed the National Inpatient Sample from 2016 to 2020 and identified all hospitalizations for AMI-CS. We classified them into frail and nonfrail groups according to the hospital frailty risk score cut-off of 5 and compared in-hospital outcomes.
RESULTS
A total of 283,700 hospitalizations for AMI-CS were identified. Most (70.8%) occurred in the frail. Those with frailty had higher odds of in-hospital mortality (adjusted OR [aOR]: 2.17, 95% CI: 2.07 to 2.26, < 0.001), do-not-resuscitate status, and discharge to a skilled nursing facility compared with those without frailty. They also had higher odds of in-hospital adverse events, including intracranial hemorrhage, gastrointestinal hemorrhage, acute kidney injury, and delirium. Importantly, AMI-CS hospitalizations in the frail had lower odds of coronary revascularization (aOR: 0.55, 95% CI: 0.53-0.58, < 0.001) or mechanical circulatory support (aOR: 0.89, 95% CI: 0.85-0.93, < 0.001). Lastly, hospitalizations for AMI-CS showed an overall increase from 53,210 in 2016 to 57,065 in 2020 ( trend <0.001), with this trend driven by a rise in the frail.
CONCLUSIONS
A high proportion of hospitalizations for AMI-CS had concomitant frailty. Hospitalizations with AMI-CS and frailty had higher rates of in-hospital morbidity and mortality compared to those without frailty.
PubMed: 38938859
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacadv.2024.100949