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JACC. Advances Jan 2024A simple ambulatory measure of cardiac function could be helpful for monitoring heart failure patients.
BACKGROUND
A simple ambulatory measure of cardiac function could be helpful for monitoring heart failure patients.
OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this paper was to determine whether a novel pulse waveform analysis using data obtained by our developed multisensor-ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM) device, the 'Sf/Am' ratio, is associated with echocardiographic left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF).
METHODS
Multisensor-ABPM was conducted twice at baseline in 20 heart failure (HF) patients with HF-reduced LVEF or HF-preserved LVEF (median age 66 years, male 65%) and over a 6- to 12-month follow-up after patient-tailored treatment. We assessed the changes in the pulse waveform index Sf/Am and LVEF that occurred between the baseline and follow-up. The Sf/Am consists of the area of the ejection part in the square forward wave (Sf) and the amplitude of the measured wave (Am). We divided the patients into the recovered (n = 11) and not-recovered (n = 9) groups defined by a ≥10% increase in LVEF.
RESULTS
Although the ambulatory BP levels and variabilities did not change in either group, the Sf/Am increased significantly in the recovered group (baseline 21.4 ± 4.5; follow-up, 25.6 ± 3.7, = 0.004). The not-recovered group showed no difference between the baseline and follow-up. The follow-up/baseline Sf/Am ratio was significantly associated with the LVEF ratio ( = 0.469, = 0.037). The Sf/Am was significantly correlated with the LVEF in overall measurements (n = 40, = 0.491, = 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS
These results demonstrated that a novel noninvasive pulse waveform index, the Sf/Am measured by multisensor-ABPM is associated with LVEF. The Sf/Am may be useful for estimating cardiac function.
PubMed: 38939805
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacadv.2023.100737 -
American Journal of Preventive... Jun 2024The American Heart Association's (AHA) Life's Essential 8 (LE8) score is a helpful tool to quantify cardiovascular health (CVH) metrics. We sought to assess sex...
BACKGROUND
The American Heart Association's (AHA) Life's Essential 8 (LE8) score is a helpful tool to quantify cardiovascular health (CVH) metrics. We sought to assess sex differences in relation to LE8 and its components along with association with mortality.
METHODS
The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) between 2009 and 2018 was utilized to evaluate the prevalence of health metrics included in LE8 among adult participants > age 18, stratified by sex. We categorized overall CVH, health factors, and health behaviors into 3 levels (low: <50, moderate: 50 -79, high: ≥80) following the AHA's algorithm. Health metrics were further subdivided into health behaviors (diet, physical activity, nicotine exposure, and sleep) and health factors (body mass index, non-high density lipoprotein cholesterol, blood glucose, and blood pressure). LE8 scores were also evaluated based on age, race/ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. Cox proportional hazard models were used to evaluate the association between the levels of CVH and risk of all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, with adjustment for age group and race.
RESULTS
Among 22,761 participants, 52 % were female. Overall CVH score was similar in both females and males (65.8 vs. 65.9). Females had higher health factors score (64.3 vs. 63.1, < 0.001) and lower health behaviors score (67.2 vs 68.6, < 0.001). Amongst individual metrics, blood pressure score was higher in females (73.2 vs. 67.7, < 0.001) while males had higher physical activity score (70.6 vs. 54.9, < 0.001). For individuals under 65 years of age, overall CVH and health factors scores were higher in females while in those age 65 or older, males had higher scores. The most prominent sex differences were noted in non-Hispanic Black females who had significantly lower CVH scores than Black males (62.6 vs. 74.7, respectively, < 0.001. High LE8 scores vs. low LE8 scores demonstrated lower all-cause (HR 0.37 vs 0.35) and CV mortality (HR 0.35 vs. 0.36) in both males and females, respectively (p-interaction 0.21 and 0.28). High health behaviors scores also demonstrated a significant association with lower all-cause (0.34 vs. 0.24) and CV mortality (HR 0.47 vs. 0.26) in both males and females, respectively (p-interaction 0.20 and 0.11).
CONCLUSIONS
We demonstrate important sex differences in CVH metrics along with notable variations based on age and race/ethnicity. Furthermore, we highlight that CVH metrics including health factors and health behaviors are associated with mortality in both females and males. These findings underscore the importance of designing and implementing effective strategies for both sexes, aimed at targeting these specific factors.
PubMed: 38939696
DOI: 10.1016/j.ajpc.2024.100685 -
JACC. Advances Apr 2024A treatment strategy for congenital heart defects with moderate to severe pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) has not been established.
BACKGROUND
A treatment strategy for congenital heart defects with moderate to severe pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) has not been established.
OBJECTIVES
The purpose of this study was to identify patients in whom a treat and repair strategy was considered and to examine pretreatment variables associated with successful defect repair.
METHODS
Patients with atrial or ventricular septal defect and PAH (pulmonary vascular resistance [PVR] ≥ 5 Wood units) eligible for the treat and repair strategy were included. Hemodynamics among pretreatment, pre-repair, and post-defect repair were compared. Clinical outcomes in patients with or without defect repair were also compared. Clinical outcomes included all-cause death, hospitalization for worsening pulmonary hypertension, and lung transplantation.
RESULTS
Among 25 eligible for the treat and repair strategy, 20 underwent successful repair (repaired group) and 5 did not have a repair (unrepaired group). In the repaired group, PVR significantly decreased from 9.6 ± 2.6 WU at pretreatment to 5.0 ± 3.4 pre-repair (ß coefficient -4.6 [95% CI: -5.9 to -3.3]). The pulmonary to systemic blood flow ratio (Qp/Qs) increased from 1.5 ± 0.6 at pretreatment to 2.4 ± 1.3 pre-repair (ß coefficient 0.9 [95% CI: 0.4-1.38]). In the unrepaired group, pretreatment PVR decreased with treatment; however, PVR remained elevated. Qp/Qs did not change between pretreatment and post-treatment. The repaired group had a better prognosis than the unrepaired group (HR 0.092 [95% CI: 0.009-0.905]). Pretreatment mean pulmonary artery pressure, PVR, Qp/Qs, and arterial oxygen saturations were associated with undergoing defect repair.
CONCLUSIONS
In this small cohort, a treat and repair strategy was successfully used in a significant proportion of the patients with congenital heart defects with moderate to severe PAH.
PubMed: 38939653
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacadv.2024.100887 -
Frontiers in Public Health 2024Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of mortality on a global scale. Individuals who possess risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as high blood... (Review)
Review
Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of mortality on a global scale. Individuals who possess risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as high blood pressure (BP) and obesity, face an elevated risk of experiencing organ-specific pathophysiological changes. This damage includes pathophysiological changes in the heart and peripheral vascular systems, such as ventricular hypertrophy, arterial stiffening, and vascular narrowing and stenosis. Consequently, these damages are associated with an increased risk of developing severe cardiovascular outcomes including stroke, myocardial infarction, heart failure, and coronary heart disease. Among all the risk factors associated with cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure emerges as the most prominent. However, conventional resting BP measurement methods such as auscultatory or oscillometric methods may fail to identify many individuals with asymptomatic high BP. Recently, exercise BP has emerged as a valuable diagnostic tool for identifying real (high) blood pressure levels and assessing underlying cardiovascular risk, in addition to resting BP measurements in adults. Furthermore, numerous established factors, such as low cardiorespiratory fitness and high body fatness, have been confirmed to contribute to exercise BP and the associated cardiovascular risk. Modifying these factors may help reduce high exercise BP and, consequently, alleviate the burden of cardiovascular disease. A significant body of evidence has demonstrated cardiovascular disease in later life have their origins in early life. Children and adolescents with these cardiovascular risk factors also possess a greater propensity to develop cardiovascular diseases later in life. Nevertheless, the majority of previous studies on the clinical utility of exercise BP have been conducted in middle-to-older aged populations, often with pre-existing clinical conditions. Therefore, there is a need to investigate further of the factors influencing exercise BP in adolescence and its association with cardiovascular risk in early life. Our previously published work showed that exercise BP is a potential useful method to detect adolescents with increased cardiovascular risk. Children and adolescents with cardiovascular risk factors are more likely to develop cardiovascular diseases later in life. However, previous studies on the clinical utility of exercise BP have largely focused on middle-to-older aged populations with pre-existing clinical conditions. Therefore, there is a need to investigate further the factors influencing exercise BP in adolescence and its association with future cardiovascular risk. Our previous studies, which focused on exercise BP measured at submaximal intensity, have shown that exercise BP is a potentially useful method for identifying adolescents at increased cardiovascular risk. Our previous findings suggest that improving cardio-respiratory fitness and reducing body fatness may help to reduce the risk of developing cardiovascular disease and improve overall cardiovascular health. These findings have important implications for the development of effective prevention and early detection strategies, which can contribute to improved public health outcomes.
Topics: Humans; Child; Adolescent; Cardiorespiratory Fitness; Cardiovascular Diseases; Blood Pressure; Exercise; Risk Factors; Male; Heart Disease Risk Factors; Female
PubMed: 38939566
DOI: 10.3389/fpubh.2024.1298612 -
BMJ Public Health Mar 2024In Kenya, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are estimated to account for almost one-third of all deaths and this is likely to rise by over 50% in the next 10 years. The...
INTRODUCTION
In Kenya, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are estimated to account for almost one-third of all deaths and this is likely to rise by over 50% in the next 10 years. The Primary Health Integrated Care for Chronic Conditions (PIC4C) project aims to strengthen primary care by integrating comprehensive NCD care into existing HIV primary care platform. This paper evaluates the association of PIC4C implementation on clinical outcomes.
METHODS
Outcomes included proportion of new patients, systolic blood pressure (SBP), fasting plasma glucose (FPG), diastolic blood pressure, hypertension control, random plasma glucose, diabetes control, viral load and HIV viral suppression. We used interrupted time series and binomial regression with random effects for facility-level data and generalised mixed-effects regression for visit-level data to examine the association between PIC4C and outcomes between January 2017 and December 2021. We conducted sensitivity analysis with restrictions on sites and the number of visits.
RESULTS
Data from 66 641 visits of 13 046 patients with hypertension, 24 005 visits of 7267 patients with diabetes and 84 855 visits of 21 186 people with HIV were analysed. We found evidence of association between PIC4C and increase in proportion of new patients per month with hypertension (adjusted OR (aOR) 1.57, 95% CI 1.39 to 1.78) and diabetes (aOR 1.31, 95% CI 1.19 to 1.45), small increase in SBP (adjusted beta (aB) 1.7, 95% CI 0.8 to 2.7) and FPG (aB 0.6, 95% CI 0.0 to 1.1). There was no strong evidence of association between PIC4C and viral suppression (aOR 1.20, 95% CI 0.98 to 1.47). In sensitivity analysis, there was no strong evidence of association between PIC4C and SBP (aB 1.74, 95% CI -0.70 to 4.17) or FPG (aB 0.52, 95% CI -0.64 to 1.67).
CONCLUSIONS
PIC4C implementation was associated with increase in proportion of new patients attending clinics and a slight increase in SBP and FPG. The immediate post-PIC4C implementation period coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, which is likely to explain some of our findings.
PubMed: 38939473
DOI: 10.1136/bmjph-2023-000146 -
JACC. Advances Feb 2024
PubMed: 38939401
DOI: 10.1016/j.jacadv.2023.100807 -
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 -
Wellcome Open Research 2021When the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) was planned, it was assumed that the clinical obstetric data would be easily accessible from the newly...
BACKGROUND
When the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) was planned, it was assumed that the clinical obstetric data would be easily accessible from the newly developed National Health Service computerised 'STORK' system. Pilot studies, however, showed that, although fairly accurate in regard to aspects of labour and delivery, it was, at the time (1990-2), inadequate for identifying the full antenatal and postnatal details of clinical complications and treatments of the women in the Study.
METHODS
A scheme was therefore developed to train research staff to find and abstract relevant details from clinical records onto proformas designed for the purpose. Extracting such data proved very time consuming (up to six hours for complicated pregnancies) and consequently expensive. Funding for the enterprise was obtained piecemeal using specific focussed grants to extract data for subsamples of the Study, including a random sample to serve as controls.
RESULTS
To date, detailed records have been completed for 8369 pregnancies, and a further 5336 (13,705 in total) have complete details on specific prenatal areas, including serial measures of maternal blood pressure, proteinuria and weight. In this Data Note we describe the information abstracted from the obstetric medical records concerning the mother during pregnancy, labour, delivery and the first two weeks of the puerperium. Information abstracted relating to the fetus (including fetal monitoring, presentation, method of delivery) and neonate (signs of asphyxia, resuscitation, treatment and well-being) have been described in a further Data Note.
CONCLUSIONS
These data add depth to ALSPAC concerning ways in which the signs and symptoms, procedures and treatments of the mother prenatally, intrapartum and postnatally, may impact on the long-term health and development of both mother and child. They augment the data collected from the mothers' questionnaires (described elsewhere) and the 'STORK' digital hospital data.
PubMed: 38939328
DOI: 10.12688/wellcomeopenres.16603.2 -
Cureus May 2024Hypertension (HTN), a leading risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, is intricately linked with endothelial dysfunction, a hallmark of vascular pathology. The effect...
INTRODUCTION
Hypertension (HTN), a leading risk factor for cardiovascular diseases, is intricately linked with endothelial dysfunction, a hallmark of vascular pathology. The effect of oxidative stress in maintaining the optimum endothelial function in the regulation of blood pressure is yet to be explored. While numerous factors contribute to the pathogenesis of HTN, emerging evidence highlights the pivotal role of oxidative stress in endothelial dysfunction, offering novel insights into the underlying mechanisms.
AIM
Our study delves into the multifaceted relationship between oxidative stress and endothelial dysfunction in HTN, elucidating key molecular pathways and potential therapeutic avenues. Our study aims to find out the association between oxidative stress and endothelial function in the regulation of blood pressure.
METHODS
A total of 108 age-matched participants of both genders were divided into three groups by following the guidelines of the American Heart Association (AHA) classification for HTN. Blood pressure was recorded manually in resting posture three times at an interval of 10 minutes using a sphygmomanometer after providing 10 minutes of rest before the first reading. Parameters of oxidative stress and endothelial function were measured by using a UV spectrophotometer. Our study results were depicted as mean ± SD.
RESULTS
The correlation between our variables was performed using Spearman's correlation considering the value of p<0.05 as statistically significant. Serum malondialdehyde (MDA), a parameter of oxidative stress, was found to be increasing and serum nitric oxide (NO), a parameter to assess endothelial function, was found to be decreasing as the blood pressure increased. These observations are indicative that optimal oxidative stress and optimal endothelial function are required to maintain normal blood pressure regardless of gender.
CONCLUSIONS
All persons who are suspected of future cardiovascular risks should be regularly checked for these parameters to avoid cardiovascular morbidity such as HTN.
PubMed: 38939274
DOI: 10.7759/cureus.61245 -
International Journal of Cardiology.... Aug 2024A deep Y descent in the jugular venous pulse (JVP) is associated with diseases such as a decrease in right ventricular (RV) preload reserve. The present study...
BACKGROUND
A deep Y descent in the jugular venous pulse (JVP) is associated with diseases such as a decrease in right ventricular (RV) preload reserve. The present study investigated the relationship between RV-pulmonary arterial (PA) coupling and a deep Y descent, examined risk factors for a deep Y descent and clarified whether a deep Y descent was an independent risk factor for cardiac events irrespective of RV-PA coupling in patients with heart failure (HF).
METHODS
We enrolled 350 patients with HF who underwent echocardiography and JVP examination. A deep Y descent was identified by a deeper 'Y' descent than 'X' descent in the JVP waveform. We defined cardiac events of HF as follows: sudden death, death from HF, the emergent infusion of loop diuretics, or hospitalization for decompensated HF.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS
A deep Y descent and cardiac events were observed in 129 and 83 patients, respectively. The prevalence of a deep Y descent increased with decreases in the tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE)/systolic pulmonary arterial pressure (SPAP) ratio. Not only the TAPSE/SPAP ratio (odds ratio,0.756 per0.1 mm/mmHg, 95 %confidence interval [CI], 0.660-0.866, p < 0.001), but also age, atrial fibrillation, and the use of beta-blockers were independent factors for a deep Y descent in multivariate logistic model. Multivariate Cox hazard model demonstrated that a deep Y descent was for cardiac events in patients with HF (Hazard ratio,2.682, 95 %CI, 1.599-4.497, p < 0.001) irrespective of the TAPSE/SPAP ratio. The development of therapeutic strategies based on central venous waveform may be needed for patients with HF.
PubMed: 38939016
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijcha.2024.101439