Die quantitative "real-time"

Die Transplantatvaskulopathie stellt die häufigste Todesursache im langfristigen Verlauf bei Patienten nach Herztransplantation dar. Das morphologische Erscheinungsbild ist gekennzeichnet durch immunologisch bedingte Veränderungen von Arterien und Venen unterschiedlichen Kalibers und mündet zumeist in eine progrediente koronare Herzerkrankung. Durch die Denervierung des Herzens bei der Transplantation fehlen zumeist die klassischen Symptome einer myokardialen Ischämie, so dass ventrikuläre Arrhythmien, Herzinsuffizienz oder der plötzliche Herztod oft die ersten und einzigen Manifestationen der Erkrankung sind. Im Rahmen der routinemäßigen Nachsorgeuntersuchungen nach Herztransplantation ist es daher von Bedeutung, den Beginn der Erkrankung möglichst frühzeitig zu erkennen – am besten eben noch bevor sich erste klinische Anzeichen manifestieren. Unsere Arbeitsgruppe evaluierte die Rolle der Echokardiographie unter medikamentöser Herzbelastung, besonders im Hinblick auf den zusätzlichen diagnostischen Wert durch die Applikation von Ultraschall¬kontrastmitteln. Bei 30 Patienten (durchschnittlich 7,5 Jahre nach Herztransplantation) wurden im Rahmen der Dobutamin-Stressechokardiographie durch die zusätzliche Applikation von Ultraschallkontrastmittel Daten zur myokardialen Perfusion erhoben. Dazu wurden die Echokardiographie in drei Stufen ausgewertet und mit einem kombiniert morphologisch-funktionellen Goldstandard bestehend aus Koronarangiographie, IVUS und Myokard-Perfusions-Szintigraphie verglichen um dem heterogenen Erscheinungsbild der Transplantatvaskulopathie gerecht zu werden. Die ersten zwei Stufen beinhalteten die konventionelle Analyse von Wandbewegung und Wanddickenveränderung sowie die visuelle Beurteilung der Kontrastmittelverteilung im Myokard. Darüber hinaus wurden erstmalig an einem Kollektiv herztransplantierter Patienten Anflutungsgeschwindigkeit des Kontrastmittels und absolutes Perfusionsniveau quantitativ für die einzelnen Myokardabschnitte erfasst. Kurz zum physikalischen Hintergrund: Ultraschallkontrastmittel bestehen aus kleinen Gasgefüllten Mikorbläschen mit einer Phospholipid-Monolayer welche intravenös appliziert werden und mit dem Blutsrom ins Herzen gelangen. Moderne Sonogeräte ermöglichen es, diese Bläschen in vivo in Schwingung zu bringen und sie so sichtbar zu machen. Nach der Abgabe eines hochenergetischen Schallimpulses durch den Schallkopf werden sämtliche Gasbläschen im Myokard zerstört und in den darauf folgenden Herzzyklen kann die Geschwindigkeit der Wiederanflutung sowie die absolute Gasbläschenmenge quantitativ gemessen werden. Da sich das KM homogen im Blut verteilt können somit Rückschlüsse auf Anflutungsgeschwindigkeit und Perfusionsniveau gezogen werden. Bereits durch die visuelle Auswertung der Myokardkontrastechokardiographie ergab sich ein Zugewinn an Sensitivität und Spezifität im Vergleich zur herkömmlichen Dobutamin-Stressechokardiographie in der Diagnostik der hämodynamisch relevanten Transplantatvaskulopathie. Eine weitere Steigerung der Treffsicherheit wurde durch die zusätzlichen quantitativen Myokardanalysen erreicht. Für alle Auswertungen wurde das Myokard in den Standarschnittebenen untersucht und in insgesamt 18 Segmente unterteilt. Oben genannte Wiederanflutungskurven wurden für jedes Segment in Ruhe und bei Belastung gemessen und anschließend voneinander subtrahiert. Diese Delta Werte für den Anstieg der Kurve sowie das Absolute Perfusionsniveau ermöglichen quantitative Aussagen über eine etwaige Perfusionsverschlechterung von Stress im Vergleich zur Ruhe. In der Arbeit konnte gezeigt werden, dass ein präselektioniertes Patientengut von der hohen Sensitivität und Spezifität der Methode profitiert und die Anzahl der routinemäßig durchgeführten Koronarangiographien vermindert werden könnte

Determination of Pericardial Adipose Tissue Increases the Prognostic Accuracy of Coronary Artery Calcification for Future Cardiovascular Events

Objectives: Pericardial adipose tissue (PAT) is associated with coronary artery plaque accumulation and the incidence of coronary heart disease. We evaluated the possible incremental prognostic value of PAT for future cardiovascular events. Methods: 145 patients (94 males, age 60 10 years) with stable coronary artery disease underwent coronary artery calcification (CAC) scanning in a multislice CT scanner, and the volume of pericardial fat was measured. Mean observation time was 5.4 years. Results: 34 patients experienced a severe cardiac event. They had a significantly higher CAC score (1,708 +/- 2,269 vs. 538 +/- 1,150, p 400, 3.5 (1.9-5.4; p = 0.007) for scores > 800 and 5.9 (3.7-7.8; p = 0.005) for scores > 1,600. When additionally a PAT volume > 200 cm(3) was determined, there was a significant increase in the event rate and relative risk. We calculated a relative risk of 2.9 (1.9-4.2; p = 0.01) for scores > 400, 4.0 (2.1-5.0; p = 0.006) for scores > 800 and 7.1 (4.1-10.2; p = 0.005) for scores > 1,600. Conclusions:The additional determination of PAT increases the predictive power of CAC for future cardiovascular events. PAT might therefore be used as a further parameter for risk stratification. Copyright (C) 2012 S. Karger AG, Base

Systematic review of cost-effectiveness of myocardial perfusion scintigraphy in patients with ischaemic heart disease

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a major cause of death and disability. Several diagnostic tests, such as myocardial perfusion scintigraphy (MPS), are accurate for the detection of CAD, as well as having prognostic value for the prediction of cardiovascular events. Nevertheless, the diagnostic and prognostic value of these tests should be cost-effective and should lead to improved clinical outcome. We have reviewed the literature on the cost-effectiveness of MPS in different circumstances: (i) the diagnosis and management of CAD; (ii) comparison with exercise electrocardiography (ECG) and other imaging tests; (iii) as gatekeeper to invasive coronary angiography (ICA), (iv) the impact of appropriate use criteria; (v) acute chest pain, and (vi) screening of asymptomatic patients with type-2 diabetes. In total 57 reports were included. Although most non-invasive imaging tests are cost-effective compared with alternatives, the data conflict on which non-invasive strategy is the most cost-effective. Different definitions of cost-effectiveness further confound the subject. Computer simulations of clinical diagnosis and management are influenced by the assumptions made. For instance, diagnostic accuracy is often defined against an anatomical standard that is wrongly assumed to be perfect. Conflicting data arise most commonly from these incorrect or differing assumptions.</p

In Vivo Monitoring of Parathyroid Hormone Treatment after Myocardial Infarction in Mice with [68Ga]Annexin A5 and [18F]Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography

[68Ga]Annexin A5 positron emission tomography (PET) reveals the externalization of phosphatidylserine as a surrogate marker for apoptosis. We tested this technique for therapy monitoring in a murine model of myocardial infarction (MI) including parathyroid hormone (PTH) treatment. MI was induced in mice, and they were assigned to the saline or the PTH group. On day 2, they received [68Ga]annexin A5 PET or histofluorescence TUNEL staining. Mice had 2-deoxy-2-[18F]fluoro-D-glucose (FDG)-PET examinations on days 6 and 30 for calculation of the left ventricular ejection fraction and infarct area. [68Ga]Annexin A5 uptake was 7.4 ± 1.3 %ID/g within the infarction for the controls and 4.5 ± 1.9 %ID/g for the PTH group (p = .013). TUNEL staining revealed significantly more apoptotic cells in the infarct area on day 2 in the controls (64 ± 9%) compared to the treatment group (52 ± 4%; p = .045). FDG-PET revealed a significant decrease in infarct size in the treatment group and an increase in the controls. Examinations of left ventricular ejection fraction on days 6 and 30 did not reveal treatment effects. [68Ga]Annexin A5 PET can detect the effects of PTH treatment as a marker of apoptosis 2 days after MI; ex vivo examination confirmed significant rescue of myocardiocytes. FDG-PET showed a small but significant reduction in infarct size but no functional improvement. ANIMAL STUDIES have suggested that parathyroid hormone (PTH) treatment after myocardial infarction (MI) shows beneficial effects on infarct size, left ventricular function, and cardiac remodeling and in general attenuates the progression of ischemic cardiomyopathy.1,2 Several mechanisms potentially mediating these effects of PTH have been proposed. First, PTH is known to induce arterial vasodilation by means of a receptor activation evoking intracellular cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) production.1,2 This pathway plausibly exerts beneficial effects on the perfusion of ischemically afflicted myocardium. Second, PTH induces the mobilization of progenitor cells from the bone marrow into the peripheral blood.3 Third, PTH increases plasma levels of cardiac stromal cell–derived factor 1 (SDF-1), a chemokine facilitating the homing of stem cells into the ischemic heart by activation of chemokine receptor type 4 (CXCR4) (SDF-1/CXCR4 axis).4 These effects lead to increased myocardial perfusion, neovascularization, and enhanced cell survival and regeneration, ultimately resulting in less apoptosis and cardiac remodeling and improved postinfarct cardiac function.1 Serial examinations by positron emission tomography (PET) enable serial in vivo molecular imaging of myocardial survival and viability in small-animal infarct models. PET with the glucose analogue 2-deoxy-2-[18F]fluoro-D-glucose (FDG-PET) gives quantitative information about the viability and the function of damaged myocardium in vivo.5 Furthermore, we recently reported that PET with [68Ga]annexin A5 serves to visualize and quantify phosphatidylserine externalization in the area at risk after myocardial ischemia6; the binding of [68Ga]annexin A5 to externalized phospholipids is considered a surrogate marker for myocardial apoptosis. Based on our earlier findings with FDG and annexin PET, we hypothesized that the myocardial viability and externalization of phosphatidylserine on day 2 after MI correlate with the long-term outcome

Characterization of cognitive symptoms in post COVID-19 patients

Cognitive symptoms (CS) belong to the most common manifestations of the Post COVID-19 (PC) condition. We sought to objectify CS in PC patients using routine diagnostic assessments: neurocognitive testing (NCT) and brain imaging (BI). Further, we investigated possible associations of CS with patient reported outcomes (PROs), and risk factors for developing CS. Clinical data and PROs of 315 PC patients were assessed at a mean of 6 months after SARS-CoV-2 infection. 231 (73.3%) patients reported any sort of CS. Among them, 78 underwent NCT and 55 received BI. In NCT, the cognitive domains most affected were the working memory, attention, and concentration. Nonetheless, pathological thresholds were exceeded only in few cases. Neurocognitive performance did not differ significantly between patients complaining of severe (n = 26) versus non-severe (n = 52) CS. BI findings were abnormal in 8 (14.5%) cases with CS but were most likely not related to PC. Patients reporting high severity of CS scored worse in the PHQ-9, FSS, WHOQOL-BREF, were more likely to report impaired sleep, and had a higher prevalence of psychiatric diagnoses. Overall, NCT could confirm mild impairment in some but not all PC patients with CS, while BI studies were abnormal in only few cases. CS severity did not affect NCT results, but severe CS were associated with symptoms of depression (PHQ-9), fatigue (FSS), reduced quality of life (WHOQOL-BREF) and higher prevalence of psychiatric illnesses. These findings support the importance of NCT, BI, and neuro-psychological assessment in the work-up of PC patients reporting CS