Cor et Vasa, 2022 (vol. 64), issue 3

Original research articles

(Cardiac electronic device extraction - our experience)

Jan Látal, Marian Fedorco, Jan Pyszko, Tomáš Skála, Ondřej Moravec, David Břečka, Martin Hutyra, Miloš Táborský

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):271-275 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2021.135

Aims: Objective of this study is to register data and trends in population of patients indicated for lead extraction or complete system removal. Basic demographic data, extraction success rate as well as complications, mortality, and its predictors were collected. Methodology: Prospectively collected consequent patients indicated to lead extraction or system removal from our centre were included. Data regarding demography, device age, device type, extraction method and one month and one year mortality were collected. Outcomes: 172 patients were enrolled between years 2017-2020. 59.3% patients were indicated because of cardiac system infection. Success...

The Effect of Renin-Angiotensin Blockers on COVID-19 Related Mortality: A Tertiary Center's Experience

Ersan Oflar, Atilla Koyuncu, Murat Erdem Alp, Hayat Kumbasar Karaosmanoglu, Orcun Unal, Metin Onur Beyaz, Didem Melis Oztas, Murat Ugurlucan, Fatma Nihan Turhan Caglar

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):277-281 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2021.123

Background: The first reports on coronaviruse disease 2019 (COVID-19) revealed an exaggerated mortality rate in hypertensive patients. In this regard, concerns about angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors' and angiotensin-receptor blockers' (ARBs) have been aroused. Our aim in this study was to evaluate the potential bad outcome effect of hypertension and anti-hypertensive therapy on COVID-19. Methods: 183 patients with polymerase-chain-reaction (PCR)-proven COVID-19, who were admitted to our hospital and consulted to cardiology department between 15th of March and 15th of April 2020 were included. Data were recruited from hospital records....

(Atrial fibrillation as risk factor in patients after cardiac arrest for ventricular fibrillation)

Jiří Šmíd, Vlastimil Vančura, Richard Rokyta

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):282-289 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2022.025

Atrial fibrillation is the most common arrhythmia in adults. Several studies were focused on the association between atrial fibrillation and other heart diseases, including sudden cardiac death. Aim: The aim of our study was to analyse the incidence of atrial fibrillation as a risk factor after sudden cardiac arrest for ventricular fibrillation. Methods: Retrospective, monocentric study included 514 people after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) hospitalized in the Cardiology Intensive Care Unit. Patients underwent standard post-resuscitation management (including coronary angiography and echocardiography). The case history of patients was found...

Review articles

The power and wisdom of prevention. Cardiovascular risk, new challenge, and approach to PLWH

Ricardo Massmann, David Jilich, Lukáš Fleischhans, Marek Malý, Ladislav Machala

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):291-299 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2021.132

In recent years, quality of life is one of the important points of discussion among specialists working with people living with HIV (PLWH). With the introduction of highly effective antiretroviral therapy (1996), the expectation of life has dramatically increased and atherosclerotic diseases have become an important cause of morbidity and mortality in people infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Cardiovascular diseases are the third leading cause of mortality in HIV patients behind non-AIDS-related malignancies and non-AIDS-related infection. One of the many aspects in the treatment of PLWH concerns the prevention of cardiovascular diseases....

Functional Evaluation of Coronary Stenosis: is Quantitative Flow Ratio a Step Forward?

Lutfu Askin, Okan Tanriverdi, Enes Gul

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):300-304 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2022.032

The severity of coronary lesions (CL) has always been an important aspect of patient care during coronary angiography. Fractional flow reserve (FFR)-guided coronary treatments have been shown to have a positive influence on clinical outcomes. However, significant technical flaws in clinical practice have slowed global adoption of FFR. Other indices, such as the quantitative flow ratio (QFR), have recently been created and tested in clinical research. According to a computational fluid dynamics study, QFR has a good correlation with FFR values and saves time and money compared to other methods. QFR is a new angiographic technique that uses modern software...

(Is it time to replace acetylsalicylic acid monotherapy in secondary prevention with a more effective treatment?)

Petr Widimský, Zuzana Moťovská

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):305-309 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2021.139

For more than 20 years, pharmacological treatments have been known to be more effective than the still most widely used monotherapy with acetylsalicylic acid (ASA) alone in the secondary prevention of atherosclerosis complications (coronary or peripheral). These long-established treatments include the combination of ASA with warfarin and clopidogrel monotherapy (without ASA). In the first case, this combination did not make it into practice because of the increased incidence of major bleeding, which counteracted the positive effect on reducing ischaemic events and resulted in the absence of any difference in mortality. In the second case, clopidogrel...

(Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Myocarditis: Current Views on Diagnosis and Treatment)

Barbora Chocholová, Petr Kuchynka, Tomáš Paleček

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):310-315 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2022.026

Immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) administration represents relatively new modality of cancer therapy that is increasingly used in the treatment of many malignancies, as its administration significantly improves survival of the patients. However, ICI administration may lead to several side effects, including cardiotoxic, with the most common and severe manifestation being the subject of this review, ICI-associated myocarditis. Although ICI-associated myocarditis has a low incidence, its mortality is high, reaching almost 50%. It is therefore important to be aware of the existence of ICI-associated myocarditis, its clinical manifestations, timely diagnosis,...

(Vericiguat - soluble guanylate cyclase stimulator, in therapy of heart failure)

Vojtěch Melenovský

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):316-319 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2022.034

Chronic heart failure is associated with reduced bioavailability of nitric oxide (NO) in the myocardial tissue and in the kidney, leading to fibrosis, inflammation and pathologic hypertrophy. It is possible to stimulate directly NO-cGMP signaling pathway by stimulating soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC) that represents an endogenous receptor for NO. Direct sGC stimulator vericiguat (Verquvo^®) is a drug developed specifically for patients with chronic heart failure and that has minimal hypotensive effects, has no significant drug interactions and can be used also in advanced renal dysfunction. Vericiguat was effectively tested in population...

Guidelines

Jak používat digitální techniku k detekci a monitorování arytmií v péči o jedince s poruchami srdečního rytmu: Praktický návod Evropské asociace srdečního rytmu (EHRA).Překlad dokumentu připravený Českou kardiologickou společností

Miloš Táborský, Josef Kautzner, Marián Fedorco, Karol Čurila, Hanka Wünschová, Jan Pyszko, Miroslav Novák, Milan Kozák, Martin Válek, Rostislav Polášek, Patrik Keprt, Milena Kubíčková, Jiří Plášek, Vít Gloger, Alan Bulava, Vlastimil Vančura, Tomáš Skála, Petr Pařízek, Josef Daněk

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):337-358 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2022.070

Case reports

A rare association of avian aortic arch with a mid-arch narrowing of the aorta

Hend Keskes, Emna Bennour, Ahmed Sghaier, Ikram Kammoun, Meriem Affes, Sonia Marrakchi, Salem Kachboura

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):320-323 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2021.061

Background: Variations of the aortic arch and its branches appear in a large number of possible combina- tions. Mid-aortic arch narrowing is rare, and represents 2.5-3.5% of all aortic coarctations. Avian arch is a two-branch arch with common origin of bilateral common carotids and common origin of bilateral subclavian arteries. It seems to be exceptional in humans. Although these two anomalies are well identified in isolation, their association seems very rare. Case presentation: We report a case of a 50-year-old patient presenting to our department complaining of dizziness and on-exertion fatigue of the upper limbs. Medical history revealed no hypertension...

Splenic rupture secondary to ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm

Serdar Badem, Ali Onder Kilic

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):324-326 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2021.136

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) rupture requires rapid diagnosis and treatment and has a high mortality rate without treatment. In patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm rupture, the conditions of the abdominal organs should be evaluated and the treatment approach should be determined accordingly. In this report, we present our patient with early splenic rupture who underwent endovascular aortic replacement (EVAR) due to ruptured AAA.

(Application of hemoconcentration and plasma volume estimation indicators in the evaluation of the degree of congestion in a patient with heart failure)

Tereza Šťastná

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):328-330 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2021.125

Volume overload is still one of the most important problems associated with chronic heart failure and it is a significant prognostic factor. Monitoring of diuretic therapy by using hemoconcentration indicators and plasma volume estimation can help us increase the effectiveness of a treatment and improve drug dose titration in the context of the patient's clinical condition. In this article we would like to present a 75-year-old patient with heart failure with a preserved ejection fraction and demonstrate on her example how to use a few simple equations to estimate plasma volume and its changes.

(Home-based remote cardiovascular rehabilitation in a patient after coronary intervention during COVID-19 pandemic - a case study)

Jitka Mináriková, Marián Felšőci

Cor Vasa 2022, 64(3):331-335 | DOI: 10.33678/cor.2021.117

Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) provides multidisciplinary management in the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease. In 2020, the public health during the COVID-19 pandemic was a primary concern, and there were no clear recommendations on how to practice phase II CR. This case report has described the implementation of alternative CR in remotely guided telerehabilitation. The patient was monitored remotely for 12 weeks, followed by a one-year follow-up. Time series were evaluated with a comparison of cardiorespiratory fitness and body composition. The remotely guided CR and long-term observation results led to an expected significant improvement...