Risultati per: COVID-19: scoperto un nuovo meccanismo di resistenza immunitaria

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4145096-A4145096, November 12, 2024. Introduction:Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) and Inappropriate sinus tachycardia (IST) are common manifestations of cardiovascular dysautonomia (CVAD) in patients with post-COVID-19 syndrome. Studies regarding differences between post-COVID-19 POTS and post-COVID-19 IST have been sparse and based on small patient series.Aims:To examine clinical differences between POTS and IST in patients with post-COVID-19 syndrome.Methods:A cross-sectional observational study based on a dataset of patients diagnosed with post-COVID-19 syndrome and POTS/IST, at Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm in 2020-2023, was performed. Data was retrieved using patients’ medical records. ANOVA, chi-square tests and Fisher’s exact tests were used for analysis.Results:A total of 200 patients diagnosed with post-COVID POTS/IST (ICD-10 codes, I.498 + U.099) were included (female, 85%) and divided into a POTS-group (n=110) and IST-group (n=90). Sixty-one patients (31%) met the diagnostic criteria of both and were included in the IST-group. The mean ages were 38 years for the POTS-group and 42 years for the IST-group (p=0.027). Hypertension was more common within the IST-group (p

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4126987-A4126987, November 12, 2024. Background:COVID-19 infection has been associated with a broad range of clinical manifestations. There are very few reported cases of COVID-19 patients presenting with syncope as an initial symptom. We present an extraordinary case of recurrent neurocardiogenic syncope in a COVID-19 patient.Case:A 66-year-old male presented after experiencing two episodes of syncope. He denied any prodromal or anginal symptoms. His medications included propranolol 10 mg twice daily for essential tremors. He had no family history of unexplained syncope or sudden cardiac death. He was hemodynamically stable and had one episode of fever at 102°F. Telemetry recording showed vagal-mediated sinus arrest and pauses without escape. Blood work showed normal cell counts, electrolytes, thyroid-stimulating hormone, and erythrocyte sedimentation rate, with a slightly elevated C-reactive protein of 22.2 mg/L. He tested positive for COVID-19 and had negative Lyme and Ehrlichia serologies.Decision Making:Due to symptomatic long sinus pauses, propranolol was discontinued, and he received a temporary pacemaker set at 50 beats per minute (bpm). He had another syncopal episode while being paced at 50 bpm, suggesting a neurocardiogenic mechanism, so the pacing rate was increased to 70 bpm. An echocardiogram showed a normal ejection fraction without any significant valvular disease. The syncope was determined to be vasovagal due to autonomic dysfunction in the setting of COVID-19. After 72 hours without further syncope, the temporary pacemaker was removed, and he was discharged home with an implantable loop recorder (ILR). A one-month follow-up showed no syncope, and ILR interrogation showed no bradycardia or pauses.Conclusion:Neurocardiogenic syncope with prolonged asystole and sinus pauses is an uncommon presentation of COVID-19 infection. The clinical course of autonomic dysfunction following COVID-19 is not very clear, and monitoring with an ILR is reasonable before considering permanent pacemaker implantation.

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4117883-A4117883, November 12, 2024. Introduction/Background:Cardiovascular symptoms appear in a high proportion of patients in the few months following a severe SARS-CoV-2 infection. Non-invasive methods to predict disease severity could help personalizing healthcare and reducing the occurrence of these symptoms.Research Questions/Hypothesis:We hypothesized that blood long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) and machine learning (ML) could help predict COVID-19 severity.Goals/Aims:To develop a model based on lncRNAs and ML for predicting COVID-19 severity.Methods/Approach:Expression data of 2906 lncRNAs were obtained by targeted sequencing in plasma samples collected at baseline from four independent cohorts, totaling 564 COVID-19 patients. Patients were aged 18+ and were recruited from 2020 to 2023 in the PrediCOVID cohort (n=162; Luxembourg), the COVID19_OMICS-COVIRNA cohort (n=100, Italy), the TOCOVID cohort (n=233, Spain), and the MiRCOVID cohort (n=69, Germany). The study complied with the Declaration of Helsinki. Cohorts were approved by ethics committees and patients signed an informed consent.Results/Data:After data curation and pre-processing, 463 complete datasets were included in further analysis, representing 101 severe patients (in-hospital death or ICU admission) and 362 stable patients (no hospital admission or hospital admission but not ICU). Feature selection with Boruta, a random forest-based method, identified age and five lncRNAs (LINC01088-201, FGDP-AS1, LINC01088-209, AKAP13, and a novel lncRNA) associated with disease severity, which were used to build predictive models using six ML algorithms. A naïve Bayes model based on age and five lncRNAs predicted disease severity with an AUC of 0.875 [0.868-0.881] and an accuracy of 0.783 [0.775-0.791].Conclusion:We developed a ML model including age and five lncRNAs predicting COVID-19 severity. This model could help improve patients’ management and cardiovascular outcomes.

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4143985-A4143985, November 12, 2024. Introduction:Endothelial dysfunction can trigger the development and progression of cardiovascular disease. We hypothesize that cardiovascular PASC is induced by persistent endothelial dysfunction mediated via asymmetric-dimethylarginine (ADMA, the endogenous inhibitor of endothelial nitric oxide synthase). ADMA levels rise in response to viral infections, but it is usually degraded by the enzyme DDAH1, which is inhibited by chronic inflammation and oxidative stress. This study aims to determine whether cardiovascular PASC is associated with endothelial dysfunction and to clarify the role of ADMA in this relationship.Methods:We recruited subjects who had been previously infected and developed cardiovascular symptoms (PASC+), those who had been infected but did not have PASC (PASC-), and those who had never been infected (controls) (n=20 each). Groups were matched for age, sex, and BMI and underwent blood draws and fat biopsies. Vascular function was assessedin-vivovia ultrasound imaging andex-vivoin fat-isolated arterioles.Results:Compared to PASC- and controls, PASC+ subjects exhibited 80% higher serum levels of ADMA and 40% reduced nitric oxide levels. DDAH1 activity was elevated in the PASC+, suggesting a compensatory mechanism for the elevated ADMA levels. However, PASC+ obese subjects exhibited substantially lower DDAH1 activity than non-obese subjects, which was associated with lower insulin sensitivity and higher ADMA levels. Compared to the other two groups, the PASC+ group exhibited lower brachial artery vasoreactivity, while nitroglycerin-induced dilation did not differ statistically, suggesting impaired endothelial function. In the PASC+ group, microvascular recruitment in response to reactive hyperemia was diminished, as was the ex vivo measured flow-induced arteriolar dilation and NO generation. Left ventricle (LV) dysfunction was observed in 80% of the PASC+ group, as opposed to 5% of the PASC- and controls. The LV ejection fraction and global longitudinal strain (GLS) were substantially reduced in the PASC+ group, which was correlated with higher ADMA, C-reactive protein, and troponin-1, as well as lower NO and vascular function. Obese PASC+ subjects had the highest ADMA and the lowest endothelial-dependent vasodilation and insulin sensitivity.Conclusion:Cardiovascular PASC symptoms are related to persistent endothelial dysfunction and elevated ADMA levels, which may be further exacerbated by obesity and reduced DDAH1 activity.

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4145209-A4145209, November 12, 2024. Background:Acute decompensated heart failure accounts for an increasing proportion of hospitalizations in the United States and is linked to high readmission and 30-day mortality rates. Prior studies suggest up to 17% mortality rate within 30 days for patients admitted with heart failure.Research Questions/Hypothesis:We present an analysis characterizing patients who experienced mortality within 30 days of admission at a large safety net hospital following the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods/Approach:A retrospective review was conducted for all heart failure admissions of patients >18 years of age admitted to the coronary care unit (CCU) at Los Angeles General Medical Center from January to December 2021 after the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Demographics, insurance information, drug use, medication use, heart failure etiology, and CCU interventions were indexed. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality.Results/Data:172 patients were identified during the study period. 10% of patients died within 30 days of admission, of which 94% died during the same admission. Of patients who died during index admission, 88% had heart failure with reduced EF. None of these patients were on all four pillars of guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT), with 33% on one or no GDMT medications.There was not a statistically significant difference in mortality rate when comparing those with active stimulant use 5/60 (8%) to those without active illicit drug use 12/112 (11%) (RR 0.79, 95% CI, p= 0.64).9/17 (53%) patients died of refractory cardiogenic shock, 5/17 (29%) were found in cardiopulmonary arrest of unknown etiology while undergoing treatment for acute decompensated heart failure. Two patients (12%) died of septic shock while 1/17 (5%) died of hemorrhagic shock related to chronic liver disease.Conclusion(s)The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated significant healthcare inequalities, especially for urban underserved populations leading to late presentations of disease and worse outcomes, however, based on our data the overall inpatient mortality rate remained largely similar to pre-pandemic values.

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4125636-A4125636, November 12, 2024. Background:Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS) is a prevalent cardiovascular disorder after COVID-19 infection. Although POTS is characterized by the presence of sinus tachycardia, other hemodynamic disturbances including blood pressure (BP) regulation, remain largely unexplored.Aims:We investigated BP changes using 24-hour ambulatory-BP-monitoring in patients with new-onset POTS after COVID-19 compared with pre-pandemic healthy controls.Methods:We performed a case-control study in 100 verified COVID-19 patients with new-onset POTS (mean age 40.0±12.9 years, 85% women) diagnosed by positive head-up tilt-testing versus 100 healthy controls (mean age 45.0±14.6 years, 70% women) from a population-based cohort with negative active standing test, no history of syncope, orthostatic intolerance, or endocrine disease. We analyzed 24-hour Systolic BP (SBP) and hypotensive SBP episodes (

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4119613-A4119613, November 12, 2024. Introduction:Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI) is recommended for reperfusion of patients presenting with ST-segment myocardial infarction (STEMI) within 90 minutes. In this study, we sought to identify differences in PCI timing based on gender, race and ethnicity in the pre- and post-COVID era.Methods:We collected retrospective data on 760 patients admitted with STEMI at our quaternary academic medical center from 2018-2022. We defined our binary outcome as time to PCI less than 90 minutes, and adjusted for transfers from outside hospitals. We utilized univariate logistic regression analysis to analyze the association of demographic, clinical, and cardiac catheterization details on our outcome. We then utilized multivariate logistic regression analysis to determine the association of our covariates of interests with time to PCI. The logistic regression model was adjusted for collinearity which were deemed not significant.Results:Among our study population, COVID did not significantly impact whether or not a patient had a diagnostic cardiac catheterization on univariate analysis (OR 2.68, 95% CI 0.61-18.40, p=0.23). However, the post-COVID era was significantly associated with a delayed time to PCI on multivariate analysis [OR 1.62, 95% CI 1.04-2.55, p=0.035) [Figure 1]. In addition, females were 1.8x more likely to have a delayed PCI than males on multivariate regression [OR 1.80, 95% CI 1.10-2.95, p= 0.019) [Figure 1]. Interestingly, on multivariate analysis, females were more likely to have delayed reperfusion in the pre-COVID era (OR 2.92, 1.29-6.77,p= 0.01) but not the post-COVID era (OR 1.54, 0.78-3.06,p=0.2134). Patients in the post-COVID era had increased risk of having their culprit coronary not revascularized on multivariate analysis (OR 2.85, 1.2-8.03, p= 0.03).Conclusions:At our center, COVID did not significantly impact cardiac catheterization rates. However, COVID was significantly associated with delayed reperfusion timing and not revascularizing culprit vessels. Females were much more likely to have a delayed PCI than males in the pre-COVID era which was not seen following COVID-19.

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4140218-A4140218, November 12, 2024. Background:Prior data indicated a reduction in mortality among STEMI (ST-elevation myocardial infarction) patients with COVID-19 from 2020 to 2021 in the United States.Objective:To describe national trends and determinants of outcomes among STEMI patients with COVID-19 from 2020-2021.Methods:A retrospective cohort study was conducted using the 2020-2021 Nationwide Inpatient Sample of adults diagnosed with STEMI and COVID-19, assessing in-hospital mortality and the use of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), mechanical ventilation, and mechanical circulatory support (MCS).Results:The study included 6,195 STEMI patients with COVID-19 and revealed stable mortality (18% in 2020 to 21% in 2021,p=0.06). Demographic shifts occurred, with White patients increasing from 52% in 2020 to 66% in 2021 (p

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4145229-A4145229, November 12, 2024. Background:Stress-induced cardiomyopathy (CM) is a form of acute transient left ventricular dysfunction triggered by underlying physiological stress which often leads to increased morbidity and mortality. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is thought to cause stress-induced CM due to overwhelming systemic inflammation. There is paucity of data regarding the impact of COVID-19 on in-hospital outcomes of patients with stress-induced CM. The purpose of this study is to investigate in-hospital outcomes, including mortality and cardiogenic shock, of patients with concomitant COVID-19 and stress-induced CM.Methods:We queried the 2020 USA National Inpatient Sample (NIS) Database in conducting this retrospective cohort study. We identified hospitalized adult patients ≥ 18 years old with stress-induced CM and concomitant COVID-19 using ICD-10 CM codes. We used a survey multivariable logistic and linear regression analysis to calculate adjusted odds ratios (aORs) for outcomes of interest. A p value of

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4141333-A4141333, November 12, 2024. Background:COVID-19 is a multiorgan disease characterized by a prothrombotic state and increased risk of venous thromboembolism (VTE), especially in hospitalized patients. Although prior studies have attempted to identify predictors of VTE, restricted sample size and use of administrative claims data have limited such analyses. We conducted a multivariable analysis to identify predictors of VTE in hospitalized patients with COVID-19 in a multicenter patient-level registry.Methods:We utilized data from the CORONA-VTE Network, a US multicenter registry of 10,420 adult (≥18 years) patients with PCR-confirmed COVID-19 of whom 3,844 were hospitalized. The primary outcome was time-to-first-event for a composite of adjudicated pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis (e.g. lower extremity, mesenteric, gonadal vein, etc.) during 90-day follow-up. The candidate variables were selected by a priori clinical consensus. The variables with ≥20% missing data were excluded, whereas those with missing data

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4146592-A4146592, November 12, 2024. Introduction:Low physical activity (PA) has been identified as a risk factor for development of atrial fibrillation (AF). However, the effect of changes in PA on directly recorded AF burden has not been well studied. The COVID-19 pandemic offered an opportunity to observe whether changes in activity were correlated with changes in AF burden. To determine if reduced PA is associated with higher AF burden, we assessed daily PA and AF burden data from patients with cardiac implantable electronic devices (CIEDs) enrolled in a prospective clinical trial, Targeting Risk Interventions and Metformin for Atrial Fibrillation (TRIM-AF, NCT03603912).Methods:Daily AF burden and activity were determined from implantable cardiac devices with atrial leads. The pandemic lockdown period was analyzed for up to 1 year. Pre-pandemic periods were matched by month to pandemic periods. To test the potential confounding of aging, pre-pre-pandemic periods were matched by month to pre-pandemic periods. To reduce the confounding of study interventions, matched periods were taken on one side of the study enrollment date. For PA and AF burden, Gaussian linear mixed models and a Bayesian mixed effect model were fitted and adjusted for age, sex, and device manufacturers. A Gaussian model was used to correlate daily activity minutes and AF%. Time splines were added to adjust for non-linear time effects. Outcomes are reported as mean activity minutes and daily AF%.Results:Comparing Pandemic vs. Pre-periods (N=82 periods; 55 male, 27 female), daily activity minutes decreased by a mean of 13.16±1.06 minutes/day, and daily AF burden increased by 16% [5%-26%]. Comparing Pre vs. Pre-Pre-Pandemic periods (N=60 periods; 41 male, 19 female), mean activity decreased by 2.28±1.13 mins/day, and AF burden increased by 57% [50%-64%]. A significant negative correlation between activity and AF burden was demonstrated (coefficient -2.0, 95% CI -2.4, -1.6). A decrease in 2.0 activity minutes was associated with a 10% increase in AF burden.Conclusions:This natural history analysis of PA and AF burden demonstrated decreases in activity and increases in AF burden with time and the pandemic. Activity and AF burden were significantly negatively correlated.

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4145299-A4145299, November 12, 2024. Background:COVID-19 can present with a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations ranging from asymptomatic to life-threatening. It is often thought of as a primarily pulmonary infection and different systemic presentations are sometimes overlooked. We present a case of COVID-19 induced myocarditis leading to hemodynamic instability and end-organ dysfunction.Case presentation:A 77-year-old male with a history of CKD, paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, and COPD was transferred to our hospital for a higher level of care due to worsening cardiogenic shock. He was cold and wet (Forrester class IV) with a High Sensitivity troponin of 331 and a BNP level of 21,503. EKG showed atrial fibrillation with RVR but no evidence of acute ischemic changes. A TTE was done which revealed an EF of 30-35% and diffuse hypokinesis with regional variation, a significant reduction from an EF of 50-55% just 4 weeks prior. The patient exhibited end-organ dysfunction, as evidenced by deranged liver function tests and a rise in creatinine from a baseline of 2 to 4.6, indicating congestive hepatopathy and cardiorenal syndrome respectively. The patient’s hemodynamics necessitated milrinone and norepinephrine infusions and efforts to wean them off were unsuccessful due to repeated failed fluid bolus challenges. Considering the patient’s clinical picture, there was a strong suspicion of viral-induced cardiomyopathy, and a COVID-19 infection was confirmed by PCR testing; his last COVID-19 booster dose was in 2021. The patient was promptly started on remdesivir and IV steroids. Unfortunately, the patient’s condition continued to deteriorate, and he succumbed to his illness.Discussion:A myriad of cardiovascular manifestations have been implicated with COVID-19, including ACS, myocarditis, and heart failure. Although the exact underlying mechanisms for each of these conditions are unclear, a complex interplay between direct viral injury, systemic inflammation, and cytokine storm has been hypothesized. Our case illustrates the quick progression of heart failure into cardiogenic shock requiring pressor support, with subsequent rapid decompensation rendering CMR, cardiac catheterization, and biopsy timely impractical. It serves as a reminder to explore COVID-19 as a potential cause of biventricular failure in individuals with no evident reason and rapid clinical deterioration, particularly as early initiation of antiviral therapy could improve prognoses.

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4137878-A4137878, November 12, 2024. Background:The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 was marked by a sharp decrease in out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) survival. Whether OHCA survival has recovered to pre-pandemic levels, and whether changes in OHCA survival are similar across communities of different racial and ethnic composition, is unknown.Methods:We included adult patients with non-traumatic OHCA from 2015-2022 in the Cardiac Arrest Registry to Enhance Survival registry. Using hierarchical multivariable regression, we calculated risk-adjusted rates of survival to hospital discharge during 2015-2019 (reference period) and compared this to survival rates during 2020, 2021, and 2022. We also examined whether the trajectory of survival over this period differed based on the racial/ethnic composition of the community served by the emergency medical service (EMS) agency, defined as predominantly White ( >80% White residents), majority Black or Hispanic ( >50% Black or Hispanic residents), or integrated (neither).Results:Of 485,079 patients with OHCA, mean age was 61.9 years; 64% were male, and 22% were of Black race with 7% of Hispanic ethnicity. Overall, risk-adjusted survival rates to hospital discharge for OHCA decreased from 10.1% in 2015-2019 to 8.4% in 2020 (P

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4126581-A4126581, November 12, 2024. Background:Coronavirus Disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic had a significant impact on emergent and elective treatment strategies in patients with cardiovascular disease. We aimed to examine the impact of COVID-19 on septal reduction therapy (SRT) in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).Methods:National Inpatient Sample 2019-2021 was queried to identify patients with HCM and SRT using appropriate ICD codes. Temporal trends for SRT were obtained before and after COVID-19 outset.Results:There was a significant decline in the number of SRT from 2019 to 2020 (1505 vs. 1180, p

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4139661-A4139661, November 12, 2024. Introduction:Troponin-defined myocardial injury or N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) elevation frequently coincides with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Our prior study (COVID-MI Registry Cohort-1) confirmed that high-sensitive troponin I (HsTnI) and NT-proBNP effectively stratified mortality risk. However, variants of severe acute respiratory syndrome-coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) change rapidly, and it remains unclear whether these biomarkers are consistently effective in predicting prognosis of COVID-19 patients irrespective of epidemic periods.Research Questions:Can HsTnI or NT-proBNP stratify mortality risk in recent COVID-19 cohorts?Aims:To assess the potential of HsTnI and NT-proBNP levels for risk stratification in the recent COVID-19 waves.Methods:In the COVID-MI Registry Cohort-2, we enrolled 1115 consecutive COVID-19 patients admitted between October 2021 and October 2022, during the Omicron variant endemic. We collected data of HsTnI or NT-proBNP levels from hospital charts or using the samples in our hospital’s serum/plasma bank if the data were not available. The primary outcome measure was all-cause mortality.Results:On admission, more than one-third of patients were classified as having severe COVID-19. HsTnI and NT-proBNP levels were available for 427 and 414 patients, respectively. The median HsTnI and NT-proBNP levels were 16 (interquartile range [IQR]: 5-57) ng/L and 524 (IQR: 140-2056) pg/mL, respectively. We stratified the patients into three groups by HsTnI level:

Circulation, Volume 150, Issue Suppl_1, Page A4114220-A4114220, November 12, 2024. Background:It is still not well understood whether cardiac injury observed during acute COVID-19 infection extends after recovery from the initial viral infection. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of left and right ventricular dysfunction in patients hospitalized with acute COVID-19 and evaluate for cardiac recovery.Methods:A multicenter, retrospective cohort study was conducted. Adult patients were identified by hospitalizations using ICD-10 code U07.1 from March 2020 to October 2021. Patients were included if they had: 1) acute COVID-19 infection confirmed by RT-PCR and 2) a transthoracic echocardiogram (TTE) performed during their hospitalization. Clinical and echocardiographic data were collected and analyzed. Longitudinal TTE parameters were obtained from follow-up studies performed after discharge.Results:A total of 750 patients (mean age 64.3 ± 15.3 years, 60.0% male) were included. The average time to follow-up TTE was 8.7± 7.4 months. 133 patients (17.7%) had new LV dysfunction seen on TTE (Figure 1). LV recovery (defined as normalization of LVEF or improvement of LVEF by >10% from baseline) was observed in 28 of 74 (37.8%) survivors. 9 of 26 patients (34.6%) who had a follow-up TTE