Highlights. Cavatricuspid isthmus ablation with pulmonary vein isolation is indicated to all patients with documented or intraoperatively induced typical atrial flutter. The preventive cavatricuspid isthmus ablation remains an issue of concern. The article discusses the risk factors for the onset of typical atrial flutter pulmonary vein isolation.

Aim. To determine the need for preventive ablation of the cavatricuspid isthmus in patients referred to elective pulmonary vein isolation.

Methods. 632 patients (the mean age of 63 years) were enrolled in a single-center retrospective study between 2015 to 2018. The inclusion criteria were as follows: paroxysmal AF, absence of documented AFL. All patients underwent pulmonary vein isolation. The exclusion criteria were as follows: a history of typical or AFL. The endpoints included major cardiovascular events, reoperations, occurrence of AFL. The primary endpoint was the absence of paroxysms of AF and AFL during the blind period. The secondary endpoint was the absence of AF paroxysms documented on the ECG or according to Holter monitoring data. The follow-up period was 12 months.

Results. During the blind period, AF paroxysms were recorded in 148 (23.7%) patients. The efficiency of the operation within one year was 78.2% (494 patients). 138 patients (21.8%) had recurrent tachycardia. Of them, 28 patients (4.4%) were diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and others (17.4%) had AFL. Risk factors for AFL included COPD found in 18 patients (64.29%) (OR 25.4; CI 95%; 10.991-58.609), chronic heart failure in 20 patients (71.43%) (OR 7.434; CI 95%; 3.209-17.225), prolonged pr interval in 18 patients (64.29%) (OR 5.77; CI 95%; 2.288-14.5), a history of myocardial infarction in 6 patients (28.57%) (OR 6.591; CI 95%; 2.447-17.751), and smoking in 7 patients (67.86%) (OR 11.034; CI 95%; 4.849-25.112).

Conclusion. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, chronic heart failure, a history of myocardial infarction, and smoking prolong right atrial conduction time, thereby increasing the risk of AFL in the postoperative period. Preventive cavatricuspid isthmus ablation should be considered in patients with risk factors for developing AFL.

Highlights. The morphology and elemental composition of calcium deposits formed in the tissues of epoxytreated aortic and mitral bioprostheses do not differ from those in the mineralized matrix of stenotic human aortic valve leaflets. Despite similar elemental composition of mineral deposits in the KemCor and UniLine bioprostheses, the morphology of these calcifications differs between bioprosthetic heart valve substitutes and, apparently, is associated with the specific structure of the fibrous matrix of the biological tissues that are used for their manufacturing.

Aim. To analyze the morphology and elemental composition of mineral deposits formed in epoxy-treated aortic and mitral bioprosthetic heart valves made from xenoaortic or xenopericardial material and to compare the obtained findings with the data on calcified human aortic valve.

Methods. Leaflets of the mitral and aortic bioprosthetic heart valves KemCor and UniLine (NeoKor, L Russia, Kemerovo) that were explanted due to their failure, as well as leaflets of the calcified native aortic valve were evaluated. The morphology of calcifications was studied by scanning electron microscopy using an S-3400N microscope (Hitachi, Japan). The elemental composition of calcium deposits was studied by electron probe microanalysis using Hitachi S-3400N microscope with energy dispersive spectrometer Bruker XFlash 4010 (Bruker, Germany).

Results. Large calcifications located at the internal layers of samples were surrounded by collagen fibers commonly with evident signs of the onset of mineralization. Calcium deposits in the native aortic valve and xenoartic bioprostheses KemCor were located mainly at the spongy layer and had a loose structure, while dense lamellar deposits were found at the leaflets of pericardial bioprostheses UniLine. The elemental composition of calcium deposits showed the presence of Ca, P, O, Mg, and Na in the mineralized regions and the presence of S in the regions of low electron density. The calcium to phosphorus ratio (Ca:P) in the calcifications of the aortic valve leaflets was 1.81 (1.79-1.84; min - 1.48; max - 2.05), whereas the Ca:P ratios in the UniLine and KemCor bioprostheses were 1.78 (1.75-1.86; min - 1.52; max - 2.03) and 1.82 (1.81-1.88; min - 1.71; max - 2.06), respectively. There were no significant differences in the Ca:P ratios between calcifications in the study groups (p>0.05).

Conclusion. Calcium deposits detected in epoxy-treated bioprostheses and human aortic valve appeared to be formed under dystrophic calcification. The morphology of calcifications in bioprostheses depended on the type of biological tissue. None correlations between the morphological structure of calcifications and the implantation position were found in bioprosthetic leaflets. The elemental composition of mineral deposits was similar in all study samples.

Highlights. A 12-year experience of myocardial revascularization at the Research Institute of Complex Issues of Cardiovascular Diseases is reported. An increase in the number of patients with comorbidities resulted in more complex surgeries. Perioperative mortality and complication rates are consistent with the reported global data.

Aim. To assess the temporal changes in baseline characteristics of patients with coronary artery disease (CAD), the range of surgical interventions, and the structure of significant in-hospital complications following coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG).

Methods. 9,043 patients who underwent CABG between 2006 and 2018 were identified from a prospective CABG registry. 1,847 (20.4%) were women (the mean age of 63.11±7.4 years) and 7,196 (79.6%) were men (the mean age of 59.0±7.9 years). The main parameters on the underlying cardiovascular disease and comorbidities, the prevalence and extent of non-cardiac atherosclerosis, the type of CABG, and the volume of associated surgical interventions as well as the structure of perioperative complications were included in the statistical analysis.

Results. We determined several trends characterizing the temporal changes in the clinical, morphological, and functional status of patients. The number of women undergoing CABG has increased 2.7-fold. The mean age of patients undergoing CABG has increased by 7.3 years. Patients are present with higher rates of comorbidities, including AF, diabetes (a 2.5-fold increase), hypertension (a 12% increase), as well as severe BCA stenoses (a 2.7-fold increase), a positive history of stroke, or TIA (a 2.1-fold increase). The number of combined surgical procedures during CABG has increased by 2.9. The prevalence of perioperative neurological and hemorrhagic complications requiring revision surgery, and deep wound infection have increased 4.3-fold. Waiting time for elective CABG has significantly reduced. The number of patients with a history of myocardial infarction (a 14.5% decrease) and severe peripheral artery disease has decreased. In-hospital mortality has decreased over the past decade.

Conclusion. Over the past decade, the number of patients with comorbidities who require more complex surgeries has increased at the Research Institute for Complex Issues of Cardiovascular Diseases. Perioperative mortality tends to decrease. However, an increase in the number of neurological, hemorrhagic, and infectious perioperative complications requires the initiation of new preventive measures.

Highlights. The geometry of the left atrium and the growth of the left heart after correction of total anomalous pulmonary venous connection are evaluated for the first time.

Aim. To assess the morphological and functional characteristics of the left heart after correction of total anomalous pulmonary venous connection.

Methods. 40 patients referred to the correction of total anomalous pulmonary venous connection were enrolled in a pilot, two-center, simple, blind, prospective randomized study. Patients were assigned to the sutureless repair group (n = 20) and conventional repair group (n = 20).

Results. In the early postoperative period, the indexed left atrial volume in the group of sutureless repair was 15 (13.65; 17.25) versus 12.85 (10.95; 15.15) in the group of conventional repair, p = 0.057. The end diastolic volume index in the sutureless repair group was 38 (28.5; 45), while in the conventional repair group - 37.1 (31; 47.75), p = 0.48. At the follow-up, the indexed left atrial volume in the group of sutureless repair was 37 (34.5; 38.9) versus 31 (23.6; 35) in the group of conventional repair, p = 0.01. The end diastolic volume index (EDVI) in the group of sutureless repair was 50 (43; 57), while in the group of conventional repair - 50.2 (28.8; 60.9), p = 0.49.

Conclusion. The growth of the left atrium depended on the chosen technique for correcting total anomalous pulmonary venous connection and was higher in the group of sutureless repair (37) compared to the group of conventional repair (31). The proportionality of the growth of the left ventricle did not depend on the surgical technique and was equivalent in both groups.

Highlights. The efficiency of the endovascular treatment combined with medical therapy versus medical therapy has been proven to prevent strokes in patients with vertebral artery atherosclerotic lesions and asymptomatic chronic cerebral ischemia.

Aim. To assess the efficiency of endovascular treatment in patients with asymptomatic vertebral artery atherosclerotic lesions as an approach for secondary prevention of strokes.

Methods. Group 1 patients (n = 44) underwent stenting of the vertebral arteries combined with the medical therapy to prevent strokes, whereas group 2 patients (n = 56) received the medical therapy alone. Group 1 was then subdivided into two subgroups -subgroups 1a and 1b. Subgroup 1a patients underwent (n = 22) stenting using the embolic protection devices, while Subgroup 1b patients (n = 22) - embolic protection devices were not used. The follow-up was up to 36 months with regular visits at 12, 24, and 36 months. The inclusion criteria were as follows: asymptomatic vertebral artery stenosis of 50-95%; the diameter of the vertebral arteries of less than 3.0 and not more than 5 mm; the presence of cerebral and focal symptoms corresponding to asymptomatic chronic brain ischemia (according to E.V. Schmidt).

Results. The overall incidence of spasm and dissection during endovascular intervention was 20% and 4.5% in Subgroup 1a and 1b, respectively (p = 0.0367). 2 (4.5%) patients had transient ischemic attack in Subgroup 1a. There were no perioperative strokes in Subgroup 1b. The overall rate of major cerebral complications over 36 months was 4.5% in Group 1 versus 37.5% in Group 2 (x² = 15.101; p <0.0001). The rate of adverse cardiac events was 9.1% and 19.6%, in Groups 1 and 2, respectively (x² = 14.784; p <0.0001). In-stent restenosis occurred in 38.67% of patients in Group I, who underwent stenting using various generations of stents. In-stent restenosis did not affect the incidence of major cerebral complications in the long-term period (x² = 0.1643; p = 0.735).

Conclusion. Endovascular treatment combined with medical therapy allowed preventing cerebral complications associated with the instability of atherosclerotic plaques in patients with asymptomatic vertebral artery stenosis. It has proved to be an effective method for the secondary prevention of strokes.

Highlights. Vascular healing response after stenting depends on both, procedure- and patient-related factors. The patient's age, lipid metabolism, the presence of heart failure, myocardial infarction, and the thickness of epicardial adipose tissue affect vascular remodeling after everolimus-eluting stent implantation.

Aim. To identify factors affecting vascular healing response after everolimus-eluting stent implantation in patients with non-ST segment elevation acute coronary syndrome.

Methods. 45 patients with non-ST segment elevation acute coronary syndrome who underwent everolimus-eluting stent implantation were included in a study. Stenting was performed without intravascular imaging guidance. All patients underwent repeated coronary angiography and optical coherence tomography of the stented segment 6 (±2) months after the indexed procedure. 39,860 struts in 4,576 sections were analyzed. The number of uncovered and malapposed struts was estimated, and the healing score was calculated. Cardiovascular death, repeated myocardial infarction, and repeated revascularization of the stented segment 12 months after the stenting were evaluated as a combined endpoint.

Results. 5 patients out of 45 reached the endpoint (11.1%), the main component of which was repeated revascularization. Patients who reached the endpoint had a lower healing score (4.5±2.6 and 19.9±17.9, respectively; p = 0.038). The healing score was lower in men (13.7±14.7 and 26.0±20.0, respectively; p = 0.041), those who had myocardial infarction at the time of stenting (5.5±6.7 for myocardial infarction and 19.8±17.9 for unstable angina, p = 0.045), and those who did not have heart failure (12.2±12.4 and 36.7±19.0, respectively; p = 0.0006). The healing score depended on the severity of the coronary lesion (24.8±19.4 for multivessel lesions, 10.0±8.7 for single-vessel lesions, and 7.3±6.3 for two-vessel lesions, respectively; p = 0.019). The linear regression reported the correlation of the healing score with age, atherogenicity coefficient, and the presence of chronic heart failure. The modified healing score depended on the epicardial fat thickness, atherogenicity coefficient, and blood urea level.

Conclusion. The nature and degree of vascular remodeling after everolimus-eluting stent implantation depends on the patient's age, diagnosis, heart failure, lipid metabolism, and the severity of the coronary lesion. The evaluation of vascular healing response may influence the decision on the duration of dual antiplatelet therapy

Highlights. The impact of clinical, angiographic and procedure-related factors on the quality of life of patients with chronic coronary total occlusions has been reported.

Background. The impact of patient-related factors including clinical and angiographic data and procedure-related factors on the quality of life remains debating.

Aim. To assess the impact of baseline and procedure-related factors on the quality of life in patients with chronic coronary total occlusion.

Methods. 140 patients with chronic single-vessel disease randomly assigned either to the invasive-strategy group or the conservative-strategy group. Quality of life was measured in all patients using the Seattle Angina Questionnaire, European Quality of Life Survey, and Rose Dyspnea Scale after 3 and 12 months. To determine the predictors to the quality of life improvements in both groups, simple and multivariate regression analysis were performed. The baseline clinical, angiographic and procedure-related factors were included in the analysis.

Results. The technical success of the procedure was the independent predictor to quality of life improvement in the invasive-strategy group (OR: 5.8, 95%, CI: 3,26-9.18, p = 0.001). The absence of diabetes mellitus (OR: 0.19, 95%, CI: 0.09-0.84, p = 0.04), CTO of other than left anterior descending artery (OR: 2.1, 95%, CI: 1.09-4.0, p = 0.03) and higher SAQ - 7 score at baseline (OR: 1.1, 95%, CI: 1.04-1.21, p = 0.02) independently predicted the improvements in the quality of life. The indicators of quality of life between the subgroups of subintimal and intraluminal recanalization did not differ significantly in the long-term period. The total SAQ-7 score in the subintimal recanalization subgroup was 85.5 ± 9.1 versus 89.3 ± 9.6 in the intraluminal recanalization subgroup (p = 0.21).

Conclusion. The decision on the management of patients with chronic coronary total occlusions should be made individually, taking into account baseline clinical and instrumental data. The recanalization technique does not affect the quality of life. Its choice should be made individually in order to achieve technical success.

Highlights. Telehealth remote monitoring for patients with arterial hypertension has been developed and implemented. A nurse coaching approach has been reported.

Aim. To develop and implement the technology of remote dispensary observation of patients with arterial hypertension (AH) using telemedicine, in which the main performer is a clinic nurse.

Methods. The research object is patients with AH who are under dispensary observation at the territorial polyclinic. The study included 183 patients aged 53±12.5 years, of which 64.5% were women. The duration of observation is from 30 to 90 days. The effectiveness was evaluated on the basis of the achievement of target values of blood pressure (BP), number of visits to the doctor for hypertension decompensation, patient compliance. The program used data processing technology applying telemedicine devices for automatic BP measurement.

Results. In 75.5% of cases, there was a decrease in the average level of systolic and diastolic BP in comparison with the initial levels. A decrease in the maximum systolic BP and in the frequency of decompensation episodes of BP above 160 mm Hg was recorded in 15.8% of patients. Achievement of the target BP level was identified in 64.2% of patients, in 11.3% there was a positive dynamic in the clinical condition without achieving the target figures, in 24.5% of cases, no dynamics was found. The majority of patients (84.2%) preferred remote forms of counseling while maintaining a stable level of indicators. Among 15.8% of patients, the number of visits to a doctor decreased from 2.0 to 0.75 visits per month. High adherence to preventive measures was observed in 88.7% of cases; 100% of patients in the observation group confirmed the use of prescribed antihypertensive drugs.

Conclusion. The original technology of remote dispensary observation of patients with AH using telemedicine devices enhances the continuity in “doctor-nurse-patient” interactions, which contributes to the improvement of medical efficiency by increasing the proportion of patients in the dispensary group who have reached the target level of BP and increase the patients' adherence to preventive measures. Telemedicine technologies reduce the number of scheduled and urgent patient visits to a polyclinic, which is relevant in the context of the shortage of medical personnel and the transition to remote consultation due to the restrictions caused by the epidemic threat [17].

Highlights. Prescribtion patterns of antithrombotic therapy in patients with non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndromes have been comapred in 2020 Russian and European clinical practice guidelines for the management of NSTEMI patients.

A comparative assessment of novel approaches of antiplatelet and anticoagulant therapy recommended in 2020 European and Russian clinical practice guidelines for the management of patients with non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndrome is reported. In prescribing antiplatelet therapy, ESC guidelines suggest focusing attention on a more complex set of regimens to balance ischemic and hemorrhagic risks. Approaches to prescribing anticoagulant therapy do not differ in the recommendations of two medical societies. Fondaparinux has compelling advantages over other drugs regarding the combination of efficacy and safety in patients.

Highlights. Current and emerging approaches in diagnosis and treatment strategies in cardiac tamponade are discussed. Particular attention is focused on the choice between pericardiocentesis or open surgical drainage as live-saving approaches to treat pericardial effusion in patients with urgent conditions.

The article provides a systematic review of the literature on current and emerging approaches in the diagnosis and treatment of cardiac tamponade. We explored the decision-making process in diagnosis and treatment of pericardial decompression in pericardial effusion to provide clinicians with additional support in the assessment of high-risk patients requiring immediate intervention and those patients who should be transferred to specialized clinics and/or can be safely delayed for pericardiocentesis. The complex issues of choosing between pericardiocentesis or open surgical drainage of pericardial effusion to save the lives of patients with urgent conditions are considered. In addition, the practical aspects of manipulations and technologies for monitoring their implementation are highlighted.

Highlights. The article discusses the pathophysiological aspects of cardiopulmonary bypass and the mechanisms underlying the development of the systemic inflammatory response in children following congenital heart surgery. We summarize and report the most relevant preventive strategies aimed at reducing the systemic inflammatory response, including both, CPB-related methods and pharmacological ones.

The growing number of children with congenital heart defects requires the development of more advanced technologies for their surgical treatment. However, cardiopulmonary bypass is required in almost all surgical techniques. Despite the tremendous progress and recent advances in cardiopulmonary bypass techniques, the systemic inflammatory response syndrome associated with these surgeries remains unresolved. The review summarizes the causes and mechanisms underlying its development. The most commonly used preventive strategies are reported, including standard and modified ultrafiltration, leukocyte filters, and pharmacological agents (systemic glucocorticoids, aprotinin, and antioxidants).

The role of cardioplegia and hypothermia in the reduction of systemic inflammation is defined. Cardiac surgery centers around the world use a variety of techniques and pharmacological approaches, drawing on the results of randomized clinical studies. However, there are no clear and definite clinical guidelines aimed at reducing the systemic inflammatory response during cardiopulmonary bypass in children. It remains a significant problem for pediatric intensive care by aggravating their postoperative status, prolonging the length of the in-hospital stay, and reducing the survival rates.

Highlights. A rare case of pulmonary valve infective endocarditis in a patient without medical and social risk factors is reported. The presented treatment strategy is of particular interest to general physicians, cardiologists, and cardiac surgeons.

The incidence of isolated pulmonary valve infective endocarditis is extremely rare in the general population. Thus, clinical physicians do not have their own experience in the differential diagnosis of this pathology. There is a prejudice that Abstract infective endocarditis involving the right side of the heart is commonly associated with intravenous drug abuse. Healthcare professionals lack caution when making this diagnosis in patients. We report a rare clinical case of pulmonary valve infective endocarditis in a patient without medical and social risk factors.