Cardiovascular Medicine

Mid-term repair durability after MitraClip implantation in patients with functional mitral regurgitation Background The aim of this study was to identify variables that are associated with the durability of percutaneous repair of secondary mitral regurgitation at 6-month follow-up. Methods and results Thirty-five consecutive patients with functional mitral regurgitation scheduled for MitraClip implant were enrolled. Left ventricular (LV) volumes and function and mitral valve characteristics were assessed before and immediately after MitraClip implantation using three-dimensional transesophageal echocardiography. Five patients with an unsuccessful procedure were excluded. The other patients were subdivided according to repair durability: group 1 with a durable repair (19 patients, 65%) and group 2 with significant mitral regurgitation recurrence (11 patients, 35%). At baseline, group 1 patients had smaller and more elliptical mitral valve annulus (1055 ± 241 vs. 1273 ± 359 mm2, P = 0.02 and 125 ± 11 vs. 117 ± 16%, P = 0.02), a smaller left atrial volume (54.1 ± 26 vs. 71.5 ± 20 ml, P = 0.005) and lower systolic pulmonary artery pressure (38 ± 11 vs. 49 ± 12 mmHg, P = 0.03). Baseline LV end systolic volume had a linear correlation with the 3D annulus area (P = 0.048) and an inverse correlation with annulus ellipticity (P = 0.021). Group 1 patients showed an increase in annulus ellipticity after MitraClip (125 ± 17 vs. 141 ± 23%, P = 0.014). Conclusion Percutaneous mitral valve repair leads to a significant and stable mitral regurgitation reduction in a large number of patients. Annulus dimensions and remodeling as well as left atrial area and pulmonary hypertension seem to be associated with durability of the procedure. Correspondence to Sara Cimino, MD, Department of Cardiovascular, Respiratory, Nephrological, Anesthesiological and Geriatric Sciences, ‘Sapienza’ University of Rome, Policlinico Umberto I, Viale del Policlinico 155, 00161 Roma, Italy Tel: +39 6 49979048; fax: +39 6 49979060; e-mail: sara.cimino@uniroma1.it Received 3 January, 2019 Revised 1 July, 2019 Accepted 7 July, 2019 © 2019 Italian Federation of Cardiology. All rights reserved.

Prognosis in patients with microvascular angina: a clinical follow-up The prognosis of patients with microvascular angina (MVA) has been reported to be good. In 10–20% of the cases, the symptoms of angina progressively worsen during follow-up, becoming more frequent and prolonged, absorbing lower workloads or even increasing at rest and becoming less sensitive, or even refractory, to drug therapy. The frequency and intensity of angina episodes require frequent medical visits, hospital admissions, absences from work, thus determining a high social cost of the disease. To obtain further information on this clinical controversy, we performed a clinical follow-up of of 132 patients with diagnosis of microvascular angina. Correspondence to Vincenzo Sucato, MD, Unit of Cardiology, ProMISE Department, Paolo Giaccone Hospital, University of Palermo, Via Del Vespro n 129, 90127 Palermo, Italy E-mail: odisseos86@gmail.com Received 11 February, 2019 Accepted 7 July, 2019 © 2019 Italian Federation of Cardiology. All rights reserved.

Performance of the Durata implantable cardioverter defibrillator lead: results of an independent multicenter study Aims The high rate of implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) lead failures related to the Sprint Fidelis’ and Riata's design have raised serious concerns about the reliability of ICD leads. The St. Jude Medical Durata family of leads replaced the preceding Riata line following increased rates of lead failure (1.17% per year). The aim of our study was to evaluate the long-term performance of the Durata lead. Methods Eight hundred and eighteen Durata ICD leads were implanted in 11 Italian centers. The incidence of lead failure, defined as a sudden rise in long-term pacing or defibrillation impedance and/or a sudden change in R-wave amplitude and capture thresholds, was assessed. The incidences of lead dislodgment and lead perforation were also evaluated. Results During a median follow-up of 1353 days (3.7 years; 25–75th interquartile range 806–1887 days) lead failure occurred in 16/818 leads (0.54%/year). The overall survival, free of lead failure, was 98.9% at 3 years, 98.2% at 4 years and 97.5% at 5 years. Lead dislodgment occurred in 12/818 leads with an incidence of 0.4%/year. No cases of cardiac perforation were reported. No major adverse events were reported except for two cases of inappropriate shocks as a consequence of failure or dislodgment. Conclusion Our study suggests that the Durata lead does not engender a higher risk of failure. Overall survival, free from lead failure, was found to be higher than previously reported for the Riata lead. Correspondence to Roberto Rordorf, MD, Coronary Care Unit and Laboratory of Clinical and Experimental Cardiology – Foundation IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, P.le Golgi 19, 27100 Pavia, Italy Tel: +39 0382 501276; fax: +39 0382 503161; e-mail: r.rordorf@smatteo.pv.it Received 19 February, 2019 Revised 27 May, 2019 Accepted 7 July, 2019 © 2019 Italian Federation of Cardiology. All rights reserved.

Unresolved issues in left ventricular postischemic remodeling and progression to heart failure In the past decades, myocardial infarction periacute mortality markedly declined since coronary reperfusion therapy has been adopted. Despite immediate benefits of coronary blood flow restoration, the percentage of new onset heart failure has increased over time suggesting that ischemia can run detrimental consequences beyond the immediate anoxic hit. By accepting to aggregate all types of heart failure regardless of underlying cause, the current practice did not help to shed light on the complex postischemic cardiac biology indicating that heart failure is somewhat unavoidable. In the ischemic sequel, the activated mechanisms aim to repair the infarcted zone and to compensate for the lost myocyte functions, thus allowing the heart to maintain the efficient cardiac output for vital organs. The variety of underlying preexisting conditions, as well as the multifaceted components of cardiac molecular structure, cellular state, and electrophysiological postischemic events pave the way for long-term adverse cardiac remodeling. We focused our attention on multiple factors, which include myocyte loss, hypertrophy, hyperplasia, extracellular matrix changes linked to myocardial fibrosis and scar, metabolic imbalance, as well as immunologic response occurring in the acute myocardial aftermath. Moreover, we reported both current pharmacological strategies and future perspectives that might be useful in clinical practice. Furthermore, we discussed the cardiac magnetic resonance as the most promising noninvasive imaging tool, which could be helpful in identifying the amount of myocardial damage. Despite the redundancy of molecular pathogenic mechanisms making it impossible to estimate the proportionate contributions in generating the heart failure phenotype, a deeper understanding will contribute to more customized patient management. Correspondence to Dr Giuditta Benincasa, Department of Advanced Clinical and Surgical Sciences, University of Campania ‘Luigi Vanvitelli’, 80138 Naples, Italy Tel: +39 0815667916; fax: +39 08119700943; e- mail: dr.benincasa.giuditta@gmail.com Received 21 March, 2019 Revised 17 May, 2019 Accepted 20 June, 2019 © 2019 Italian Federation of Cardiology. All rights reserved.

The silent cardiac mass Primary tumours of the heart are a very rare finding. We present a case of cardiac lipoma wherein multimodality images allowed the diagnosis, preventing unnecessary surgery. Typical echocardiography, computed tomographic scan and cardiac magnetic resonance findings are reviewed and discussed. Correspondence to Massimo Slavich, Department of Cardiology, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy Tel: +390226437395; e-mail: massimo.slavich@hsr.it Received 25 April, 2019 Revised 5 June, 2019 Accepted 7 July, 2019 © 2019 Italian Federation of Cardiology. All rights reserved.

Constrictive pericarditis: a common physiopathology for different macroscopic anatomies No abstract available

A meta-analysis of impact of low-flow/low-gradient aortic stenosis on survival after transcatheter aortic valve implantation Aims To determine whether low-flow/low-gradient (LF/LG) aortic stenosis affects survival after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI), we performed a meta-analysis of currently available studies. Methods MEDLINE and EMBASE were searched through January 2019 using PubMed and OVID. Observational studies comparing all-cause mortality after TAVI for patients with classical LF/LG (C/LF/LG) aortic stenosis versus normal-flow/high-gradient (NF/HG) aortic stenosis, paradoxical LF/LG (P/LF/LG) aortic stenosis versus NF/HG aortic stenosis, and (3) C/LF/LG aortic stenosis versus P/LF/LG aortic stenosis were included. Study-specific estimates, risk and hazard ratios of mortality, were combined in the random-effects model. Results Our search identified nine eligible studies including a total of 5512 TAVI patients. Pooled analysis demonstrated significantly higher early mortality in C/LF/LG aortic stenosis than NF/HG aortic stenosis (risk ratio, 1.72; P = 0.02) and no statistically significant difference in early mortality between P/LF/LG aortic stenosis and NF/HG aortic stenosis (P = 0.67) and between C/LF/LG aortic stenosis and P/LF/LG aortic stenosis (P = 0.51). Midterm mortality in C/LF/LG (risk ratio/hazard ratio, 1.73; P = 0.0003) and P/LF/LG aortic stenosis (risk ratio/hazard ratio, 1.48; P < 0.0001) was significantly higher than that in NF/HG aortic stenosis. There was no statistically significant difference in midterm mortality between C/LF/LG aortic stenosis and P/LF/LG aortic stenosis (P = 0.63). Conclusion After TAVI, C/LF/LG aortic stenosis is associated with increased early mortality compared with NF/HG, and C/LF/LG and P/LF/LG aortic stenosis is associated with increased midterm mortality compared with NF/HG aortic stenosis despite no difference in early mortality between P/LF/LG aortic stenosis and NF/HG aortic stenosis. There is no difference in early and midterm mortality between C/LF/LG aortic stenosis and P/LF/LG aortic stenosis. Correspondence to Hisato Takagi, MD, PhD, Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, Shizuoka Medical Center, 762-1 Nagasawa, Shimizu-cho, Sunto-gun, Shizuoka 411-8611, Japan. E-mail: kfgth973@ybb.ne.jp Received 13 November, 2018 Revised 26 February, 2019 Accepted 2 April, 2019 Supplemental digital content is available for this article. Direct URL citations appear in the printed text and are provided in the HTML and PDF versions of this article on the journal's Website (www.jcardiovascularmedicine.com). © 2019 Italian Federation of Cardiology. All rights reserved.

Acute myocarditis secondary to mushrooms ingestion as assessed by cardiac MRI: a case report and review of the literature No abstract available

Nationwide survey on the current practice of ventricular tachycardia ablation Methods We performed a nationwide survey on the current practice of ventricular tachycardia catheter ablation in Italy during the year 2016. Results Among 145 operators participating in the survey, 58 (40.0%) did not perform any ventricular tachycardia ablation in 2016. Among those performing ventricular tachycardia ablation, 9 operators (6.2%) performed only right ventricular endocardial catheter ablation, 52 (35.9%) performed endocardial catheter ablation both in the right and left ventricle (LV) and 26 (17.9%) performed both endocardial and epicardial LV catheter ablations. Seventy operators (89.7%) among the 78 performing LV and epicardial ablations treated patients with ischemic cardiomyopathy; ablations in the setting of other causes were less frequently performed. The following were considered as minimum requirements for ventricular tachycardia ablation: presence of a three-dimensional mapping system (120 operators, 82.8%), ICU in the hospital (118 operators, 81.4%), operator's training in high volume centers (93 operators, 64.1%). Twenty-eight operators (19.3%) performed catheter ablation in patients with electrical storm only after hemodynamic stabilization, 41 operators (28.3%) also during the acute phase and 9 operators (6.2%) never performed catheter ablation in electrical storm patients; the remaining 67 operators did not perform ventricular tachycardia ablation at all, or performed ablations only in the right ventricle. Conclusion The present survey provides a snapshot of the current invasive treatment of ventricular tachycardia by catheter ablation. The procedure, especially in the setting of ischemic cardiomyopathy, is performed nationwide. Complex cases, including those with electrical storm, should be managed within a preestablished integrated network of regional referral centers able to transfer patients as soon as possible. Correspondence to Pasquale Vergara, Arrhythmia Unit and Electrophysiology Laboratory, Department of Cardiology and Cardiothoracic Surgery, Ospedale S. Raffaele, Milano, Italy Tel: +39 0226437436; fax: +39 02 26437326; e-mail: pasqualevergara@hotmail.com Received 14 December, 2018 Revised 29 April, 2019 Accepted 1 June, 2019 © 2019 Italian Federation of Cardiology. All rights reserved.

Cardiovascular prevention in women: a narrative review from the Italian Society of Cardiology working groups on ‘Cardiovascular Prevention, Hypertension and peripheral circulation’ and on ‘Women Disease’ Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity in women. Some authors highlighted that the female risk profile consists of traditional and emerging risk factors. Despite the lower prevalence of type 2 diabetes, years of life lost owing to the disease for women are substantially higher compared with men. In addition, pregnancy complicated by gestational diabetes represents a risk factor for CVD. Women with gestational diabetes have a higher prevalence of coronary artery disease that occur at a younger age and are independent of T2DM. Hypertension is an important cardiovascular risk factor in women. Estrogens and progesterone, known to have an impact on blood pressure levels, have also been proposed to be protective against sleep-disordered breathing. It is very difficult to understand whereas obstructive sleep apnea in women is independently associated with hypertension or if many confounders acting at different stages of the woman lifespan mediate this relation. The cardioprotective effect of physical activity in women of all ages is well known. Women are generally more physically inactive than men. During and after menopause, most women tend to reduce their physical activity levels and together with the reduction in basal metabolic rate, women experience loss of skeletal muscle mass with a negative change in the ratio of fat-to-lean mass. In conclusion, sex differences in the cardiovascular system are because of dissimilarities in gene expression and sex hormones; these result in variations in prevalence and presentation of CVD and associated conditions, such as diabetes, hypertension and vascular and cardiac remodeling. Changes in lifestyle and increase in physical activity could help in prevention of cardiovascular disease in women. Correspondence to Anna Vittoria Mattioli, MD, Associate Professor of Cardiovascular Diseases, Department of Surgery, Medicine, Dentistry and Morphological Sciences, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Via del Pozzo, 71 - 41124 Modena, Italy Tel: +39 594224043; fax: +39 594223229; e-mail: annavittoria.mattioli@unimore.it Received 14 October, 2018 Revised 23 February, 2019 Accepted 2 June, 2019 © 2019 Italian Federation of Cardiology. All rights reserved.