Adult ; Angina Pectoris ; etiology ; Aortic Valve Insufficiency ; complications ; Bradycardia ; etiology ; Female ; Heart Valve Prosthesis ; Humans ; Prosthesis Failure

Angina Pectoris ; pathology ; Coronary Vessel Anomalies ; etiology ; Coronary Vessels ; pathology ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Sinus of Valsalva ; abnormalities

OBJECTIVETo summarize current understanding of the roles of anti-inflammatory and proinflammatory mechanisms in the development of atherosclerosis and acute coronary syndrome and to postulate the novel concept of inflammation stress as the most important factor triggering acute coronary syndrome. Moreover, markers of inflammation stress and ways to block involved pathways are elucidated.

DATA SOURCESA literature search (MEDLINE 1997 to 2002) was performed using the key words "inflammation and cardiovascular disease". Relevant book chapters were also reviewed.

STUDY SELECTIONWell-controlled, prospective landmark studies and review articles on inflammation and acute coronary syndrome were selected.

DATA EXTRACTIONData and conclusions from the selected articles providing solid evidence to elucidate the mechanisms of inflammation and acute coronary syndrome were extracted and interpreted in the light of our own clinical and basic research.

DATA SYNTHESISInflammation is closely linked to atherosclerosis and acute coronary syndrome. Chronic and long-lasting inflammation stress, present both systemically or in the vascular walls, can trigger acute coronary syndrome.

CONCLUSIONSInflammation stress plays an important role in the process of acute coronary syndrome. Drugs which can modulate the balance of pro- and anti-inflammatory processes and attenuate inflammation stress, such as angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors/angiotensin II receptor blockers, statins, and cytokine antagonists may play active roles in the prevention and treatment of acute coronary syndrome when used in addition to conventional therapies (glycoprotein IIb/IIIa receptor antagonists, mechanical intervention strategies, etc).

Angina Pectoris ; etiology ; Arteriosclerosis ; etiology ; Biomarkers ; blood ; Blood Vessels ; physiopathology ; Humans ; Inflammation ; complications ; drug therapy ; physiopathology ; Myocardial Infarction ; etiology ; Stress, Physiological ; complications ; Syndrome

Matrix metalloproteinases contribute to vascular remodeling by breaking down extracellular-matrix while new matrix is synthesized. Of the variety of MMPs, stromelysin-1 and gelatinase B may have key roles in coronary artery atherosclerosis. Moreover, The 5A/6A polymorphism in the promoter region of the stromelysin-1 gene may be a pathogenetic risk factor for acute myocardial infarction. Gelatinase B (92-kDa type IV collagenase and MMP-9) is one of the MMPs found to be highly expressed in the disruption-prone regions of atherosclerotic plaques. C- to T substitution at the promoter site (-1562) resulted in the higher promoter activity of the T-allelic promoter. The R279Q polymorphism in exon 6 led to the substitution of adenosine by guanine, and was a common polymorphism in the general population. We evaluated the relation between these polymorphisms and stable angina, the severity of atherosclerosis in coronary artery disease, and instent restenosis after percutaneous coronary angioplasty. The study population was composed of 131 patients with stable angina (mean age 61.3 years, 89 males) and 117 control subjects (mean age 59.3 years, 59 males). Coronary angiographies were performed in all cases at Yonsei University Cardiovascular Hospital from February 1998 to June 2000. The genotype for each polymorphism was determined using a SNaPshotTM kit and by restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP). The prevalence of 5A containing a polymorphism of the stromelysin-1 gene was higher in the stable angina group than in control patients, but no difference in the two polymorphisms of the gelatinase B gene was found between the two groups. By multiple logistic analysis, the 5A-allele of the stromelysin-1 gene was found to be an independent risk factor of stable angina with an odds ratio of 2.29 (95% CI; 1.19-4.38). However, the severity of atherosclerosis in coronary artery or in stent restenosis was not related to any polymorphism of stromelysin-1 or gelatinase B. Our results show that functional genetic variation of stromelysin-1 could be a significant risk factor for stable angina, and might play an important role in coronary atherosclerosis involving vascular remodeling.
Aged ; Angina Pectoris/*etiology/genetics ; Coronary Restenosis/etiology/genetics ; Female ; Gelatinase B/*genetics ; Genotype ; Human ; Male ; Middle Age ; *Polymorphism (Genetics) ; Promoter Regions (Genetics) ; Stromelysin 1/*genetics

A coronary arteriovenous (AV) fistula consists of a communication between a coronary artery and a cardiac chamber, a great artery or the vena cava. It is the most common anomaly that can affect coronary perfusion. Yet bilateral involvement of a coronary fistula, constitutes an uncommon subgroup of coronary AV fistulas. We herein report on a case of bilateral coronary AV fistula that was coexistent with variant angina originating from the distal right ventricular branch of the right coronary artery and the distal septal branch of the left anterior descending artery, and the latter drained into the right ventricle.
Angina Pectoris, Variant/*etiology/radiography ; Coronary Vessel Anomalies/*complications/*diagnosis ; Female ; Heart Ventricles/*abnormalities ; Humans ; Middle Aged ; Vascular Fistula/complications/*congenital/*diagnosis

BACKGROUNDMany patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) develop recurrent angina (RA) during hospitalization. The aim of this non-randomized, prospective study was to investigate the predictive factors of RA in unselected patients with ACS enrolled in the global registry acute coronary events (GRACE) during hospitalization in China.

METHODSBetween March 2001 and October 2004, enrolled were 1433 patients with ACS, including ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (662, 46.2%), non-ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (239, 16.7%) and unstable angina (532, 37.1%). The demographic distribution, medical history and clinical data were collected to investigate the predictive factors of RA by Logistic regression.

RESULTSDuring hospitalization 275 (19.2%) patients were documented with RA including unstable angina (53.2%), non-ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (27.5%), ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (19.3%). A comorbidity of dyslipidemia, prior angina, percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) within 6 months was more common in patients with RA, P < 0.05. In the patients with RA, a significantly higher proportion of patients with acute pulmonary edema was observed, 23 (8.4%) versus 43 (3.7%), P = 0.001. Acute renal failure was present in 8 (2.9%) of patients with RA versus 19 (1.6%) of patients without RA, P = 0.165. Hemorrhagic events were present in 6 (2.2%) of patients with RA versus 8 (0.7%) of patients without RA, ventricular tachycardia/ventricular fibrillation events in 12 patients (4.3%) versus 22 patients (1.9%), congestive heart failure in 69 patients (25.0%) versus 94 patients (8.1%), myocardial re-infarction in 28 patients (10.1%) versus 15 patients (1.3%), P < 0.05, respectively. A lower proportion of patients with RA underwent in-hospital PCI, 687 (59.3%) versus 114 (41.5%), P = 0.000. A higher proportion of patients with RA received heparin, 260 (94.5%) versus 1035 (89.4%), P = 0.006; and beta-blockers 176 (64.0%) versus 864 (74.5%), P = 0.000. Multivarible regression analysis showed that RA was associated with prior angina (OR 2.086, 95% CI 1.466 - 2.967), in-hospital PCI (OR 0.579, 95% CI 0.431 - 0.778), in-hospital congestive heart failure (OR 2.410, 95% CI 1.634 - 3.555), myocardial re-infarction (OR 7.695, 95% CI 3.701 - 15.999), beta-blocker (OR 0.626, 95% CI 0.458 - 0.855), and heparin (OR 3.411, 95% CI 1.604 - 7.382).

CONCLUSIONSIn-hospital congestive heart failure, myocardial re-infarction, prior angina history and use of heparin are stronger independent predictors of RA; beta-blockers and PCI are also important predictive factors for RA.

Acute Coronary Syndrome ; epidemiology ; Adult ; Aged ; Angina Pectoris ; etiology ; therapy ; China ; epidemiology ; Female ; Humans ; Logistic Models ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Recurrence ; Registries

OBJECTIVE: To compare the therapeutic effect on type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) complicated with angina pectoris of coronary heart disease between the combined therapy of acupuncture and western medication and the simple administration of western medication. METHODS: A total of 134 patients with T2DM and angina pectoris of coronary heart disease were randomly divided into two groups, i.e. an acupuncture plus medication group (67 cases, 3 cases dropped off) and a medication group (67 cases, 4 cases dropped off). The routine western medication was used according to symptoms in the patients of both groups. In the acupuncture plus medication group, on the base of medication, acupuncture was applied to Jianshi (PC 5), Quchi (LI 11), Neiguan (PC 6), etc. The needles were retained for 20 min in each treatment and 3 treatments of acupuncture were required weekly. The treatment was given consecutively for 8 weeks in the two groups. Separately, before and after treatment, the symptom scores of TCM were observed and the indexes were detected, including glycolipid metabolism [fasting plasma glucose (FPG), 2-h plasma glucose (2hPG), glucosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), triacylglycerol (TG) and total cholesterol (TC)], islet β cell function [homeostasis model assessment-β (HOMA-β), homeostasis model assessment-IR (HOMA-IR), fasting insulin (FINS) and insulin sensitivity index (ISI)], cardiac function indexes [cardiac output (CO), early diastolic peak velocity/late diastolic peak velocity (E/A), left ventricular end diastolic diameter (LVEDD) and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF)], as well as electrocardiogram QT dispersion (QTd). Besides, the clinical therapeutic effects were compared between the two groups. RESULTS: After treatment, the TCM symptom scores and the values of FPG, 2hPG, HbA1c, TG, TC, HOMA-IR, FINS, E/A and LVEDD as well as QTd were all lower than those before treatment in the two groups ( CONCLUSION The combined therapy of acupuncture and medication is effective in treatment of T2DM complicated with angina pectoris of coronary heart disease. Such therapy effectively improves glucolipid metabolism, islet β cell function, cardiac function and myocardial blood supply. Its curative effect is better than the simple administration of western medicine.
Acupuncture Therapy ; Angina Pectoris/etiology* ; Blood Glucose ; Coronary Disease/drug therapy* ; Diabetes Mellitus, Type 2/drug therapy* ; Humans ; Stroke Volume ; Ventricular Function, Left

Objective: To investigate the relationship between human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) infection and peripheral blood CD14 CD16 monocytes in the pathogenesis of coronary heart disease (CHD), and to elucidate the mechanism of pathogenesis in CHD by analyzing the correlation between infection, inflammation, and CHD, to provide a basis for the prevention, evaluation, and treatment of the disease. Methods: In total, 192 patients with CHD were divided into three groups: latent CHD, angina pectoris, and myocardial infarction. HCMV-IgM and -IgG antibodies were assessed using ELISA; CD14 CD16 monocytes were counted using a five-type automated hematology analyzer; mononuclear cells were assessed using fluorescence-activated cell sorting; and an automatic biochemical analyzer was used to measure the levels of triglyceride, cholesterol, high- and low-density lipoprotein cholesterols, lipoprotein, hs-CRp and Hcy. Results: The positive rates of HCMV-IgM and -IgG were significantly higher in the CHD groups than in the control group. HCMV infection affects lipid metabolism to promote immune and inflammatory responses. Conclusion HCMV infection has a specific correlation with the occurrence and development of CHD. The expression of CD14 CD16 mononuclear cells in the CHD group was increased accordingly and correlated with acute HCMV infection. Thus, HCMV antibody as well as peripheral blood CD14 CD16 mononuclear cells can be used to monitor the occurrence and development of CHD.
Angina Pectoris ; epidemiology ; virology ; China ; epidemiology ; Coronary Disease ; epidemiology ; virology ; Cytomegalovirus ; physiology ; Cytomegalovirus Infections ; complications ; Humans ; Incidence ; Inflammation ; epidemiology ; etiology ; Leukocyte Count ; Monocytes ; metabolism ; Myocardial Infarction ; epidemiology ; virology

Extrinsic compression of the left main coronary artery (LMCA) secondary to pulmonary artery dilatation is a rare syndrome. Most cases of pulmonary artery hypertension but no atherosclerotic risk factors rarely undergo coronary angiography, and hence, diagnoses are seldom made and proper management is often delayed in these patients. We describe a patient that presented with pulmonary hypertension, clinical angina, and extrinsic compression of the LMCA by the pulmonary artery, who was treated successfully by percutaneous coronary intervention. Follow-up coronary angiography showed patent stent in the LMCA in the proximity of the dilated main pulmonary artery. This case reminds us that coronary angiography and percutaneous coronary intervention should be considered in pulmonary hypertension patients presenting with angina or left ventricular dysfunction.
Angina Pectoris/etiology ; Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary ; Coronary Angiography ; Coronary Stenosis/radiography/therapy ; Coronary Vessels/radiography/*ultrasonography ; Dilatation, Pathologic ; Female ; Humans ; Hypertension, Pulmonary/etiology/radiography ; Middle Aged ; Pulmonary Artery/radiography/*ultrasonography ; Stents ; Tomography, X-Ray Computed ; Ventricular Dysfunction, Left

OBJECTIVETo examine long-term efficacy of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA), coronary stenting and to assess the factors affecting its efficacy.

METHODSA total of 790 patients who underwent successful PTCA and PTCA + stent in this hospital were followed by direct interview or letter. The rate of follow-up was 84.2% and the period of follow-up was 0.9 - 12.7 (3.5 +/- 2.4) years.

RESULTSDuring follow-up, 4 (0.5%) patients died, 22 (2.8%) had nonfatal acute myocardial infarction, 10 (1.3%) had coronary artery bypass surgery, and 98 (12.4%) had repeat PTCA. The rate of recurrent angina pectoris was 31.1%. The cardiac event-free survival rate calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method was 88.2% at 1 year and 80.6% at 12.7 years. Cox regression analysis showed that there was a positive correlation between AMI history, stent implantation and the risk of cardiac events, and there was a negative correlation between the number of diseased arteries and the risk of cardiac events. Compared to the PTCA group, patients with PTCA + stent had significantly lower rates of total cardiac events.

CONCLUSIONThe long-term efficacy of PTCA, especially PTCA + stent in Chinese patients was very satisfactory, suggesting that PTCA + stent therapy should be the major treatment for revascularization in patients with coronary heart disease.

Adult ; Aged ; Angina Pectoris ; etiology ; Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary ; adverse effects ; Coronary Stenosis ; mortality ; therapy ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Multivariate Analysis ; Myocardial Infarction ; etiology ; Retrospective Studies ; Stents ; adverse effects ; Survival Rate ; Treatment Outcome