OBJECTIVETobacco smoking results in increased platelet aggregability, which suggests that low-dose aspirin used in common clinical practice may not effectively inhibit platelet activity in smokers with coronary heart disease (CHD). This review was performed to assess the effect of aspirin on platelet aggregation in patients with CHD.

DATA SOURCESWe performed an electronic literature search of MEDLINE (starting from the beginning to March 15, 2009) using the term "smoking" or "tobacco" paired with the following: "platelet", "aspirin" or "coronary heart disease".

STUDY SELECTIONWe looked for review articles regarding the effect of tobacco smoking on platelet activity and on the anti-platelet efficacy of aspirin in healthy people and patients with CHD. The search was limited in "core clinical journal". In total, 1321 relevant articles were retrieved, and 36 articles were ultimately cited.

RESULTSTobacco smoking results in increased platelet aggregability, which can be inhibited by low-dose aspirin in the healthy population. However, in patients with CHD, the increased platelet aggregability can not be effectively inhibited by the same low-dose of aspirin. A recent study indicated that clopidogrel or an increased dose of aspirin can effectively inhibit the increased platelet aggregability induced by tobacco smoking in patients with CHD.

CONCLUSIONSIt is important for patients with CHD to quit smoking. For the current smoker, it may be necessary to take larger doses of aspirin than normal or take an adenosine diphosphate receptor inhibitor along with aspirin to effectively inhibit the increased platelet activity.

Aspirin ; therapeutic use ; Coronary Disease ; drug therapy ; Drug Interactions ; Humans ; Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors ; therapeutic use ; Smoking ; adverse effects

OBJECTIVETo establish transplanted models of VX2 tongue carcinoma in rabbits by three methods and compare these models.

METHODSAfter establishment of VX2 tumor-bearing rabbits, 72 New-Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into 3 groups. Intact tumour tissue, modified tumour cell suspension, tumour cell suspension were respectively injected into the middle-third lateral border of the tongues of rabbits in 3 groups to induce transplanted VX2 tongue carcinoma. The histological features, the tumour-take rates and the metastasis rates of the 3 models were observed.

RESULTSThe tumour-take rate of 3 models were 83.3%, 91.7% and 33.3% respectively; the lymph node metastasis rates were 71.4%, 100.0% and 37.5% respectively; the lung metastasis rates were 35.7%, 81.3% and 0 respectively. The histological features of the transplanted VX2 tongue carcinoma of 3 models were all consistent with those of moderately differentiated carcinoma.

CONCLUSIONThe biological properties of the transplanted VX2 tongue carcinoma of 3 models is much alike to tongue carcinoma in humans. The model established with modified tumor cell suspension is considered to be more suitable for tongue cancer study.

Animals ; Carcinoma ; Disease Models, Animal ; Humans ; Lymphatic Metastasis ; Neoplasm Transplantation ; Rabbits ; Tongue Neoplasms

BACKGROUNDMetabolic syndrome (MetS) and atrial fibrillation (AF) are causally related. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of MetS in patients with AF in the absence of structural heart disease from a tertiary hospital in China.

METHODSIn a single center, 741 inpatients with AF in the absence of structural heart disease prior to catheter ablation were retrospectively reviewed. Among them, 588 (79.4%) patients had paroxysmal AF. Subgroup analyses were performed in paroxysmal AF and persistent/permanent AF.

RESULTSMetS was found in 343 (46.3%) patients (200 males, 143 females); 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 components of the MetS were found in 59 (8.0%), 140 (18.9%), 199 (26.9%), 203 (27.4%), 103 (13.9%) and 37 (5.0%) patients, respectively. The prevalences of overweight/obesity, high blood pressure, high glucose level, high triglyceride level and low high density lipoproteins cholesterol level were 53.8%, 47.6%, 23.2%, 40.6% and 72.1%, respectively. The prevalence of MetS was not significantly different between the paroxysmal AF group and the persistent/permanent AF group (44.6% vs 52.9%, P = 0.064). The five components of MetS except overweight/obesity (69.3% vs 49.8%, P < 0.001) were not significantly different between the aforementioned two groups. The left atrium diameter increased with the sum of the MetS components. The left atrium diameter in the MetS group was significantly higher than that in the non-MetS group both in patients with paroxysmal AF and in patients with persistent/permanent AF.

CONCLUSIONSThe prevalence of MetS in patients with AF prior to catheter ablation is high. Further study and prevention are needed.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Aged ; Atrial Fibrillation ; complications ; Catheter Ablation ; Female ; Heart Diseases ; complications ; Humans ; Male ; Metabolic Syndrome ; epidemiology ; Middle Aged ; Prevalence

BACKGROUNDMajor atrial coronary arteries, including the sinus node artery (SNA), were commonly found in the areas involved in atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation and could cause difficulties in achieving linear block at the left atrial (LA) roof. The SNA is a major atrial coronary artery of the atrial coronary circulation. This study aimed to determine impact of the origin of SNA on recurrence of AF after pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) in patients with paroxysmal AF.

METHODSSeventy-eight patients underwent coronary angiography for suspected coronary heart disease, followed by catheter ablation for paroxysmal AF. According to the origin of SNA from angiographic findings, they were divided into right SNA group (SNA originating from the right coronary artery) and left SNA group (SNA originating from the left circumflex artery). Guided by an electroanatomic mapping system, circumferential pulmonary vein ablation (CPVA) was performed in both groups and PVI was the procedural endpoint. All patients were followed up at 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months post-ablation. Recurrence was defined as any episode of atrial tachyarrhythmias (ATAs), including AF, atrial flutter or atrial tachycardia, that lasted longer than 30 seconds after a blanking period of 3 months.

RESULTSThe SNA originated from the right coronary artery in 34 patients (43.6%) and the left circumflex artery in 44 patients (56.4%). Freedom from AF and antiarrhythmic drugs (AADs) at 1 year was 67.9% (53/78) for all patients. After 1 year follow-up, 79.4% (27/34) in right SNA group and 59.1% (26/44) in left SNA group (P = 0.042) were in sinus rhythm. On multivariate analysis, left atrium size (HR = 1.451, 95%CI: 1.240 - 1.697, P < 0.001) and a left SNA (HR = 6.22, 95%CI: 2.01 - 19.25, P = 0.002) were the independent predictors of AF recurrence.

CONCLUSIONSThe left SNA is more frequent in the patients with paroxysmal AF. After one year follow-up, the presence of a left SNA was identified as an independent predictor of AF recurrence after CPVA in paroxysmal AF.

Aged ; Atrial Fibrillation ; physiopathology ; surgery ; Catheter Ablation ; Coronary Vessels ; physiopathology ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Pulmonary Veins ; surgery ; Recurrence

BACKGROUNDCatheter ablation for atrial fibrillation (AF) has been demonstrated to be effective in a subsets of patients with AF. However, very few data are available in regard to patients with prior history of stroke undergoing catheter ablation. This study aimed to investigate the outcome of catheter ablation in AF patients with prior ischemic stroke.

METHODSBetween January 2008 and December 2011, of 1897 consecutive patients who presented at Beijing An Zhen Hospital for treatment of drug-refractory AF, 172 (9.1%) patients in the study population had a history of ischemic stroke. All patients underwent catheter ablation and were followed up to assess maintenance of sinus rhythm and recurrence of symptomatic stroke.

RESULTSAmong these 1897 patients, 1768 (93.2%) who had complete follow-up information for a minimum of six months were included in the final analysis. Patients in the stroke group (group I) and the no-stroke group (group II) were similar in regards to gender, body mass index (BMI), history of diabetes, type of AF, and left atrial size. The patients in group I were older than those in group II, and had a higher incidence of hypertension, chronic heart failure, lower left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), and higher CHADS2 scores. Six months after ablation, 107 (68.6%) patients in group I and 1403 (87.1%) in group II had discontinued warfarin treatment (P < 0.001). During a median follow-up of (633 ± 415) days, 65 patients in the group I and 638 in group II experienced AF recurrence, and five patients in group I and 28 in group II developed symptomatic stroke. The rates of AF recurrence and recurrent stroke were similar between group I and group II (41.7% vs. 39.6%, P = 0.611; 3.2% vs. 1.7%, P = 0.219; respectively).

CONCLUSIONCatheter ablation of AF in patients with prior stroke is feasible and efficient.

Aged ; Atrial Fibrillation ; surgery ; Catheter Ablation ; methods ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Retrospective Studies ; Stroke ; surgery

Analgesia ; Atrial Fibrillation ; surgery ; Catheter Ablation ; methods ; Conscious Sedation ; Fentanyl ; pharmacology ; Humans ; Hypnotics and Sedatives ; pharmacology ; Midazolam ; pharmacology ; Propofol ; pharmacology ; Prospective Studies

Background::Accurate prediction of ischemic stroke is required for deciding anticoagulation use in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF). Even though only 6% to 8% of AF patients die from stroke, about 90% are indicated for anticoagulants according to the current AF management guidelines. Therefore, we aimed to develop an accurate and easy-to-use new risk model for 1-year thromboembolic events (TEs) in Chinese AF patients.Methods::From the prospective China Atrial Fibrillation Registry cohort study, we identified 6601 AF patients who were not treated with anticoagulation or ablation at baseline. We selected the most important variables by the extreme gradient boosting (XGBoost) algorithm and developed a simplified risk model for predicting 1-year TEs. The novel risk score was internally validated using bootstrapping with 1000 replicates and compared with the CHA 2DS 2-VA score (excluding female sex from the CHA 2DS 2-VASc score). Results::Up to the follow-up of 1 year, 163 TEs (ischemic stroke or systemic embolism) occurred. Using the XGBoost algorithm, we selected the three most important variables (congestive heart failure or left ventricular dysfunction, age, and prior stroke, abbreviated as CAS model) to predict 1-year TE risk. We trained a multivariate Cox regression model and assigned point scores proportional to model coefficients. The CAS scheme classified 30.8% (2033/6601) of the patients as low risk for TE (CAS score = 0), with a corresponding 1-year TE risk of 0.81% (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.41%-1.19%). In our cohort, the C-statistic of CAS model was 0.69 (95% CI: 0.65-0.73), higher than that of CHA 2DS 2-VA score (0.66, 95% CI: 0.62-0.70, Z = 2.01, P = 0.045). The overall net reclassification improvement from CHA 2DS 2-VA categories (low = 0/high ≥1) to CAS categories (low = 0/high ≥1) was 12.2% (95% CI: 8.7%-15.7%). Conclusion::In Chinese AF patients, a novel and simple CAS risk model better predicted 1-year TEs than the widely-used CHA 2DS 2- VA risk score and identified a large proportion of patients with low risk of TEs, which could potentially improve anticoagulation decision-making. Trial Registration::www.chictr.org.cn (Unique identifier No. ChiCTR-OCH-13003729).

BACKGROUNDWarfarin is the most common oral anticoagulant to decrease the stroke risk associated with atrial fibrillation (AF). There are very few prospective studies that have explored whether warfarin has an association with damage on renal function in Chinese patients with nonvalvular AF (NVAF). The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of warfarin on renal function and study the factors associated with kidney dysfunction in Chinese adult NVAF patients without dialysis therapy.

METHODSFrom January 2011 to December 2013, a total of 951 NVAF patients from 18 hospitals were enrolled. The estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) was calculated from baseline and follow-up serum creatinine levels. Kaplan-Meier survival curves compared the survival of a ≥25% decline in eGFR (hereafter, endpoint), while Cox models estimated hazard ratios (HR s) and 95% confidence intervals for this event after adjustment for age, gender, and selected potential risk factors for renal dysfunction. Cox regression analysis of the various clinical potential variables was performed to identify the predictors of a ≥25% decline in eGFR.

RESULTSAfter a 58-month follow-up, 951 NVAF patients were divided by observation into warfarin (n = 655) and no anticoagulation groups (n = 296) and 120 (12.6%) patients experienced renal endpoint. Kaplan-Meier survival curves showed that the survival period was not different in the two groups (χ2 = 0.178, log-rank P= 0.67), but patients with systolic blood pressure (SBP) <140 mmHg have significant difference with patients with SBP ≥140 mmHg (χ2 = 4.903, log-rank P= 0.03). Multivariate Cox regression analysis revealed baseline eGFR and SBP as independent predictors of the endpoint, with HR s of 1.00, and 1.02, respectively.

CONCLUSIONIn patients with NVAF, eGFR and SBP are associated with the deterioration of kidney function while Warfarin is not the risk factor of the ≥25% decline in eGFR.

TRIAL REGISTRATIONChinese Clinical Trial Registry (No. ChiCTR-OCH-13003729); http://www.chictr.org.cn/showproj.aspx?proj = 5831.

Aged ; Anticoagulants ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use ; Atrial Fibrillation ; drug therapy ; physiopathology ; Female ; Glomerular Filtration Rate ; physiology ; Humans ; Kaplan-Meier Estimate ; Kidney ; drug effects ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prospective Studies ; Warfarin ; adverse effects ; therapeutic use

Objective: To investigate the causes of death and predictors in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF) undergoing anticoagulation therapy. Methods: Consecutive anticoagulated nonvalvular AF patients were recruited from the China Atrial Fibrillation Registry (China-AF) Study from August 2011 to December 2018. After exclusion of patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, dilated cardiomyopathy, or loss of follow-up within 1 year, 2 248 patients were included in this analysis. Enrolled patients were followed up were followed up for 3 and 6 months, and then every 6 months. The primary endpoint was death, including cardiovascular death, non-cardiovascular death and undetermined death. The patients were divided into survival group and death group according to the survival status after follow-up. Clinical information such as age and sex was collected. Cox proportional hazards regression was performed to identify associated risk factors for all-cause mortality, and Fine-Gray competing risk model was used to identify associated risk factors for cardiovascular mortality. Results: A total of 2 248 patients with atrial fibrillation receiving anticoagulant therapy died over a mean follow-up of (42±24) months, mean age was (67±10) years old and 41.1% (923/2 248) patients were female. The mortality rate was 2.8 deaths per 100 patient-years. The most common cause of death was cardiovascular deaths, accounted for 55.0% (120/218). Worsening heart failure was the most common cause of cardiovascular deaths (18.3% (40/218)), followed by bleeding events (12.9% (28/218)) and ischemic stroke (8.7% (19/218)). Multivariate Cox regression analysis showed that age (HR = 1.05, 95%CI 1.04-1.07, P<0.001), anemia (HR = 1.81, 95%CI 1.02-3.18, P = 0.041), heart failure (HR=2.40, 95%CI 1.75-3.30, P<0.001), ischemic stroke/transient ischemic attack (TIA)(HR = 1.59, 95%CI 1.21-2.13, P = 0.001) and myocardial infarction (HR = 2.93, 95%CI 1.79-4.81, P<0.001) were independently associated with all-cause death. Fine-Gray competing risk model showed that age (HR=1.05, 95%CI 1.02-1.08, P<0.001), heart failure (HR=2.81, 95%CI 1.79-4.39, P<0.001), ischemic stroke/TIA (HR=1.50, 95%CI 1.02-2.22, P=0.041) and myocardial infarction (HR=3.31, 95%CI 1.72-6.37, P<0.001) were independently associated with cardiovascular death. Conclusions: In anticoagulated nonvalvular AF patients, ischemic stroke represents only a small subset of deaths, whereas worsening heart failure is the most common cause of cardiovascular deaths. Heart failure, ischemic stroke/TIA, and myocardial infarction are associated with increased mortality.
Aged ; Anticoagulants/therapeutic use* ; Atrial Fibrillation/drug therapy* ; Cause of Death ; China ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Risk Factors ; Stroke

Objective: To compare the differences between CAS risk model and CHA₂DS₂-VASc risk score in predicting all cause death, thromboembolic events, major bleeding events and composite endpoint in patients with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation. Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study. From the China Atrial Fibrillation Registry cohort study, the patients with atrial fibrillation who were>18 years old were randomly divided into CAS risk score group and CHA₂DS₂-VASc risk score group respectively. According to the anticoagulant status at baseline and follow-up, patients in the 2 groups who complied with the scoring specifications for anticoagulation were selected for inclusion in this study. Baseline information such as age and gender in the two groups were collected and compared. Follow-up was performed periodically to collect information on anticoagulant therapy and endpoints. The endpoints were all-cause death, thromboembolism events and major bleeding, the composite endpoint events were all-cause death and thromboembolism events. The incidence of endpoints in CAS group and CHA₂DS₂-VASc group was analyzed, and multivariate Cox proportional risk model was used to analyze whether the incidence of the endpoints was statistically different between the two groups. Results: A total of 5 206 patients with AF were enrolled, average aged (63.6±12.2) years, and 2092 (40.2%) women. There were 2 447 cases (47.0%) in CAS risk score group and 2 759 cases (53.0%) in CHA₂DS₂-VASc risk score group. In the clinical baseline data of the two groups, the proportion of left ventricular ejection fraction<55%, non-paroxysmal atrial fibrillation, oral warfarin and HAS BLED score in the CAS group were lower than those in the CHA₂DS₂-VASc group, while the proportion of previous diabetes history and history of antiplatelet drugs in the CAS group was higher than that in the CHA₂DS₂-VASc group, and there was no statistical difference in other baseline data. Patients were followed up for (82.8±40.8) months. In CAS risk score group, 225(9.2%) had all-cause death, 186 (7.6%) had thromboembolic events, 81(3.3%) had major bleeding, and 368 (15.0%) had composite endpoint. In CHA₂DS₂-VASc risk score group, 261(9.5%) had all-cause death 209(7.6%) had thromboembolic events, 112(4.1%) had major bleeding, and 424 (15.4%) had composite endpoint. There were no significant differences in the occurrence of all-cause death, thromboembolic events, major bleeding and composite endpoint between anticoagulation in CAS risk score group and anticoagulation in CHA₂DS₂-VASc risk score group (log-rank P =0.643, 0.904, 0.126, 0.599, respectively). Compared with CAS risk score, multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models showed no significant differences for all-cause death, thromboembolic events, major bleeding and composite endpoint between the two groups with HR(95%CI) 0.95(0.80-1.14), 1.00(0.82-1.22), 0.83(0.62-1.10), 0.96(0.84-1.11), respectively. All P>0.05. Conclusions: There were no significant differences between CAS risk model and CHA₂DS₂-VASc risk score in predicting all-cause death, thromboembolic events, and major bleeding events in Chinese patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation.
Adolescent ; Anticoagulants ; Atrial Fibrillation/drug therapy* ; Cohort Studies ; Female ; Hemorrhage/complications* ; Humans ; Male ; Retrospective Studies ; Risk Assessment ; Stroke/epidemiology* ; Stroke Volume ; Thromboembolism/etiology* ; Ventricular Function, Left