This paper tried to address how to apply the relative concepts and methods of evidence-based medicine in clinical practice of cardiology, especially in diagnosis and treatment, with an aim to promote the cardiovascular evidence-based medicine in China.
Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) is a disease caused by the accumulation of atherosclerotic plaques that leads to arterial hardening and impairment of contractility. Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) can increase low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels in plasma, which accelerates the development and progression of ASCVD. This article intends to review the biological characteristics and functional mechanisms of PCSK9, elucidate its impact on the development and progression of ASCVD, provide research literature support for the diagnosis and treatment of such diseases and improving the prognosis of patients.
Sclerostin, as a bone-derived secreted glycoprotein, is a suppressor of Wnt signaling pathway. Recently, adverse cardiovascular events in the treatment of osteoporosis with sclerostin inhibitors have raised concerns about the association of sclerostin with atherosclerotic heart disease. Whether the role of sclerostin in atherosclerotic heart disease is harmful or beneficial is not clear. This article reviews the progress of the mechanisms of sclerostin in vascular calcification and atherosclerotic heart disease, focusing on the relationship between sclerostin and vascular calcification, the impact of its concentration changes on atherosclerotic heart disease, and the effect of sclerostin inhibitor on cardiovascular events.
With the heavier burden of cardiovascular disease, an abundance of papers emerge every year in the research hotspots, which cover a wide range of types and content. In order to let readers interested in the cardiovascular field quickly understand the research hotspots and research frontier, it is necessary to sort out and summarize the research topic in time. According to the discipline classification, we screened papers in cardiovascular field from the Essential Science Indicators (ESI) hot papers published in 2019. Methods such as bibliometrics, statistical description, hierarchical induction, analysis and interpretation were used a step further to reveal the context and characteristics of research in the field of cardiovascular diseases, summarize the latest progress and development direction in this field, and provide information and hints for the expansion of future research directions. A total of 297 papers were finally included, which were mainly in the field of clinical medicine; The country with the most publications was the United States, while China ranked the fifth in terms of contribution; the research institution with the highest number of published papers was Harvard University; the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) has published the most papers, with contribution also from journals such as Circulation, Europe Heart Journal, JAMA, and Lancet. All the papers were categorized into disease burden, disease risk, drug treatment, device treatment and surgical treatment, clinical diagnosis, basic research and others, so as to review and summarize the research front in the field of cardiovascular diseases.
In June 2022, the American Lipid Society released "NLA scientific statement on statin intolerance: a new definition and key considerations for ASCVD risk reduction in the statin intolerant patient", which provides the latest definition, modifiable factors, and treatment strategies of statin intolerance. According to the guidelines, for statin intolerance, the statin medication regimen should be adjusted first (reducing the dose, switching to another statin, reducing the frequency of medication), and if the patient is still intolerant, non-statin drugs should be considered to reduce the risk of ASCVD in the patient. The interpretation of this guideline will help clinicians and researchers identify, manage and intervene in the statin intolerance syndrome.
Circular RNA (circRNA) is a non-coding RNA which exists widely in eukaryotic cells with a structure of covalently closed continuous loop. Its generation, characteristics and functions have received extensive attention, making it one of the hot spots in the field of non-coding RNA research. Many studies have found that circRNA plays an important role in the development of various diseases including cardiovascular disease, nervous system disease and cancer. Cardiovascular disease is a worldwide common disease with high incidence and poor prognosis. Its exact pathogenesis has not been found, which blocks the development of cardiovascular disease treatment. In this review, we summarize the loop-forming mechanisms, the functions and the progress of current researches of circRNA in cardiovascular diseases.
Objective To explore the relationship between uric acid (UA) level and cardiovascular disease in patients with OSAHS and its clinical significance. Methods The electronic medical record system of the First hospital of Lanzhou University was used to collect 475 subjects who completed polysomnography (PSG) during hospitalization from January 2019 to May 2020. According to the Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Obstructive Sleep Apnea Hypopnea Syndrome (Basic Version), the patients were divided into four group: control group [apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) <5 times/h, n=96], mild group (5≤AHI≤15 times/h, n=130), moderate group (15<AHI≤30 times/h, n=112), and severe group (AHI>30 times/h, n=137). The age, gender, body mass index (BMI), smoking history, drinking history, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease and biochemical indexes [including triglyceride, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein cholesterol, low density lipoprotein cholesterol, glucose, UA, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), serum creatinine, lactate dehydrogenase, homocysteine], PSG indexes were observed and compared among the four groups, and the differences were compared by appropriate statistical methods. Binary logistic regression model was used to evaluate the correlation between various risk factors and cardiovascular disease. Results There were statistically significant differences in age, gender, BMI, drinking history, hypertension and cardiovascular disease among the 4 groups (P<0.05). The levels of UA and BUN in mild, moderate and severe groups were higher than those in the control group, with statistical significance (P<0.05). With the increasing of OSAHS severity, the level of UA increased. There was statistical significance in the incidence of cardiovascular disease among the four groups (P<0.05), and the highest incidence of arrhythmia was found among the four groups. And the incidence of cardiovascular disease increases with the increasing of OSAHS severity. Binary Logistic regression analysis showed that the risk factors for cardiovascular disease in OSAHS patients were age, UA and BUN (P<0.05). Conclusions The occurrence of cardiovascular disease in OSAHS patients is positively correlated with the severity of OSAHS. The level of UA can be used as an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease in OSAHS patients. Therefore, reducing the level of UA may have positive significance for the prevention and control of the prevalence and mortality of cardiovascular disease in OSAHS patients.
Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death and their diagnosis and treatment rely heavily on the variety of clinical data. With the advent of the era of medical big data, artificial intelligence (AI) has been widely applied in many aspects such as imaging, diagnosis and prognosis prediction in cardiovascular medicine, providing a new method for accurate diagnosis and treatment. This paper reviews the application of AI in cardiovascular medicine.
Williams syndrome is a congenital multisystem disease. Cardiovascular abnormality caused by elastin deficiency is the main cause of morbidity and mortality in Williams syndrome patients. Recent studies have found that 80% of Williams syndrome patients have cardiovascular abnormalities, most of which are arterial stenosis, especially the aortic valve stenosis and pulmonary artery stenosis. Operation is the main method to treat the stenosis of the artery, and the results of the operation on the aortic valve stenosis in most centers are good, but the effect of transcatheter intervention is still not obvious, pulmonary artery reconstruction has a good effect on the treatment of peripheral pulmonary artery stenosis. Advances in genetic diagnosis, surgical techniques and treatment regimens are expected to significantly improve cardiovascular outcomes in these patients. This article reviews the latest research progress of Williams syndrome combined with cardiovascular disease.