Background: Heart failure (HF) remains one of the leading causes of death to date despite extensive research funding. Various studies are conducted every year in an attempt to improve diagnostic accuracy and therapy monitoring. The small cytoplasmic heart-type fatty acid-binding protein (H-FABP) has been studied in a variety of disease entities. Here, we provide a review of the available literature on H-FABP and its possible applications in HF. Methods: Literature research using PubMed Central was conducted. To select possible studies for inclusion, the authors screened all available studies by title and, if suitable, by Relevant manuscripts were read in full text. Results: In total, 23 studies regarding H-FABP in HF were included in this review. Conclusion: While, algorithms already exist in the area of risk stratification for acute pulmonary embolism, there is still no consensus for the routine use of H-FABP in daily clinical practice in HF. At present, the strongest evidence exists for risk evaluation of adverse cardiac events. Other future applications of H-FABP may include early detection of ischemia, worsening of renal failure, and long-term treatment planning.

ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is one of the main reasons for morbidity and mortality worldwide. In addition to the classic biomarker NT-proBNP, new biomarkers like ST2 and Pentraxin-3 (Ptx-3) have emerged as potential tools in stratifying risk in cardiac patients. Indeed, multimarker approaches to estimate prognosis of STEMI patients have been proposed and their potential clinical impact requires investigation. In our study, in 147 patients with STEMI, NT-proBNP as well as serum levels of ST2 and Ptx-3 were evaluated. During two-year follow-up (FU; 734.2 ± 61.2 d) results were correlated with risk for cardiovascular mortality (CV-mortality). NT-proBNP (HR = 1.64, 95% CI = 1.21–2.21, p = 0.001) but also ST2 (HR = 1.000022, 95% CI = 1.00–1.001, p < 0.001) were shown to be reliable predictors of CV-mortality, while the highest predictive power was observed with Ptx-3 (HR = 3.1, 95% CI = 1.63–5.39, p < 0.001). When two biomarkers were combined in a multivariate Cox regression model, relevant improvement of risk assessment was only observed with NT-proBNP+Ptx-3 (AIC = 209, BIC = 214, p = 0.001, MER = 0.75, MEV = 0.64). However, the highest accuracy was seen using a three-marker approach (NT-proBNP + ST2 + Ptx-3: AIC = 208, BIC = 214, p < 0.001, MER = 0.77, MEV = 0.66). In conclusion, after STEMI, ST2 and Ptx-3 in addition to NT-proBNP were associated with the incidence of CV-mortality, with multimarker approaches enhancing the accuracy of prediction of CV-mortality.

Background: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) and cardiovascular diseases (CVD) often occur concomitantly, and CKD is a major risk factor for cardiovascular mortality. Since some of the most commonly used biomarkers in CVD are permanently elevated in patients with CKD, novel biomarkers are warranted for clinical practice. Methods: Plasma concentrations of five cardiovascular biomarkers (soluble suppression of tumorigenicity (sST2), growth differentiation factor 15 (GDF-15), heart-type fatty acid-binding protein (H-FABP), insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 2 (IGF-BP2), and soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor) were analyzed by means of enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) in 219 patients with CKD enrolled in the German Chronic Kidney Disease (GCKD) study. Results: Except for sST2, all of the investigated biomarkers were significantly elevated in patients with CKD (2.0- to 4.4-fold increase in advanced CKD (estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) < 30 mL/min/1.73 m² body surface area (BSA)) and showed a significant inverse correlation with eGFR. Moreover, all but H-FABP and sST2 were additionally elevated in patients with micro- and macro-albuminuria. Conclusions: Based on our findings, sST2 appears to be the biomarker whose diagnostic performance is least affected by decreased renal function, thus suggesting potential viability in the management of patients with CVD and concomitant CKD. The predictive potential of sST2 remains to be proven in endpoint studies.

Background: With the advent of implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) technology in recent decades, patients with inherited or congenital cardiomyopathy have a greater chance of survival into adulthood. Women with ICDs in this group are now more likely to reach reproductive age. However, pregnancy represents a challenge for clinicians, as no guidelines for the treatment of pregnant women with an ICD are currently available. Methods: To analyze this issue, we performed a systematic screening of the literature using the keywords: pregnancy with ICD, lead fracture in pregnancy, lead thrombi in pregnancy, ventricular tachycardia in pregnancy, inappropriate shocks in pregnancy, ICD discharge in pregnancy and ICD shock in pregnancy. Of 1101 publications found, 27 publications were eligible for further analysis (four retrospective trials and 23 case reports). Results: According to physiological changes in pregnancy, resulting in an increase in heart rate and cardiac output, a vulnerability for malignant arrhythmias and device-related complications in ICD carriers might be suspected. While the literature is limited on this issue, maternal complications including arrhythmia burden with following ICD therapies, thromboembolic events and lead complications as well as inappropriate shock therapy have been reported. According to the limited available studies, associated risk seems not to be more frequent than in the general population and depends on the underlying cardiac pathology. Furthermore, worsening of heart failure and related cardiovascular disease have been reported with associated risk of preterm delivery. These observations are exaggerated by restricted applications of diagnostics and treatment due to the risk of fetal harm in this population. Conclusions: Due to limited data on management of ICDs during pregnancy, further scientific investigations are required. Consequently, careful risk assessment with individual risk evaluation and close follow ups with interdisciplinary treatment are recommended in pregnant ICD carriers.

Introduction: COVID-19 survivors reveal an increased long-term risk for cardiovascular disease. Biomarkers like troponins and sST-2 improve stratification of cardiovascular risk. Nevertheless, their prognostic value for identifying long-term cardiovascular risk after having survived COVID-19 has yet to be evaluated. Methods: In this single-center study, admission serum biomarkers of sST-2 and hs-TnI in a single cohort of 251 hospitalized COVID-19 survivors were evaluated. Concentrations were correlated with major cardiovascular events (MACE) defined as cardiovascular death and/or need for cardiovascular hospitalization during follow-up after hospital discharge [FU: 415 days (403; 422)]. Results: MACE was a frequent finding during FU with an incidence of 8.4% (cardiovascular death: 2.8% and/or need for cardiovascular hospitalization: 7.2%). Both biomarkers were reliable indicators of MACE (hs-TnI: sensitivity = 66.7% & specificity = 65.7%; sST-2: sensitivity = 33.3% & specificity = 97.4%). This was confirmed in a multivariate proportional-hazards analysis: besides age (HR = 1.047, 95% CI = 1.012–1.084, p = 0.009), hs-TnI (HR = 4.940, 95% CI = 1.904–12.816, p = 0.001) and sST-2 (HR = 10.901, 95% CI = 4.509–29.271, p < 0.001) were strong predictors of MACE. The predictive value of the model was further improved by combining both biomarkers with the factor age (concordance index hs-TnI + sST2 + age = 0.812). Conclusion: During long-term FU, hospitalized COVID-19 survivors, hs-TnI and sST-2 at admission, were strong predictors of MACE, indicating both proteins to be involved in post-acute sequelae of COVID-19.

With the onset of the coronavirus pandemic, it has become clear that patients with diabetes are at risk for more severe and fatal COVID-19. Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) is a major risk factor for adverse COVID-19 outcomes. The goal of study was to assess the characteristics and outcomes of hospitalized patients with COVID-19 with or without T2D in the hospital and at 10-month follow-up (FU). Methods: A total of 2486 hospitalized patients in the first wave of COVID-19 were analyzed according to the absence/presence of T2D, with 2082 (84.1%) patients in the control COVID-19 group and 381 (15.5%) in the T2D group. Twenty-three patients had other types of diabetes and were therefore excluded from the study. In-hospital mortality and cardiovascular endpoints (myocardial infarction, stroke, cardiovascular deaths and hospitalizations and composite endpoints) at the 10-month follow-up were analyzed. To remove bias in patients’ characteristics disproportion, Propensity Score Matching (PSM) was used for hospital and follow-up endpoints. Results. Hospital mortality was considerably greater in T2D than in the control COVID-19 group (13.89% vs. 4.89%, p < 0.0001), and the difference remained after PSM (p < 0.0001). Higher glucose-level T2D patients had a higher mortality rate (p = 0.018). The most significant predictors of hospital death in T2D patients were a high CRP, glucose, neutrophils count, and Charlson Comorbidity Index. The follow-up of patients over 10 months showed a non-significant increase for all endpoints in the T2D group (p > 0.05), and significant increase in stroke (p < 0.042). After the PSM, the difference decreased in stroke (p = 0.090), but became significant in cardiovascular hospitalizations (p = 0.023). Conclusion. In T2D patients with COVID-19, an increase in hospital mortality, stroke and cardiovascular hospitalizations rates in the follow-up was observed.