Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) can cause degeneration in the retina and optic nerve either directly, as a result of amyloid beta deposits, or secondarily, as a result of the degradation of the visual cortex. These effects raise the possibility that tracking ophthalmologic changes in the retina can be used to assess neurodegeneration in AD. This study aimed to detect retinal changes and associated functional changes in three groups of patients consisting of AD patients with mild disease, AD patients with moderate disease and healthy controls by using non-invasive psychophysical ophthalmological tests and optical coherence tomography (OCT). We included 39 patients with mild AD, 21 patients with moderate AD and 40 age-matched healthy controls. Both patients and controls were ophthalmologically healthy. Visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, colour perception, visual integration, and choroidal thicknesses were measured. In addition, OCT and OCT angiography (OCTA) were applied. Visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, colour perception, and visual integration were significantly lower in AD patients than in healthy controls. Compared to healthy controls, macular thinning in the central region was significant in the mild AD patients, while macular thickening in the central region was found in the moderate AD group. The analysis of macular layers revealed significant thinning of the retinal nerve fibre layer, the ganglion cell layer and the outer plexiform layer in AD patients relative to controls. Conversely, significant thickening was observed in the outer nuclear layer of the patients. However, mild AD was associated with significant thinning of the subfovea and the nasal and inferior sectors of the choroid. Significant superonasal and inferotemporal peripapillary thinning was observed in patients with moderate disease. The first changes in the mild AD patients appear in the psychophysical tests and in the central macula with a decrease in the central retinal thickness. When there was a disease progression to moderate AD, psychophysical tests remained stable with respect to the decrease in mild AD, but significant thinning in the peripapillary retina and thickening in the central retina appeared. The presence of AD is best indicated based on contrast sensitivity.

Background Patients with Takotsubo syndrome (TTS) who develop cardiogenic shock may present with left ventricular outflow tract obstruction (LVOTO). The prognosis and treatment of this population have not been defined in previous studies. The aim of this study is to describe the clinical presentation, management, evolution and prognosis of a subgroup of patients with TTS and cardiogenic shock according to whether they present with LVOTO or not. Methods We analysed patients with TTS recruited from 2003 to 2022 in a multicentre registry. Patients were selected if they presented cardiogenic shock during their admission. This analysis was compared according to the presence or absence of LVOTO. Results 322 patients were included, 58 (18%) of whom had LVOTO. The majority were treated with vasoactive and inotropic therapy (VIT) and its use was strongly associated with having LVOTO (77.6% vs 57.6%, p<0.001). Only five (3.3%) patients without LVOTO and two (4.4%) in the LVOTO group treated with VIT developed or worsened the obstruction. Furthermore, patients with LVOTO presented higher in-hospital complications including ventricular arrhythmias (15.5% vs 8.7%, p=0.017), major bleeding (13.8% vs 6.1%, p=0.042) and acute kidney failure (48.3% vs 28.4%, p=0.003). However, at both 90 days and 5 years, the cumulative incidence of all-cause death was not significantly different between the patients with and without LVOTO (HR 1.20, 95% CI 0.60 to 2.40 for 90 days, and HR 1.69, 95% CI 0.89 to 3.21 for 5 years). Conclusions LVOTO is not uncommon in patients with TTS and cardiogenic shock. It is associated with a more aggressive in-hospital course and our data is unable to rule out an association between the presence of LVOTO and long-term prognosis of patients with TTS. The development or worsening of LVOTO directly related to inotropic or vasoactive support was low.

Background: Cardiogenic shock (CS) is a significant complication of Takotsubo syndrome (TTS), contributing to heightened mortality and morbidity. Despite this, the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) staging system for CS severity lacks validation in patients with TTS and CS. This study aimed to characterize a patient cohort with TTS using the SCAI staging system and assess its utility in cases of TTS complicated by CS. Methods and Results: From a TTS national registry, 1591 consecutive patients were initially enrolled and stratified into 5 SCAI stages (A through E). Primary outcome was all‐cause in‐hospital mortality; secondary end points were TTS‐related in‐hospital complications and 1‐year all‐cause mortality. After exclusions, the final cohort comprised 1163 patients, mean age 71.0±11.8 years, and 87% were female. Patients were categorized across SCAI shock stages as follows: A 72.1%, B 12.2%, C 11.2%, D 2.7%, and E 1.8%. Significant variations in baseline demographics, comorbidities, clinical presentations, and in‐hospital courses were observed across SCAI shock stages. After multivariable adjustment, each higher SCAI shock stage showed a significant association with increased in‐hospital mortality (adjusted odds ratio: 1.77–29.31) compared with SCAI shock stage A. Higher SCAI shock stages were also associated with increased 1‐year mortality. Conclusions: In a large multicenter patient cohort with TTS, the functional SCAI shock stage classification effectively stratified mortality risk, revealing a continuum of escalating shock severity with higher stages correlating with increased in‐hospital mortality. This study highlights the applicability and prognostic value of the SCAI staging system in TTS‐related CS.

Recently, abnormal thyroid function was shown to be common in patients with Takotsubo syndrome (TTS), being classified into "endocrine-type" and "stress-type" responses. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between thyroid homeostasis and TTS in a larger international registry. In total 288 patients with TTS were enrolled through the GEIST multicentre registry from Germany, Italy and Spain. Thyrotropin (TSH), free T4 (FT4) and free T3 (FT3) concentrations were analysed at admission. Data were collected both retrospectively and prospectively from 2017 onwards. Primary endpoints included in-hospital and all-cause fatality, determined by cluster analysis using an unsupervised machine learning algorithm (k-medoids). Three clusters were identified, classifying TTS with low (TSLT), high (TSHT) and normal (TSNT) thyroid output, based on TSH and FT4 levels in relation to the median thyroid's secretory capacity (SPINA-GT). Although TSH and FT4 concentrations were similar among survivors and non-survivors, these clusters were significantly associated with patient outcomes. In the longitudinal Kaplan-Meier analysis including in- and out-of-hospital survival, the prognosis related to concentrations of TSH, FT4, and FT3 as well as SPINA-GT, deiodinase activity (SPINA-GD) and clusters. Patients in the TSHT cluster and with cardiogenic shock had a lower initial left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). This study suggests that thyroid hormones may impact the evolution and prognosis of TTS. The findings indicate that thyroid-derived biomarkers may help identify high-risk patients and pave the way for novel personalized and preventive therapeutic options. This research was not funded by any public, commercial, or not-for-profit agencies.