Background: The natural course of heart failure (HF) is typically associated with repeated hospitalizations, and subsequently, patient prognosis deteriorates. However, the precise relationship between repeated admissions for HF and long-term prognosis remains unknown. Methods and Results: We analyzed data from 1,730 consecutive acute HF patients registered in the West Tokyo Heart Failure (WET-HF) registry between June 2005 and April 2014 (median age, 76 years). Patients were divided into 3 groups according to the number of previous HF admissions at the time of the index admission (0, n=876 [55.4%]; 1, n=425 [26.9%]; ≥2, n=279 [17.7%] previous admissions). A history of multiple previous admissions was an independent predictor for all-cause death and HF readmission in reference to a history of a single previous admission (hazard ratio (HR), 1.53; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.10–2.13; HR, 1.90 95% CI, 1.47–2.44, respectively) or no previous admissions (HR, 1.37, 95% CI, 1.01–1.85; HR, 2.83, 95% CI, 2.19–3.65, respectively). On the other hand, a history of a single previous admission was an independent predictor for HF readmission in reference to a history of no previous admissions (HR, 1.51, 95% CI, 1.18–1.92), but not for all-cause death (HR, 0.89, 95% CI, 0.66–1.20). Conclusions: Based on a contemporary multicenter HF registry, a history of multiple previous HF admissions was revealed as an independent, strong risk factor of adverse events following the index admission. The number of hospitalizations could be a simple and important surrogate indicating subsequent adverse events in patients with HF.

OBJECTIVES: To elucidate the optimal septal reduction therapy for obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, we conducted a meta-analysis comparing alcohol septal ablation (ASA) and septal myectomy.METHODS: MEDLINE, EMBASE and Cochrane CENTRAL were searched to identify studies investigating the outcomes of ASA and septal myectomy in patients with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in January 2023. The primary outcome of interest was all-cause mortality in studies with ≥1 year of follow-up. The secondary outcomes of interest comprised left ventricular outflow tract (LVOT) pressure gradient reduction and reoperations of LVOT. A subgroup analysis of all-cause mortality including studies with follow-up ≥5 years was performed.RESULTS: 27 observational studies were included (15 968 patients). Analysis demonstrated similar all-cause mortality [hazard ratio (HR) (95% confidence interval) (CI) 1.24 (0.88–1.76); P = 0.21; I2 = 56%]. In contrast, ASA was associated with less reduction of LVOT pressure gradient and a reoperation rate [weighted mean difference (95% CI) 11.04 mmHg (5.60–16.48); P < 0.01; I2 = 64%, HR (95% CI) 9.14 (6.55–12.75); P < 0.001; I2 = 0%, respectively]. The subgroup analysis with follow-up ≥5 years revealed higher long-term mortality with ASA [HR (95% CI) 1.50 (1.04–2.15); P = 0.03; I2 = 52%].CONCLUSIONS: Although both septal reduction therapies were associated with similar all-cause mortality, ASA was associated with a higher rate of reoperation and less reduction of LVOT pressure gradient. Furthermore, all-cause mortality with follow-up ≥5 years showed favourable outcomes with septal myectomy, although the result is only hypothesis-generating given a subgroup analysis.

Aims : In Japan, reduced-dose prasugrel (loading/maintenance dose, 20/3.75 mg) has been approved for use in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), because of the higher bleeding risk among East Asians. However, its safety in the real-world population has not been investigated. We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of reduced-dose prasugrel vs. standard-dose clopidogrel in ACS patients undergoing PCI. Methods and results : Acute coronary syndrome patients who underwent PCI in 2016, who were treated with either reduced-dose prasugrel or standard-dose clopidogrel in addition to aspirin, were identified from the nationwide Japanese PCI registry. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality following PCI. Secondary outcomes included stent thrombosis and bleeding complication after PCI. Among 62 737 ACS patients who underwent PCI at any of 986 participating centres across Japan (clopidogrel 31.9%; prasugrel 68.1%), we identified 12 016 propensity score-matched pairs (24 032 patients; age 69.4 ± 12.2 years; female 24.9%; ST-elevation myocardial infarction 42.3%). Compared with standard-dose clopidogrel, reduced-dose prasugrel was associated with increased risk of bleeding [odds ratio (OR) 1.65, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.10–2.51; P = 0.016], but both had similar rates of mortality (OR 1.11, 95% CI 0.89–1.38; P = 0.371) and stent thrombosis (OR 1.29, 95% CI 0.73–2.30; P = 0.387) as well as similar falsification endpoints of cardiac tamponade and emergent operation. Conclusion : In Japanese ACS patients undergoing PCI, the risk of bleeding is higher when using reduced-dose prasugrel than when using standard-dose clopidogrel, but there is no significant difference in in-hospital mortality and incidence of stent thrombosis between the two antiplatelet regimens.

Although obesity is associated with left ventricular hypertrophy, diastolic dysfunction, and occurrence of atrial fibrillation (AF), obese heart failure (HF) patients have a more favorable clinical outcome (obesity paradox). The clinical impact of AF on obese or lean HF patients has not been fully elucidated.Methods and Results:We analyzed 1,681 patients who were enrolled in the West Tokyo Heart Failure Registry (WET-HF Registry), a multicenter, prospective cohort registry from 2005 through 2014. We assigned them to 3 categories based on body mass index (BMI): low, BMI <18.5; medium, BMI ≥18.5 and <25; and high, BMI ≥25 (n=182/915/400). The clinical endpoint was all-cause death or readmission for acute decompensated HF. During 406 days of follow-up (IQR, 116-739 days), AF was associated with a higher risk of the endpoint in the HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) group (P<0.001, log-rank test), but not in the HF with reduced EF (HFrEF) group. AF was associated with a higher risk of the endpoint in low and medium BMI patients with HFpEF (P=0.016 and 0.009, respectively). On Multivariate Cox proportional hazards analysis, AF was an independent predictor of the endpoint in patients with BMI <25 from the HFpEF group (hazard ratio, 1.74; 95% CI: 1.21-2.54, P=0.003), but not in the other subgroups. AF had a negative impact on clinical outcome in non-obese patients with HFpEF.