Issue Highlights

Abstract

HomeCirculationVol. 115, No. 8Issue Highlights Free AccessIn BriefPDF/EPUBAboutView PDFView EPUBSections ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload citationsTrack citationsPermissions ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InMendeleyReddit Jump toFree AccessIn BriefPDF/EPUBIssue Highlights Originally published27 Feb 2007https://doi.org/10.1161/circ.115.8.945Circulation. 2007;115:945C-REACTIVE PROTEIN AND PREDICTION OF CORONARY HEART DISEASE AND GLOBAL VASCULAR EVENTS IN THE PROSPECTIVE STUDY OF PRAVASTATIN IN THE ELDERLY AT RISK (PROSPER), by Sattar et al.Prospective data relating C-reactive protein (CRP) to the risk of cardiovascular disease in the elderly are limited, with available studies yielding conflicting results. In this issue of Circulation, Sattar and colleagues use data from the Prospective Study of Pravastatin in the Elderly at Risk (PROSPER) to evaluate whether CRP levels predict vascular events in the elderly, add to risk prediction beyond traditional risk factors, and whether levels correlate with the response to statin therapy. The authors report that higher CRP was associated with increased risk of vascular events in the PROSPER sample, but knowledge of CRP minimally enhances cardiovascular disease prediction beyond established risk factors as judged by the increment in the C statistic for models with and without CRP. Moreover, CRP levels did not predict response to statin therapy in elderly subjects at risk. These data suggest that measurement of CRP in elderly people may have limited clinical utility for cardiovascular disease risk stratification or for predicting response to statin therapy. Additional studies are warranted to confirm these observations. See p 981.EXPOSURE TO SECONDHAND SMOKE AND BIOMARKERS OF CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE RISK IN NEVER-SMOKING ADULTS, by Venn and BrittonVenn and Britton examine the association between secondhand smoke and biomarkers of cardiovascular disease using data from almost 8000 never-smoking adults participating in the third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The investigators used cotinine concentrations to objectively quantify secondhand tobacco smoke exposure. They observed that individuals with low cotinine concentrations had significantly higher homocysteine and fibrinogen concentrations compared with individuals with undetectable concentrations. Of interest, the passive smoke exposure was associated with increased biomarker concentrations that were approximately 30% to 40% of that seen with active smoking. Venn and Britton’s study is consistent with the compelling growing body of literature demonstrating deleterious effects of secondhand smoke on cardiovascular disease risk factors and events. See p 990.DRUG-ELUTING STENT AND CORONARY THROMBOSIS: BIOLOGICAL MECHANISMS AND CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS, by Lüscher et al.Beginning with this issue, the editors of Circulation introduce a series of special articles devoted to the current debate about drug-eluting stents. The report by Lüscher et al provides an overview of the pathophysiological mechanisms and pathological findings of stent thrombosis in drug-eluting stents. Next week, we will continue our evaluation of this topic by framing the issue as a Controversy in Cardiovascular Medicine, entitled “Are Drug-Eluting Stents Associated With a Higher Rate of Late Thrombosis than Bare Metal Stents?” Drs Patrick W. Serruys and Joost Daemen take the position that the drug-eluting stent is no more dangerous than the bare metal stent, while Dr Edoardo Camenzind and colleagues suggest that patients are at greater risk of late stent thrombosis when a drug-eluting stent is used. Subsequently, the reader will be provided with further information on the topic. Dr William Maisel will provide a summary of the US Food and Drug Administration meetings held in December, as well as provide an update for patients as part of our Cardiology Patient Page series. Additional papers on this issue may also be forthcoming, and we hope that you will continue to look to Circulation as your definitive resource on the rapidly evolving literature on drug-eluting stents. See p 1051.Visit http://circ.ahajournals.org:Images in Cardiovascular MedicineLocalized Pulmonary Edema After Blunt Chest Trauma. See p e206.Late Device Dislodgement After Percutaneous Closure of Mitral Prosthesis Paravalvular Leak With Amplatzer Muscular Ventricular Septal Defect Occluder. See p e208. Download figureDownload PowerPointWestermark’s and Palla’s Signs in Acute Pulmonary Embolism. See p e211.CorrespondenceSee p e212. Previous Back to top Next FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails February 27, 2007Vol 115, Issue 8 Advertisement Article InformationMetrics https://doi.org/10.1161/circ.115.8.945 Originally publishedFebruary 27, 2007 PDF download Advertisement