Neutrophil activity contributes to adverse cardiac remodelling in experimental acute cardiac injury and is modifiable with pharmacologic agents like colchicine. Neutrophil activity-related plasma proteins known to be affected by colchicine treatment were measured at Visit 3 (1993-1995) and Visit 5 (2011-2013) of the ARIC cohort study. A protein-based neutrophil activity score was derived from 10 candidate proteins using LASSO Cox regression. Associations with incident heart failure (HF) and with cardiac function using Cox proportional hazards regression and linear regression models, respectively. The mean ages at Visits 3 and 5 were 60 ± 6 and 75 ± 5 years, respectively, and 54% and 57% were women, respectively. Each 1-standard deviation increase in the neutrophil activity score was associated with a higher risk of incident HF in mid-life (hazard ratio [HR] 1.31, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.25-1.37) and late-life (HR 1.23, 95% CI 1.14-1.34), with a higher HR for HF with preserved than reduced ejection fraction (HR 1.30, 95% CI 1.16-1.47 vs. HR 1.13, 95% CI 0.98-1.30). Higher neutrophil activity was associated with greater left ventricular end-diastolic volume index, mass index and diastolic and systolic dysfunction. Plasma proteins related to neutrophil function associate with incident HF in mid- and late-life and with adverse cardiac remodelling. Therapies that modify these proteins, such as colchicine, may represent promising targets for the prevention or treatment of HF.

Heart failure (HF) is a chronic and progressive syndrome associated with a poor prognosis. While it may seem intuitive that the risk of adverse outcomes varies across the different stages of HF, an overview of these risks is lacking. This study aims to determine the risk of all-cause mortality and HF hospitalizations associated with new-onset HF, chronic HF (CHF), worsening HF (WHF), and advanced HF (adv. HF). We performed a systematic review of observational studies from 2012 to 2022 using five different databases. The primary outcomes were 30-day and one-year all-cause mortality, as well as one-year HF hospitalization. Studies were pooled using random effects meta-analysis, and mixed-effects meta-regression was used to compare the different HF groups. Among the 15.759 studies screened, 66 were included representing 862.046 HF patients. Pooled 30-day mortality rates did not reveal a significant distinction between hospital-admitted patients, with rates of 10.13% for new-onset HF and 8.11% for WHF (p = 0.10). However, the one-year mortality risk differed and increased stepwise from CHF to adv. HF, with a rate of 8.47% (95% CI 7.24-9.89) for CHF, 21.15% (95% CI 17.78-24.95) for new-onset HF, 26.84% (95% CI 23.74-30.19) for WHF, and 29.74% (95% CI 24.15-36.10) for adv HF. Readmission rates for HF at one year followed a similar trend. Our meta-analysis of observational studies confirms the different risk for adverse outcomes across the distinct HF stages. Moreover, it emphasizes the negative prognostic value of WHF as the first progressive stage from CHF towards adv. HF. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

There are few prospective reports of 1-year outcomes for women with peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM). We report findings from the European Society of Cardiology EURObservational Research Programme PPCM Registry. The registry enrolled women from 51 countries from 2012-2018. Eligibility included: 1) a peripartum state, 2) signs or symptoms of heart failure, 3) LV ejection fraction ≤45%, 4) exclusion of alternative causes of heart failure. We report mortality, thromboembolism, stroke, re-hospitalization, LV recovery and remodelling at 1 year. Differences between regions were compared. One-year mortality data were available in 535 (71%) women and follow-up differed across regions. At 1 year, death from any cause occurred in 8.4% of women, with regional variation (Europe 4.9%, Africa 6.5%, Asia-Pacific 9.2%, Middle East 18.9%, p < 0.001). The frequencies of thromboembolism and stroke were 6.3% and 2.5%, respectively, and were similar across regions. A total of 14.0% of women had at least one re-hospitalization and 3.5% had recurrent re-hospitalizations (i.e. two or more). Overall, 66.1% of women had recovery of LV function (22% between 6 months and 1 year), with a mean LVEF increase from baseline of 21.2% [±13.6]). Recovery occurred most frequently in Asia-Pacific (77.5%) and least frequently in the Middle East (32.7%). There were significant regional differences in the use of heart failure pharmacotherapies. Approximately 1 in 12 women with PPCM had died by 1 year and thromboembolism and stroke occurred in 6.3% and 2.5%, respectively. Around 1 in 7 women had been re-hospitalized and, in 1 in 3, LV recovery had not occurred. PPCM is associated with substantial mortality and morbidity globally.

Data on the clinical features and prognosis of patients with isolated cardiac sarcoidosis (iCS) are limited. This study evaluated the clinical characteristics and prognostic impact of iCS. This was a secondary analysis of the ILLUMINATE-CS study, a multicentre, retrospective registry investigating the clinical characteristics and prognosis of CS. iCS was diagnosed according to the 2016 Japanese Circulation Society (JCS) guidelines. Clinical characteristics and prognosis were compared between patients with iCS and systemic CS (sCS). The primary outcome was a combined endpoint of all-cause death, hospitalisation for heart failure, or fatal ventricular arrhythmia events. Among 475 patients with CS (mean age, 62.0 ± 10.9 years; female ratio, 59%) diagnosed by the JCS guidelines, 119 (25.1%) were diagnosed with iCS. Patients with iCS had a higher prevalence of a history of atrial fibrillation or hospitalisation for heart failure, or lower left ventricular ejection fraction than those with sCS. During a median follow-up of 42.3 (interquartile range, 22.8-72.5) months, 141 primary outcomes (29.7%) occurred. Cox proportional hazard analysis revealed that iCS was a significant risk factor for the primary outcome in the unadjusted model (hazard ratio [HR], 1.62; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.12-2.34; P=0.011). However, this association was not retained after adjustment for other covariates (adjusted HR, 1.27; 95% CI, 0.86-1.88; P=0.226). Patients with iCS had more impaired cardiovascular function at the time of diagnosis than those with sCS. However, iCS was not independently associated with poor prognosis after adjustment for prognostic factors. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.