Late Gadolinium Enhancement at cardiac magnetic resonance predicts malignant ventricular arrhythmias in systemic sclerosis

2020 ◽  
Vol 41 (Supplement_2) ◽  
Author(s):  
L Gargani ◽  
N.R Pugliese ◽  
A Meloni ◽  
C Bruni ◽  
G Todiere ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Malignant arrhythmias due to cardiac involvement are a frequent cause of death in systemic sclerosis (SSc). Cardiac involvement, which is linked to both ischaemic and non-ischaemic fibrotic deposition, is often subclinical. Cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) is the non-invasive gold standard for myocardial tissue characterization and can detect macroscopic myocardial fibrosis through late Gadolinium enhancement (LGE). Aim To evaluate the role of LGE to predict malignant arrhythmias requiring implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) in SSc. Methods 289 SSc patients underwent a thorough clinical evaluation and CMR exam using a 1.5 T scanner. Biventricular function parameter by SSFP cine images, oedema by STIR T2 images, and macroscopic fibrosis by LGE were assessed. Patients were followed-up and malignant ventricular arrhythmias requiring ICD implantation was considered as event. Results Out of 289 patients, 111 (38.4%) showed LGE and 83/111 (28.7% of the total population) showed a non-junctional distribution. During the follow-up (45±27 months), 10 patients needed ICD after malignant ventricular arrhythmias (7 patients with LGE, 3 patients without LGE). CMR predictors of cardiac events by univariate analysis were left and right ventricular ejection fractions, indexed right atrial area and non-junctional LGE. At multivariate analysis, macroscopic myocardial fibrosis detected by LGE was an independent predictor (hazard ratio 5.4; 95% C.I. 1.1–28.8, p<0.05; see figure for Kaplan-Meier curves). Conclusions Presence of ventricular LGE at CMR may represent an independent predictor for further malignant ventricular arrhythmias requiring ICD implantation in SSc patients. Kaplan-Meier curves Funding Acknowledgement Type of funding source: None

2020 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 350-356
Author(s):  
Rosario Cianci ◽  
Antonietta Gigante ◽  
Maria Ludovica Gasperini ◽  
Biagio Barbano ◽  
Nicola Galea ◽  
...  

Introduction: Systemic sclerosis (SSc) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by microvascular damage and fibrosis of the skin and internal organs. The major complications are lung fibrosis, pulmonary artery hypertension, scleroderma renal crisis, and cardiac involvement. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess renal and cardiac involvement in asymptomatic SSc patients using renal Doppler ultrasound (RDU) and cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR). Materials and Methods: We enrolled 26 consecutive SSc patients (21 female) according to 2013 ACR/EULAR criteria. Biochemical analysis, clinical evaluation, RDU with intrarenal hemodynamic parameters (renal resistive index [RRI], pulsatility index [PI], systolic/diastolic [S/D] ratio), and CMR with late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) were investigated at the time of enrollment. Results: The median PI value was significantly (p = 0.007) higher in SSc patients with LGE than in SSc patients without LGE (1.37 [1.28–1.58] vs. 1.12 [1.06–1.26]). The median RRI value was significantly (p = 0.002) higher in SSc patients with LGE than in SSc patients without LGE (0.68 [0.65–0.73] vs. 0.64 [0.63–0.65]). The median S/D ratio was significantly (p = 0.02) higher in SSc patients with LGE than in SSc patients without LGE (3.12 [2.83–3.76] vs. 2.78 [2.64–2.84]). Conclusions: Our study, although performed on a small SSc population, showed RRI and LGE as markers of vascular and fibrotic damage. Early detection of cardiorenal involvement in SSc patients without symptoms is important to avoid further complications.


2021 ◽  
Vol 80 (Suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 699.1-699
Author(s):  
A. Gil-Vila ◽  
G. Burcet ◽  
A. Anton-Vicente ◽  
D. Gonzalez-Sans ◽  
A. Nuñez-Conde ◽  
...  

Background:Antisynthetase syndrome (ASS) is characterized by inflammatory myopathy, interstitial lung disease, arthritis, mechanical hands and Raynaud phenomenon, among other features. Recent studies have shown that idiopathic inflammatory myopathies (IIM) may develop cardiac involvement, either ischemic (coronary artery disease) or inflammatory (myocarditis). We wonder if characteristic lung interstitial involvement (interstitial lung disease) that appears in patients with the ASS may also affect the myocardial interstitial tissue. New magnetic resonance mapping techniques could detect subclinical myocardial involvement, mainly as edema (increase extracellular volume in interstitium and extracellular matrix), even in the absence of visible late Gadolinium enhancement (LGE).Objectives:Our aim was to describe the presence of interstitial myocarditis in a group of patients with ASS.Methods:Cross-sectional, observational study performed in a tertiary care center. We included 13 patients diagnosed with ASS (7 male, 53%, mean (SD) age at diagnosis 56,8 years (±11,8)). The patients were consecutively selected from our outpatient myositis clinic. Myositis specific and associated antibodies were performed by means of line immunoblot (EUROIMMUN©). Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) was performed on all patients. The study protocol includes functional cine magnetic resonance and standard late gadolinium enhancement (LGE), as well as novel parametric T1 and T2 mapping sequences (modified look locker inversion recovery sequences - MOLLI) with extracellular volume (ECV) calculation 20 minutes after the injection of a gadolinium-based contrast material.Results:CMR could not be performed in one patient due to anxiety. All patients studied (12) had a normal biventricular function, without alteration of segmental contraction. A third (4 out of 12, 33%) of the studied patients showed elevated T2 myocardial values without focal LGE, half of them (2/4) with an elevated ECV, consistent with myocardial edema. Two patients with normal T2 values showed unspecific LGE focal patterns, one in the right ventricle union points and another with mild interventricular septum enhancement (Figure 1). None of the patients studied refer any cardiac symptomatology. All the four patients with T2 mapping alterations (100%) had interstitial lung involvement, but only 4 out of 8 (50%) of the rest ASS patients without T2 mapping positivity. The autoimmune profile was as follows: 10 anti-Jo1/Ro52, 1 anti-EJ/Ro52, 2 anti-PL12.Conclusion:Myocarditis, although subclinical, appears to be a feature in ASS patients. T1 and T2 mapping sequences might be valuable to detect and monitor subclinical cardiac involvement in these patients. The possibility that the same etiopathogenic mechanism may be involved in the interstitial tissue in lung and myocardium is raised. More studies must be done in order to assert the prevalence of myocarditis in ASS.References:[1]Dieval C et al. Myocarditis in Patients With Antisynthetase Syndrome: Prevalence, Presentation, and Outcomes. Medicine (Baltimore). 2015 Jul;94(26):e798.[2]Myhr KA, Pecini R. Management of Myocarditis in Myositis: Diagnosis and Treatment. Curr Rheumatol Rep. 2020 Jul 22; 22:49.[3]Sharma K, Orbai AM, Desai D, Cingolani OH, Halushka MK, Christopher-Stine L, Mammen AL, Wu KC, Zakaria S. Brief report: antisynthetase syndrome-associated myocarditis. J Card Fail. 2014 Dec;20(12):939-45.Figure 1.Cardiac magnetic resonance images from ASS patients.Disclosure of Interests:None declared


EP Europace ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (9) ◽  
pp. 1392-1399
Author(s):  
Federica Torri ◽  
Csilla Czimbalmos ◽  
Livio Bertagnolli ◽  
Sabrina Oebel ◽  
Andreas Bollmann ◽  
...  

Abstract Aims We sought to investigate the overlap between late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) in cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) and electro-anatomical maps (EAM) of patients with non-ischaemic dilated cardiomyopathy (NIDCM) and how it relates with the outcomes after catheter ablation of ventricular arrhythmias (VA). Methods and results We identified 50 patients with NIDCM who received CMR and ablation for VA. Late gadolinium enhancement was detected in 16 (32%) patients, mostly in those presenting with sustained ventricular tachycardia (VT): 15 patients. Low-voltage areas (<1.5 mV) were observed in 23 (46%) cases; in 7 (14%) cases without evidence of LGE. Using a threshold of 1.5 mV, a good and partially good agreement between the bipolar EAM and LGE-CMR was observed in only 4 (8%) and 9 (18%) patients, respectively. With further adjustments of EAM to match the LGE, we defined new cut-off limits of median 1.5 and 5 mV for bipolar and unipolar maps, respectively. Most VT exits (12 out of 16 patients) were found in areas with LGE. VT exits were found in segments without LGE in two patients with VT recurrence as well as in two patients without recurrence, P = 0.77. In patients with VT recurrence, the LGE volume was significantly larger than in those without recurrence: 12% ± 5.8% vs. 6.9% ± 3.4%; P = 0.049. Conclusions In NIDCM, the agreement between LGE and bipolar EAM was fairly poor but can be improved with adjustment of the thresholds for EAM according to the amount of LGE. The outcomes were related to the volume of LGE.


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