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Data whether the COVID-19 outbreak impacts the acute coronary syndromes (ACS) admissions and the time required to reverse the downward curve are scarce. We included all consecutive patients referred for an ACS who underwent PCI from February 17, 2020 to April 26, 2020 in a high-volume PCI coronary care unit. We compared the number of ACS patients in 2020 to the same period in 2018 and 2019. Predictors of adverse outcome in ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients were recorded: symptom-onset-to-first medical contact (FMC), and FMC-to-sheath insertion times. During the studied period (calendar weeks 8–17, 2018–2020), 144 ACS patients were included. In 2020, we observed two distinct phases in the ACS admissions: a first significant fall, with a relative reduction of 73%, from the week of lockdown (week 12) to 3 weeks later and then an increase of ACS. Median symptom-onset-to-FMC time was significantly higher in 2020 than in the two previous years (600 min [298–632] versus 121 min [55–291], p < 0.001). Median FMC-to-sheath insertion did not differ significantly (93 min [81–131] in 2020 versus 90 min [67–137] in 2018–2019, p = 0.57). The main findings are (1) a pattern of a U-curve in ACS admissions, with a first decrease in ACS admissions and a return to “normality” 4 weeks after; (2) a significant increase in the total ischemic time exclusively due to an increase in the symptom-onset-to-first-medical-contact time.

Dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) is a widely used examination for assessment of coronary ischemia, but several complications have been reported. The aim of this study was to assess the incidence of atrial fibrillation (AF) during DSE, and a systematic review and meta-analysis were also performed to determine an accurate estimate of the AF incidence. Over a 16-year period, we reviewed all patients referred for DSE. We systematically analyzed all ECG performed during DSE to detect AF during the examination. DSE was completely performed in 4,818 patients (mean age: 62.1 ± 11.7 years). AF was observed in 40 patients (31 men, mean age: 79.7 ± 8.9 years). Incidence of AF during DSE was 0.83%. Regarding the meta-analysis, the combined AF incidence was 0.86%. In our study, patients with AF occurrence had more frequent previous history of paroxysmal AF (p = 0.02) were also older (p < 0.0001) and incidence of AF during DSE increased with age: 0% below 60 years, 0.45% in patients 60 to 69 years, 1.3% in patients 70 to 79 years, and 4% in patients >80 years (p < 0.0001). In multivariate analysis, the factors significantly associated with an increased risk of AF were age (adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 2.4, 95% confidence interval: 1.5 to 3.3, p = 0.003) and previous history of paroxysmal AF (aOR = 1.5, 95% confidence interval: 1.1 to 1.9; p = 0.04). In conclusion, AF is uncommon during DSE, and elderly patients and patients with previous history of paroxysmal AF are at risk of AF during DSE.

Cardiomyopathies are responsible for heart failure and sudden cardiac death, but epidemiological data are scarce and the public health burden may be underestimated. We studied aggregating data from all public or private hospitals in France. Patients were categorized from relevant ICD-10 codes into dilated, hypertrophic, restrictive, or other cardiomyopathies (DCM, HCM, RCM, or OCM, respectively). Between 2008 and 2015, a total of 326,461 distinct patients had cardiomyopathy-related hospitalizations. The hospital-based prevalence of cardiomyopathy was 809 per million inhabitants (PMI) per year, including 428 PMI for DCM, 101 PMI for HCM, 26 PMI for RCM, and 253 PMI for OCM. Patients with cardiomyopathies accounted for 51% of all heart transplants, 33% of defibrillator implantations, 38% of mechanical circulatory supports, and 11.3% of hospitalizations for heart failure. In patients less than 40 years of age, these figures were 71%, 51%, 63%, and 23%, respectively. Over 2008–2015 and considering all cardiomyopathies, there was a significant increase for heart transplant (average annual percentage change, AAPC: +3.86%, p = 0.0015) and for defibrillator implantation (AAPC: +6.98%, p < 0.0001), and a significant decrease of in-hospital mortality (AAPC: −4.7%, p = 0.0002). This nationwide study shows that cardiomyopathies constitute an important cause of hospitalization, with increasing invasive therapeutic procedures and decreasing mortality.

Abstract Background  Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is associated with hypercoagulability and a high rate of thrombosis. Few cases of coronary stent thrombosis associated with COVID-19 have been reported. Case summary  In this report, we describe the case of a 65-year-old man with a history of coronary artery disease (CAD) who was admitted following an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest related to an ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction revealing a very late dual coronary stent thrombosis of the left anterior descending and posterior descending arteries. Ten days prior to admission, he was diagnosed with COVID-19 pneumonia and treated with dexamethasone, which led to rapid clinical improvement. After resuscitation, coronary angiography revealed an acute thrombotic occlusion in the two previous drug-eluting stents (implanted in 2010 and 2018), with a high thrombus burden. He was successfully treated by percutaneous coronary intervention. The patient did not present any further complications during his hospital stay and was transferred to a cardiac rehabilitation centre. Discussion  Dual stent thrombosis is an exceptional event highlighting the high procoagulant state promoted by coronavirus 19. This case suggests that strengthening of antithrombotic therapy in CAD patients presenting with COVID-19 should be discussed.