{"title":"Sex Differences in Clinical Outcomes After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation - Insights From a Nationwide Japanese Registry.","authors":"Kentaro Mitsui, Kensuke Takagi, Yu Kataoka, Yoko Sumita, Koshiro Kanaoka, Yoshihiro Miyamoto, Yuki Irie, Atsushi Okada, Hideaki Kanzaki, Satsuki Fukushima, Kota Murai, Kenichiro Sawada, Hideo Matama, Takamasa Iwai, Satoshi Honda, Masashi Fujino, Kazuhiro Nakao, Shuichi Yoneda, Yasuhide Asaumi, Kenichi Tsujita, Kazuhiro Yamamoto, Teruo Noguchi","doi":"10.1253/circj.CJ-26-0492","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1253/circj.CJ-26-0492","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Sex differences in outcomes after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) for aortic stenosis in Japan have not been fully investigated.</p><p><strong>Methods and results: </strong>Using a nationwide registry, we evaluated sex differences in post-TAVI outcomes. In all, 36,353 patients (23,978 women, 12,375 men) were included. Women were older (84.9 vs. 83.5 years; P<0.001), had a smaller body surface area (BSA; 1.38 vs. 1.60 m<sup>2</sup>; P<0.001), and a lower prevalence of comorbidities than men. In-hospital mortality was comparable between women and men (1.2% vs. 1.3%, respectively; P=0.367). Women had higher rates of major red cell concentrate (RCC) transfusion (10.1% vs. 8.7%; P<0.001) and permanent pacemaker implantation (PPI; 7.1% vs. 5.9%; P<0.001). In multivariable analysis, BSA was inversely associated with in-hospital mortality (adjusted odds ratio [aOR] 0.84 per 0.1-m<sup>2</sup>increase; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.77-0.91; P<0.001). Female sex was independently associated with lower risks of in-hospital mortality (aOR 0.60; 95% CI 0.45-0.81) and major RCC transfusion (aOR 0.79; 95% CI 0.71-0.89), but a higher risk of PPI (aOR 1.15; 95% CI 1.02-1.30).</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>In a Japanese TAVI registry, crude mortality was comparable between the sexes, but women had higher major RCC transfusion and PPI rates. After adjusting for BSA and available measured covariates, female sex was associated with lower in-hospital mortality. Combined sex and BSA assessment appears important for predicting post-TAVI outcomes.</p>","PeriodicalId":50691,"journal":{"name":"Circulation Journal","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":5.8,"publicationDate":"2026-08-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148833325","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Symptomatic Pulmonary Regurgitation Without Right Ventricular Enlargement Accompanied by Biventricular Diastolic Dysfunction in Repaired Tetralogy of Fallot and Related Diseases.","authors":"Sayuri Yamabe, Kiyomi Kayama, Yoshiro Tsuruta, Yu Kawada, Tatsuya Mizoguchi, Masashi Yokoi, Kento Mori, Tsuyoshi Ito, Kyoko Matsui, Shuichi Kitada, Toshihiko Goto, Masahiro Yasuda, Hitomi Kimura, Satoshi Koyama, Tsutomu Shinohara, Keiichi Itatani, Yoshihiro Seo","doi":"10.1253/circj.CJ-25-0786","DOIUrl":"10.1253/circj.CJ-25-0786","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>In repaired tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) and related diseases, reoperation for pulmonary regurgitation (PR) may be delayed unless marked right ventricular (RV) enlargement is present.</p><p><strong>Methods and results: </strong>32 patients with significant PR post-repair underwent catheterization and 4D flow MRI for reoperation evaluation. The Non-severe RV Dilation group (n=20) did not meet the surgical volume criteria, whereas the Severe RV Dilation group (n=12) did. The Non-severe RV Dilation group had higher biventricular filling pressures. The RV-Energy loss index in both groups was high.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Diastolic dysfunction could serve as a therapeutic target in PR patients with heterogeneous etiologies.</p>","PeriodicalId":50691,"journal":{"name":"Circulation Journal","volume":" ","pages":"1299-1301"},"PeriodicalIF":5.8,"publicationDate":"2026-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146020488","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Dynamic Changes and Prognostic Impact of Ischemic Mitral Regurgitation in Recurrent Myocardial Infarction.","authors":"Chiharu Nishino, Shun Nishino, Akihiro Hayashida, Michinari Hieda, Shutaro Futami, Kensaku Nishihira, Keiichi Ashikaga, Nehiro Kuriyama, Yoshisato Shibata, Kenichi Tsujita","doi":"10.1253/circj.CJ-26-0430","DOIUrl":"10.1253/circj.CJ-26-0430","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>The prognostic impact of ischemic mitral regurgitation (IMR) in recurrent myocardial infarction (MI) remains poorly defined. This study evaluated dynamic changes in IMR during recurrent MI and determined prognostic implications.</p><p><strong>Methods and results: </strong>We retrospectively reviewed 4,091 patients who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention for acute MI between May 2008 and July 2022. Of these patients, 88 experienced a second MI and underwent transthoracic echocardiography at 3 time points: before recurrent MI, at onset, and at discharge. IMR severity was assessed using mean vena contracta width. Logistic regression was used to determine predictors of persistent IMR, and Cox analysis was used to evaluate 5-year adverse outcomes (a composite of all-cause death, heart failure hospitalization, and third MI). IMR worsened at the onset of recurrent MI and remained elevated at discharge (P<0.001). Older age, lower left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), and greater IMR severity at onset independently predicted persistent IMR. In multivariable Cox analysis, residual IMR (per 1-mm increase: hazard ratio [HR] 1.22; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.08-1.38) and reduced LVEF (per 1% decrease: HR 0.95; 95% CI 0.92-0.98) were independently associated with a higher risk of 5-year adverse events.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>IMR changes dynamically during recurrent MI and often persists despite acute treatment. Residual IMR and reduced LVEF predicted long-term adverse outcomes, highlighting the importance of residual IMR assessment for risk stratification.</p>","PeriodicalId":50691,"journal":{"name":"Circulation Journal","volume":" ","pages":"1233-1243"},"PeriodicalIF":5.8,"publicationDate":"2026-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148563721","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Diastolic Musical Murmur From Late Commissural Tear of an Evolut R Valve.","authors":"Tomohiko Taniguchi, Toshiaki Toyota, Jiro Esaki, Yutaka Furukawa","doi":"10.1253/circj.CJ-26-0487","DOIUrl":"10.1253/circj.CJ-26-0487","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":50691,"journal":{"name":"Circulation Journal","volume":" ","pages":"1306"},"PeriodicalIF":5.8,"publicationDate":"2026-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148621877","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Evaluation of Perioperative Cardiovascular Event Risk in Gastrointestinal Surgery - Predictive Modeling and Risk Stratification Using Machine Learning.","authors":"Hiromasa Ito, Tomohisa Seki, Yoshimasa Kawazoe, Toru Takiguchi, Yu Akagi, Kazumi Kubota, Kana Miyake, Masafumi Okada, Kazuhiko Ohe","doi":"10.1253/circj.CJ-25-0032","DOIUrl":"10.1253/circj.CJ-25-0032","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Preoperative risk assessment is very important to ensure surgical safety and predict postoperative complications. However, no large-scale studies have evaluated the risk of perioperative cardiovascular events in Japan. This study evaluated perioperative cardiovascular events using real-world data. In addition, the applicability of machine learning to risk stratification was examined to develop a predictive model for perioperative cardiovascular events.</p><p><strong>Methods and results: </strong>This was an observational cohort study using the Japan Medical Data Center database, which includes claim and health examination data in Japan, between January 2005 and April 2021. In all, 133,634 gastrointestinal surgeries were included in the analysis. The primary outcome was 30-day risk of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE). The 30-day MACE incidence rate following surgery was 3.8%. Machine learning was used to perform a binary classification task to predict MACE occurrence within 30 days after surgery. A clustering algorithm was developed based on the Shapley additive explanation values obtained from training data, and generalizability was evaluated using test data. Of the variables, age, history of ischemic heart disease or heart failure, history of stroke, diabetes, hypertension, atrial fibrillation, cases of malignancy, and pancreatic biliary surgery were identified as factors associated with MACE occurrence.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>A machine learning model built from basic clinical information, comorbidities, and surgical information demonstrated the capacity to stratify MACE risk in patients undergoing gastrointestinal surgery.</p>","PeriodicalId":50691,"journal":{"name":"Circulation Journal","volume":" ","pages":"1280-1289"},"PeriodicalIF":5.8,"publicationDate":"2026-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144065212","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Circulation JournalPub Date : 2026-08-25Epub Date: 2025-08-10DOI: 10.1253/circj.CJ-24-0965
Shohei Yoshida, Koichi Toda, Yasushi Yoshikawa, Hiroki Hata, Daisuke Yoshioka, Satoshi Kainuma, Takuji Kawamura, Ai Kawamura, Koichi Inoue, Yumi Kakizawa, Scott DeRoo, Christopher R Burke, Satoshi Nakatani, Kazuo Shimamura, Yoshiki Sawa, Shigeru Miyagawa
{"title":"Aortic Regurgitation Jet Increases Left Ventricular Energy Loss Associated With the Progression of Cardiac Failure - A Vector Flow Mapping Analysis Study.","authors":"Shohei Yoshida, Koichi Toda, Yasushi Yoshikawa, Hiroki Hata, Daisuke Yoshioka, Satoshi Kainuma, Takuji Kawamura, Ai Kawamura, Koichi Inoue, Yumi Kakizawa, Scott DeRoo, Christopher R Burke, Satoshi Nakatani, Kazuo Shimamura, Yoshiki Sawa, Shigeru Miyagawa","doi":"10.1253/circj.CJ-24-0965","DOIUrl":"10.1253/circj.CJ-24-0965","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Aortic valve regurgitation (AR) impairs cardiac function, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Vector flow mapping (VFM) enables evaluation of blood flow patterns and energy loss in the left ventricle (LV). This study investigated the effect of AR on LV blood flow patterns, energy loss, and heart failure progression using VFM.</p><p><strong>Methods and results: </strong>Forty patients with severe AR undergoing aortic valve replacement (AVR) between January 2016 and March 2018 were included. Echocardiogram-based VFM in apical long-axis and 4-chamber views was performed before and after AVR, with results compared to a control group without valvular diseases (n=21). Preoperative LV energy loss due to an AR jet was significantly higher in patients with AR (median 8.7 J; interquartile range [IQR] 5.7-13.3 J) than in controls (1.7 J; IQR 0.7-2.6 J; P<0.001), and was positively correlated with preoperative serum B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) concentrations (P=0.029). LV energy loss was not associated with LV systolic function or regurgitant volume, but was significantly affected by AR jet direction. Postoperatively, after AVR, LV energy loss (median 2.0 J; IQR 1.5-2.7 J) decreased to the same level as in the control group.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The regurgitant jet in severe AR increases LV energy loss, which is positively correlated with serum BNP concentrations, indicating that the AR jet contributes to the progression of heart failure through LV energy loss.</p>","PeriodicalId":50691,"journal":{"name":"Circulation Journal","volume":" ","pages":"1244-1253"},"PeriodicalIF":5.8,"publicationDate":"2026-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144823160","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Circulation JournalPub Date : 2026-08-25Epub Date: 2026-02-05DOI: 10.1253/circj.CJ-25-1157
Kenichiro Yamamura, Ayako Ishikita
{"title":"Beyond Volume Criteria - Individualized Approach to Pulmonary Regurgitation in Tetralogy of Fallot and Related Diseases.","authors":"Kenichiro Yamamura, Ayako Ishikita","doi":"10.1253/circj.CJ-25-1157","DOIUrl":"10.1253/circj.CJ-25-1157","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":50691,"journal":{"name":"Circulation Journal","volume":" ","pages":"1302-1303"},"PeriodicalIF":5.8,"publicationDate":"2026-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146121102","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Incidence, Timing, and Determinants of Stroke After Mitral Repair in Patients Without Preoperative Atrial Fibrillation.","authors":"Rieko Kutsuzawa, Satoshi Kainuma, Naonori Kawamoto, Kizuku Yamashita, Kota Suzuki, Takashi Kakuta, Ayumi Ikuta, Shinichi Kurashima, Yuki Irie, Kenji Moriuchi, Masashi Amano, Atsushi Okada, Makoto Amaki, Hideaki Kanzaki, Takeshi Kitai, Chisato Izumi, Kazuhiro Yamamoto, Takashi Daimon, Satsuki Fukushima","doi":"10.1253/circj.CJ-26-0035","DOIUrl":"10.1253/circj.CJ-26-0035","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Increasing use of mitral valve repair has shifted operations to older patients, potentially increasing the post-repair thromboembolic risk. However, the incidence, timing, and determinants of ischemic stroke/transient ischemic attack (TIA) after mitral repair in patients without preoperative atrial fibrillation (AF) remain undetermined.</p><p><strong>Methods and results: </strong>We retrospectively analyzed 636 patients (mean age, 58±13 years) with degenerative mitral regurgitation and sinus rhythm who underwent mitral valve repair. The primary endpoint was stroke/TIA. Over a mean follow-up of 7.4±5.5 years (4,681 patient-years), 28 (4.4%) developed stroke/TIA. Incidence peaked in the first postoperative year (1.4%/year), declined thereafter, and rose again at 10-15 years (0.67%/year). New-onset AF occurred in 54 patients (8.4%), based on 3,119 ECGs (mean, 4.9±5.8 per patient). Early events (≤1 year) rather than late events (>1 year) occurred in older patients (early vs. late events: 72±8.8 vs. 62±13 years, P=0.052). Later events were associated with larger left atrial size (48±6.7 vs. 41±7.6 mm, P=0.016) and a higher prevalence of new-onset AF (58% vs. 11%, P=0.039). Age ≥70 years (adjusted hazard ratio (HR), 4.4; P<0.001), new-onset AF (adjusted HR, 4.0; P<0.001) and NYHA class (adjusted HR: 2.0, P=0.02) were identified by Fine-Gray regression as independent determinants of stroke/TIA.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>After mitral repair, ischemic stroke/TIA occurred in 4.4% of patients without preoperative AF, associated with advanced age, new-onset AF, and higher NYHA functional class. This supports close rhythm surveillance and heart failure management.</p>","PeriodicalId":50691,"journal":{"name":"Circulation Journal","volume":" ","pages":"1224-1232"},"PeriodicalIF":5.8,"publicationDate":"2026-08-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148200979","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}