Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has become the mainstay in the treatment of coronary heart disease (CHD). In the past 10 years, the number of PCI procedures for CHD has maintained an annual growth of 15%–20% on average in China. As a consequence, in-stent restenosis (ISR) has become an increasingly serious problem with the wide application of coronary stents. Certainly, current treatment regimens for ISR are unsatisfactory in some aspects. Coronary artery bypass surgery has many risk factors and contradictions and a second stent implantation is associated with the risk for recurrent ISR and additional stent implantations; the rate of recurrent ISR in lesions after plain old balloon angioplasty is high (up to 27%). Therefore, all these regimens are suboptimal for the treatment of ISR. In recent years, drug-coated balloon (DCB), a novel interventional technique, has been increasingly used in coronary and peripheral artery interventions in Europe and Asia. In China, several DCB products have been or will be marketed for clinical application. The introduction of DCB provides a new choice for the treatment of coronary artery diseases in China. Based on several national and international clinical trials, >20 experienced experts in the PCI field from China have proposed the China expert consensus on clinical application of the DCB with evidence-based validation and session discussion in order to promote the standardized application of the DCB in the treatment of coronary artery diseases in China.

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Objectives: Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a syndrome resulting from a restricted flow through the pulmonary arterial circulation, giving rise to increased pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) and ultimately right heart failure. Previous reports have suggested that Galectin-3 (Gal-3) induced endothelial cell morphogenesis and regulated myofibroblast activation. The aim of this study was to determine the diagnostic utility of circulating Gal-3 as a potential biomarker of disease severity in PAH. Methods: Gal-3 was measured in plasma from 31 patients with PAH, diagnosed from the right heart catheterization as well as 18 healthy controls by ELISA. Chronic hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension models were established in Sprague-Dawley rats. Lung tissues were collected for histological analysis including Gal-3 lung qualitative localization by immunohistochemistry. Total mRNA was extracted from pulmonary arteries in rats and quantitative polymerase chain reaction was performed with total cellular mRNA to measure Gal-3 expression. Results: Plasma level of Gal-3 was significantly decreased in PAH patients compared with healthy controls (P < 0.001). Within the subgroups, only by idiopathic PAH (IPAH) patients expressed the lower level of Gal-3 (n = 16, P < 0.001). Gal-3 levels were inversely correlated with mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) (r = − 0.570, P = 0.021) and PVR (r = − 0.550, P = 0.027), and correlated with cardiac output (r = 0.530, P = 0.035) in IPAH patients. A Gal-3 cutoff value <1.765 ng/ml yielded 93% sensitivity and 88% specificity for IPAH patients. Immunohistochemistry identified Gal-3 distribution throughout the adventitia of the pulmonary arterioles. The expression of Gal-3 mRNA was significantly downregulated in the pulmonary arteries from lung tissue samples in pulmonary hypertension rats. Conclusions: Gal-3 might be involved in the pathogenesis of PAH and plasma Gal-3 could serve as a promising new biomarker of diagnosis and disease severity in IPAH.

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Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) with or without defibrillators (CRT/CRT-D), as well as the implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) device, has been widely used both to improve the prognosis of heart failure and to prevent sudden cardiac death. With the increased training and education of electrophysiologists in China, CRT and treatment by ICD have become standardized and many patients have benefited from the procedures. However, the current challenges in applying CRT and ICD treatment within China include the underuse of device therapy, technologic gaps between Western countries and China, and regional differences in the use of CRT/ICD. Understanding the current national status of device therapy may help promote scientific, technological, and clinical improvements in therapies against heart failures occurring within China.

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Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) remain the biggest cause of deaths worldwide. More than 17 million people die from CVDs annually. The HeartRescue Global Program is a five-year international healthcare program, sponsored by Medtronic Philanthropy and its partners, that supports community-based demonstration projects specifically designed to expand access to life saving interventions for acute cardiovascular events. Both global in scope and local in nature, HeartRescue focuses on working with healthcare partners in select communities in China, India, and Russia. The Heart Rescue Global Program will draw upon important lessons learned and expertise from within the on-going Heart Rescue-US Project. HeartRescue China has begun operating in select districts of China. This article focuses on introduces in details of the specific aims of the project, major components and activities, Expected Measurable Outcomes of the HeartRescue Program. This article focuses on and introduces in detail.

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Objective: This study was carried out to determine the correlation between arachidonic acid metabolites and vascular endothelial dysfunction in older Chinese patients diagnosed with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Methods: High-resolution ultrasound was employed to measure flow-mediated dilation (FMD) and sublingual nitroglycerin-induced dilation (NID) of the brachial artery. Serum 14,15-dihydroxyeicosatrienoic acid (14,15-DHET), the end-product of 14,15-epoxyeicosatrienoic acid (14,15-EET) and 6-keto-prostaglandin F1α (6-keto-PGF1α), and the end-product of prostacyclin (PGI₂) were measured in 60 healthy elderly volunteers, 78 senile diabetic (SD) patients without nephropathy (SD), and 58 SD patients with nephropathy (SDN). Results: Compared to healthy elderly volunteers, serum 14,15-DHET and 6-keto-PGF1α levels were reduced by 50% in SD. No further reduction was observed in SDN. 6-keto-PGF1α was associated with FMD, but not with NID in the brachial artery of healthy elderly volunteers. Brachial FMD and NID in were impaired in all diabetic patients. The correlation between FMD and 6-keto-PGF1α or 14,15-DHET was lost in diabetic patients. On the other hand, NID was positively correlated with 6-keto-PGF1α or 14,15-DHET in SD. Only NID and 6-keto-PGF1α correlation persisted in SDN. In addition, brachial artery dysfunction was negatively correlated with urinary albumin excretion and serum triglyceride in SDN patients. Conclusions: Impaired brachial artery vasodilation was associated with reduced PGI₂and EET production in older Chinese subjects with type 2 diabetes.

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Vasodegenerative diseases, such as atherosclerosis and hypertensive and diabetic vasculopathies, share many features with neurodegenerative diseases. These include complex and poorly understood etiologies; common risk factors; chronic progression; involvement of distinctive functional systems, regions and cell types; presence of extracellular deposits or intracellular inclusions; gradual spread to contiguous and sometimes distant sites; and a tendency to present clinically in later life. These commonalities may provide clues regarding pathophysiology and approaches to treatment.

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We present a case in which a 64-year-old man was suffering from accelerated angina for 1 week. Conventional coronary angiography and intravascular ultrasound were unable to detect the culprit coronary lesion. However, optical coherence tomography (OCT) obtained superior images to detect a rupture with thin-cap fibroatheroma plaque in the proximal right coronary artery. The symptom of angina disappeared after one coronary stent covering the ruptured plaque. This case indicates that OCT is a new intravascular imaging modality that allows clear visualization of vulnerable plaques.

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