Objectives Identify risk markers for sudden cardiac death in patients with ischemic heart disease and moderately impaired left ventricular ejection fraction (between 35 and 50%) in order to develop a risk score predictive of the risk of sudden death in this population.
Type of study: Interventional, exploratory, multicenter, prospective.
Number of centers: 17
Study description Inclusion in French high-volume centers of post-myocardial infarction patients with LVEF between 35% and 50%. Patients will be included at least 40 days after myocardial infarction, if their LVEF is between 35% and 50%.
All patients will undergo cardiac MRI. The score published by De Chillou et al. will be calculated. In a second phase, after further examinations (see below), patients will be followed for 60 months to assess the risk of SCD and malignant ventricular arrhythmia. Follow-up will be clinical and by implanting an implantable loop recorder (ILR) with remote monitoring (RM).
Several examinations will be carried out: transthoracic echocardiography, ECG, blood sampling [with the creation of a biological collection to explore myocardial fibrosis and inflammatory biomarkers (e.g. PIIINP, PICP, ICTP, Galectin 3, sST2), genetic evaluation], Holter ECG.
Primary endpoint
- Occurrence of sudden cardiac death or cardiovascular death or malignant ventricular arrhythmias (life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias: ventricular tachycardia (>30s) or ventricular fibrillation) at 60 months follow-up (dependent variable)
- Various markers recovered during the various initial examinations and during follow-up (clinical and remote monitoring) to predict the risk of SCD or malignant ventricular arrhythmia (independent variable)
Number of subjects: 400 patients
Inclusion criteria
- Patients over 18 years of age
- Hospitalized for acute STEMI within 6 months (Type 1 myocardial infarction according to ESC recommendations, Thygesen EHJ 2018).
- Left ventricular ejection fraction between 35% and 50% at least 40 days after acute myocardial infarction (see above).
- Under optimal tolerated medical treatment.
- Covered by a social security scheme.
- Legally competent to give voluntary informed consent to participate in the study.
- Patient who will not participate in further studies involving an investigational drug or device until the end of the trial (i.e. 60 months). Participation in registries is authorized
Non-inclusion criteria
- Presence of a secondary prevention indication for implantation of an implantable automatic defibrillator (ICD)
- Presence of a pacemaker
- Administration of ventricular antiarrhythmic drugs other than beta-blockers (i.e. amiodarone, sotalol, flecainide)
- Patients with systemic diseases (cancer, liver failure or end-stage renal disease)
- Patients with assessed life expectancy < 1 year.
- Age > 80
- Adult patient under legal protection (guardianship, curatorship or other legal protection measure)
- The subject is pregnant or nursing or positive beta HCG for women of childbearing age
- Patient participating in another clinical research protocol involving an investigational drug or device within the last 30 days (participation in a registry is permitted at the same time).
Brief description of the device The patients included in the follow-up will benefit from an ILR (Boston Scientific, LUX-DxTM ICM) associated with RM, which enables permanent cardiac rhythm monitoring, including recording of ventricular arrhythmias.
Study procedure Patients who have had a STEMI at least 40 days previously, with an LVEF between 35 and 50%, will undergo myocardial MRI, electrocardiogram (ECG), trans-thoracic echocardiography (TTE), biological sampling with creation of a serum bank, genetic sampling, ECG Holter and implantation of an implantable holter (LUX-DxTM ICM, Boston Scientific). These various examinations will provide information for the creation of a risk score to predict the risk of sudden death.
These patients will benefit from annual clinical cardiological follow-up with conventional cardiological assessment [clinical examination, blood pressure, ECG, ETT, biological workup (CBC, Plqt, NA, K, urea, creatininemia, CKD-EPI, NT-ProBNP, EAL, fasting glycemia, TSH, beta-HCG)] and implantable holter telecardiological follow-up.
The use of ventricular anti-arrhythmics (i.e. amiodarone, sotalol, flecainide) is prohibited throughout the patient's follow-up, with the exception of beta-blockers.
In addition, algorithms for the management of different arrhythmias are proposed:
- Non-sustained ventricular tachycardia (NSVT): defined as < 30 seconds. At the discretion of the clinician in charge of the patient: beta-blocker augmentation and/or electrophysiological exploration and right ventricular pacing leading to implantation of an ICD according to ESC 2022 recommendations (IIa) and the PRESERVE-EF study.
- Sustained ventricular tachycardia: Implantation of a ICD for primary prevention according to ESC 2022 recommendations (Class IIa, Level B). Possibility of ventricular tachycardia ablation (ESC 2022: Class IIa, level C).
- Ventricular fibrillation: Implantation of a ICD for primary prevention according to ESC 2022 recommendations (Class I, level C). Possibility of ventricular tachycardia ablation.
- Death: retrieval of LUX-DxTM ICM for interrogation and retrieval of data from RM
- Atrial fibrillation: usual management for anticoagulation (ESC guidelines 2024). If atrial fibrillation is not tolerated, an ablation procedure should be preferred. The use of atrial anti-arrhythmics (i.e. amiodarone, sotalol, flecainide) is prohibited throughout the patient's follow-up, with the exception of beta-blockers.
If a ICD is implanted, a monitor zone should be programmed to monitor the occurrence of monomorphic slow VT that does not require anti-tachycardia pacing (ATP). Therapy zones (ATP / shock) will of course be programmed at the clinician's discretion, in line with current recommendations.