[On 31 August 2021, the European Society of Cardiology published its guideline “Prevention of cardiovascular disease in clinical practice”. This guideline provides a comprehensive review about risk factors of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, their assessment, potential modifiers, treatment and prevention of the cardiovascular disease itself at societal and individual levels respectively. The previous guideline issued 2016, had to be updated due to the recent significant advances in risk prediction of cardiovascular disease on atherosclerotic background and due to the beneficial effects of treatment, emerging new drugs and therapeutic targets. The risk assessment system has undergone a major overhaul and now predicts the risk of fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events together over a 10-year horizon and over a lifetime. In the new guideline, age plays a more important role in risk classification than before. The risk assessment and staged management of apparently healthy people or patients with established atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus and other specific diseases or conditions are detailed. The positive impact of influencing risk factors, the years of life gained can recently be presented in a lifetime perspective, which will help to make an individually tailored decision on the extent of interventions, taking into account also the patient'’s preferences.]

Background - The aim of this study was to compare ischemic stroke subtypes with the effects of risk factors, the relationship between grades of kidney disease and the severity of stroke subtypes. Methods - The current study was designed retrospectively and performed with data of patients who were hospitalised due to ischemic stroke. We included 198 subjects who were diagnosed with ischemic stroke of Grade 3 and above with chronic kidney disease. Results - In our study were reported advanced age, coronary artery disease, moderate kidney disease as the most frequent risk factors for cardioembolic etiology. Hypertension, hyperlipidemia, smoking and alcohol consumption were the most frequent risk factors for large-artery disease. Female sex and anaemia were the most frequent risk factors for small-vessel disease. Dialysis and severe kidney disease were the most frequent risk factors in unknown etiologies, while male sex, diabetes mellitus, prior stroke and mild kidney disease were the most frequent risk factors for other etiologies. National Institute of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) scores were lower for small-vessel disease compared with other etiologies. This relation was statistically significant (p=0.002). Conclusion - In order to improve the prognosis in ischemic stroke with chronic kidney disease, the risk factors have to be recognised and the treatment options must be modified according to those risk factors.

Objectives – Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the European region. In spite of a decreasing trend, stroke related mortality remains higher in Hungary and Romania when compared to the EU average. This might be due to higher incidence, increased severity or even less effective care. Methods – In this study we used two large, hospital based databases from Targu Mures (Romania) and Debrecen (Hungary) to compare not only the demographic characteristics of stroke patients from these countries but also the risk factors, as well as stroke severity and short term outcome. Results – The gender related distribution of patients was similar to those found in the European Survey, whereas the mean age of patients at stroke onset was similar in the two countries but lower by four years. Although the length of hospital stay was significantly different in the two countries it was still much shorter (about half) than in most reports from western European countries. The overall fatality rate in both databases, regardless of gender was comparable to averages from Europe and other countries. In both countries we found a high number of risk factors, frequently overlapping. The prevalence of risk factors (hypertension, smoking, hyperlipidaemia) was higher than those reported in other countries, which can explain the high ratio of recurring stroke. Discussion – In summary, the comparatively analyzed data from the two large databases showed several similarities, especially regarding the high number of modifiable risk factors, and as such further effort is needed regarding primary prevention.

[On 31 August 2021, the European Society of Cardiology published its guideline “Prevention of cardiovascular disease in clinical practice”. This guideline provides a comprehensive review about risk factors of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, their assessment, potential modifiers, treatment and prevention of the cardiovascular dis­ease itself at societal and individual levels respectively. The previous guideline issued 2016, had to be updated due to the recent significant advances in risk prediction of cardiovascular disease on atherosclerotic background and due to the beneficial effects of treatment, emerging new drugs and therapeutic targets. The risk assessment system has undergone a major overhaul and now predicts the risk of fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular events together over a 10-year horizon and over a lifetime. In the new guideline, age plays a more important role in risk classification than before. The risk assessment and staged management of apparently healthy people or patients with established atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, diabetes mellitus and other specific diseases or conditions are detailed. The positive impact of influencing risk factors, the years of life gained can recently be presented in a lifetime perspective, which will help to make an individually tailored decision on the extent of interventions, while taking into account also the patient’s preferences.]

[Patients with peripheral vascular disease (PAD) are negatively affected by the coronavirus epidemic in several ways. Fewer-than-usual doctor-patient encounters make it more difficult to detect disease or disease progression. Outbreaks due to the epidemic reinforce a sedentary lifestyle that can mask the symptoms of PAD through lack of exercise. Another risk is that patients with cardiovascular disease are at risk for severe Covid-19 disease, and have a significantly increased risk of mortality. In the case of home treatment of Covid-19 infection in a patient with PAD, close observation is required to make a timely decision on the need for hospitalization. Vaccination, which is gradually available to all PAD patients, could be the solution to prevent the disease.]