Interventional echocardiography

BACKGROUND Multi-vessel coronary artery disease (MVD) represents a severe type of coronary artery disease (CAD). Ischemic mitral regurgitation (IMR) is a common mechanical complication in patients with CAD. This study aimed to retrospectively investigate the efficacy of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) on moderate/severe IMR in patients with MVD. MATERIAL AND METHODS Clinical data were collected from 15 patients who underwent successful treatment for MVD combined with moderate/severe IMR through the PCI procedure and achieved complete revascularization between January 2014 and December 2022...

Aneurysmal atrial septal defects (ASDs) represent a rare subset of congenital cardiac anomalies, characterized by bulging of the interatrial septum. This condition poses unique challenges in diagnosis, management, and outcomes due to its variable clinical presentation and associated complications. While echocardiography remains the cornerstone of diagnosis, advanced imaging modalities such as cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) may provide additional insights. Optimal management strategies for aneurysmal ASDs require careful consideration of patient-specific factors, including the size and location of the defect, associated cardiovascular abnormalities, and the presence of pulmonary hypertension...

KEY CLINICAL MESSAGE: This case report presents an uncommon variant of Ebstein anomaly, where all three tricuspid valve leaflets exhibited apical displacement-a rare finding. It illustrates the complexities in diagnosing and managing such atypical presentations, with successful surgical correction through annuloplasty. The report adds valuable insights to the limited literature on this congenital heart disease. ABSTRACT: Ebstein anomaly (EA), a rare congenital heart disorder, presents with diverse clinical spectrums...

INTRODUCTION: Cardiac fibrosis is one of the important causes of heart failure and death in diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) patients. Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are covalently closed RNA molecules in eukaryotes and have high stability. Their role in myocardial fibrosis with diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) remain to be fully elucidated. This study aimed to understand the expression profiles of circRNAs in myocardial fibrosis with DCM, exploring the possible biomarkers and therapeutic targets for DCM...

" The Seven Countries Study ", published in 1984, was the first study to find a correlation between diet and mortality related to cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). Since then, many investigations have addressed the relationship between type of diet, or specific nutrients, and CVDs. Based on these findings, some traditional dietary models, such as the Mediterranean or Nordic diet, are recommended to prevent CVDs. Meanwhile, new diets have been proposed for optimal nutrition therapy, for example, the Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) and the Mediterranean-DASH Intervention Diet for Neurodegenerative Delay (MIND)...

Background: Focused Assessment with Sonography in Trauma (FAST) examination is a point-of-care ultrasound study used to evaluate for abdominal hemorrhage, pneumothorax, or pericardial blood in trauma patients as an adjunct to their initial assessment. The quality of the image can be limited, and its diagnostic value is heavily dependent on operator skill. Our objective was to determine whether a standardized review process improved image quality and reduced incidence of nondiagnostic or insufficient imaging by 10% over a 6-month period...

The constant and dynamic interaction between ventricular function and arterial afterload, known as ventricular-arterial coupling, is key to understanding cardiovascular pathophysiology. Ventricular-arterial coupling has traditionally been assessed invasively as the ratio of effective arterial elastance over end-systolic elastance (Ea /Ees ), calculated from information derived from pressure-volume loops. Over the past few decades, numerous invasive and non-invasive simplified methods to estimate the elastance ratio have been developed and applied in clinical investigation and practice...

Diagnosing intracardiac masses poses a complex, multimodal challenge. We present the case of a 72-year-old woman with a history of rheumatic fever leading to mitral stenosis and a previous mitral valve commissurotomy who reported fatigue, weakness, and palpitations over the past three months. Echocardiography revealed a tumor (53 × 40 mm) in the enlarged left atrium, attached by a wide base to the left atrium wall, exhibiting variable densities. Computerized tomography identified a heterodense mass (53 × 46 × 37 mm) with similar attachments...

This case report describes the rare occurrence of a ventricular septal defect (VSD) after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) in an 88-year-old male patient with aortic stenosis and other comorbidities. Initially asymptomatic, the patient was discharged but readmitted 2 weeks later with decompensated heart failure. Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) revealed an increase in the size of the VSD and right ventricular dilation. Surgical intervention was chosen over percutaneous closure due to the patient's condition...

Heart failure (HF) constitutes a major determinant of outcome in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. The main pattern of HF in CKD patients is preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), and left ventricular diastolic dysfunction (LVDD) is a frequent pathophysiological mechanism and specific preclinical manifestation of HFpEF. Therefore, exploring and intervention of the factors associated with risk for LVDD is of great importance in reducing the morbidity and mortality of cardiovascular disease (CVD) complications in CKD patients...

Infective endocarditis caused by Gemella species is increasingly recognized as an emerging clinical entity. Gemella species are fastidious gram-positive cocci that are typically commensal organisms but can become opportunistic pathogens. This systematic review aimed to provide a comprehensive overview of endocarditis due to  Gemella  species by synthesizing existing evidence. A total of 52 case reports were identified through a rigorous search and selection process. The most prevalent causative species were G...

BACKGROUND: Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is one of the most common causes of heart failure. Multiple identified mutations in nexilin (NEXN) have been suggested to be linked with severe DCM. However, the exact association between multiple mutations of Nexn and DCM remains unclear. Moreover, it is critical for the development of precise and effective therapeutics in treatments of DCM. RESULTS: In our study, Nexn global knockout mice and mice carrying human equivalent G645del mutation are studied using functional gene rescue assays...

The present study aimed to evaluate the outcomes of percutaneous treatment of aortic coarctation using self-expandable uncovered Nitinol stents. We conducted a retrospective clinical data review of all patients with aortic coarctation and treated with self-expandable uncovered Nitinol stents at our institution between 2009 and 2019. The gradient pressure across the coarctation site was measured using aortography. Follow-up echocardiography and computed tomography angiography were performed to assess possible stent complications...

Pathological cardiac hypertrophy is an important cause of heart failure(HF). Recent studies reveal that glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor (GLP1R) agonists can improve mortality and left ventricular ejection fraction in the patients with type 2 diabetes and HF. The present study aims to investigate whether semaglutide, a long-acting GLP1R agonist, can ameliorate cardiac hypertrophy induced by pressure overload, and explore the potential mechanism. The rats were performed transverse aortic constriction (TAC) to mimic pressure overload model...

BACKGROUND: Cardiac myxomas present a diagnostic challenge due to their ability to mimic various cardiovascular and systemic conditions. Timely identification is crucial for implementing surgical intervention and averting life-threatening complications. CASE PRESENTATION: We reported the case of a 49-year-old male patient who presented sudden legs weakness and slurred speech and was admitted 10 h later in emergency department. Physical examination was significant for paraparesis and paraphasia...

Diastolic dysfunction occurs when the left ventricle loses its ability to relax normally, impairing ventricular filling during diastole. This most commonly occurs as a pathological sequela of left ventricular hypertrophy and remodeling due to chronic hypertension and/or age-related sclerotic changes of the aortic valve. This can subsequently deteriorate to diastolic heart failure or heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. There is a substantive interplay between atrial fibrillation and diastolic dysfunction, as atrial fibrillation can cause, exacerbate, or be a direct result of diastolic dysfunction and vice versa...

INTRODUCTION: The objective of this study was to examine whether there is an elevated risk of developing contrast induced nephropathy (CIN) in patients with high systolic pulmonary artery pressure (SPAP) in ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). METHODS: A total of 213 patients diagnosed with STEMI and who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention were enrolled in the study. The patients were stratified into two groups based on the presence of CIN...

Preclinical in vivo evaluation is an essential step in the progression of new cardiac devices into patient use, with studies predominantly performed in the domestic sheep model. A growing area of interest in cardiac device development is transcatheter mitral valve replacement (TMVR). Clinically, multimodal imaging, or computed tomography (CT) and echocardiography (echo) are used extensively to preoperatively determine mitral valve morphology prior to an intervention, but there is no description on how these modalities can be implemented to support preclinical studies...

Rheumatic heart disease (RHD) is a chronic complication arising from acute rheumatic fever (ARF), an autoimmune response triggered by group A streptococcal infection. It primarily affects children and young adults in developing countries. RHD continues to show substantial global heterogeneity. Socioeconomic factors lead the virtual disappearance of RHD in industrialized countries with the introduction of penicillin. By contrast, RHD is still endemic in Africa, Asia, South America, and developing communities of Australasia...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Aortic stenosis (AS) is a progressive disease predominantly affecting elderly patients that carries significant morbidity and mortality without aortic valve replacement, the only proven treatment. Our objective was to determine the cost-effectiveness of AS screening using transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) in a geriatric population from the perspective of the publicly funded healthcare system in Canada. METHODS: Markov models estimating the cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) for AS screening with a one-time TTE were developed...