Cardiología

OBJECTIVE: Current guidelines recommend a risk-adjusted early invasive strategy (EIS) in patients with non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndrome (NSTEACS). The present study assesses the application if this strategy, the conditioning factors and prognostic impact upon patients with NSTEACS admitted to Intensive Cardiac Care Units (ICCU). DESIGN: A prospective cohort study was carried out. SETTING: The ICCUs of 8 hospitals in Catalonia (Spain)...

Pheochromocytoma/paraganglioma is an exceedingly rare tumour, thought to share an association with cyanotic CHD. This association is thought to be a result of chronic hypoxaemia (Antonio et al, Revista Española de Cardiología (English Edition) 2017; 70: 673-675; Folger et al, Circulation 1964; 29: 750-757; Opotowsky et al, J Clin Endocrinol Metab 2015; 100: 1325-1334) We report two cases of paraganglioma over a 4-year period in patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome who had undergone Fontan completion by ages 2 and 4...

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most frequent sustained cardiac arrhythmia, and its prevalence is increasing, partly due to the progressive aging of the population. AF predisposes to thrombus formation in the atria and the atrial appendage through a complex interaction among local, systemic and hemodynamic factors, significantly increasing the risk for cerebral and systemic thromboembolic events. These complications have a major impact in terms of morbidity and mortality, and numerous therapeutic strategies have been proposed to reduce such risk...

Prevalence and incidence of cardiovascular diseases increase dramatically with advancing age, and older subjects account for the vast majority of patients seeking care either for acute and chronic cardiovascular disorders. In the same time, availability and improvements in drugs and devices, and innovative techniques in interventional cardiology and heart surgery procedures, increased as well, posing crucial challenges in clinical decision-making mainly in older people. Elderly subjects represent a very heterogeneous population and the interplay between underlying physiological change, chronic disease and multimorbidity can result in health states in older ages that are not fully captured by traditional disease classifications and that are often missing in disease-based assessments of health...

A summary is presented in this article of the principal concepts of the Argentine Consensus on Arterial Hypertension, which has been carried out for the first time jointly by the three main scientific societies associated with the diagnosis and treatment of arterial hypertension in Argentina (Argentine Society of Arterial Hypertension, Argentine Society of Cardiology and Argentine Federation of Cardiology). Among its main points, is emphasised the need to improve the diagnosis and control of high blood pressure, the use of ambulatory blood pressure measurement techniques, the importance of the risk stratification of the hypertensive patient, and the early use of pharmacological combinations in the treatment as a means to quickly achieve control...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

This study reported the frequency of anesthetic overdose measured with the bispectral index in a high altitude city (Bogotá-Colombia, 2600 meters above sea level). We assembled a prospective cohort of patients. Preoperative variables were described, and 10 minutes after the surgical incision, bispectral index, mean alveolar concentration, mean arterial pressure, and oxygen saturation were recorded. Bispectral index was classified as superficial (60), adequate (40-60), and deep (> 40). Mean alveolar concentration was classified as low (< 0...

AIM: To analyze the impact of implementing a program integrating cardiology and primary care in clinical practice. METHODS: In the integrated care model, every cardiologist was assigned to each primary care center. RESULTS & CONCLUSION: The implementation of the new care model was associated with a significant reduction of 31.2% in requests of first visits. In addition, the delay to the cardiologist consultation significantly decreased by 54...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

BACKGROUND: Mechanical circulatory support (MCS) represents an effective urgent therapy for patients with cardiac arrest or end-stage cardiac failure. However, its use in developing countries as a bridge therapy remains controversial due to costs and limited duration. This study presents five patients who underwent MSC as bridge therapy for heart transplantation in a developing country. CASE PRESENTATION: We present five patients who underwent MCS as bridge therapy for heart transplant between 2010 and 2015 at Fundación Cardioinfantil-Instituto de Cardiología...

In the past few years, new oral anticoagulants (NOACs) targeting directly a single activated clotting factor, have been developed for the treatment of non-valvular atrial fibrillation (AF), which are currently recommended as first-line therapy in AF. The aim of this study is to provide an overall picture on the extent to which oral anticoagulation (OAC) with NOACs correspond to actually prescribed OAC therapy in an unselected, real world, population of consecutive patients with AF in Italy. Compliance with the therapy and quality of life were also assessed...

Kawasaki disease is a self-limiting acute vasculitis that affects small and medium-sized vessels, and is the most common cause of acquired heart disease in children in our environment. Up to 25% of untreated patients develop coronary aneurysms. It is suspected that an infectious agent may be the trigger of the disease, but the causative agent is still unknown. Based on the previous evidence, recommendations are proposed for the diagnosis, treatment of acute disease, and the long-term management of these patients, in order to unify criteria...

INTRODUCTION: Physical inactivity and increased caloric intake play important roles in the pathophysiology of obesity. Increasing physical activity and modifying eating behaviours are first-line interventions, frequently hampered by lack of time to exercise and difficulties in coping with different diets. High-intensity interval training (HIIT) may be a time-efficient method compared with moderate-intensity continuous training (CT). Conversely, diets with a fasting component may be more effective than other complex and restrictive diets, as it essentially limits caloric intake to a specified period without major diet composition changes...

BACKGROUND: We aimed to evaluate the impact of thrombus aspiration (TA) during primary percutaneous coronary intervention (P-PCI) in 'real-world' settings. METHODS: We performed a retrospective study, using data from the National Registry of Interventional Cardiology (RNCI 2006-2012, Portugal) with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients treated with P-PCI. The primary outcome, in-hospital mortality, was analysed through adjusted odds ratio (aOR) and 95% confidence intervals (95%CI)...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

AIM: Functional analysis and measurement of left atrium are an integral part of cardiac evaluation, and they represent a key element during non-invasive analysis of diastolic function in patients with hypertension (HT) and/or heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). However, diastolic dysfunction remains quite elusive regarding classification, and atrial size and function are two key factors for left ventricular (LV) filling evaluation. Chronic left atrial (LA) remodelling is the final step of chronic intra-cavitary pressure overload, and it accompanies increased neurohormonal, proarrhythmic and prothrombotic activities...