stress echo

OBJECTIVES: Dopamine and related receptors are evidenced in pancreatic endocrine tissue, but the impact on islet β-cell stimulus-secretion as well as (patho)physiological role are unclear. METHODS: The present study has evaluated islet cell signalling pathways and biological effects of dopamine, as well as alterations of islet dopamine in rodent models of diabetes of different aetiology. KEY FINDINGS: The dopamine precursor L-DOPA partially impaired glucose tolerance in mice and attenuated glucose-, exendin-4, and alanine-induced insulin secretion...

PURPOSE: Endurance elite athletes are expected to present a cardiac remodelling, characterized by eccentric hypertrophy (EH), may be associated with higher sportive performances. However, not all can present a cardiac remodelling. The study aimed to identify endurance athletes without cardiac remodelling characterizing their physiologic and clinical features. METHODS: We studied 309 endurance athletes (cycling, rowing, canoeing, triathlon, athletics, long-distance swimming, cross-country skiing, mid-long distance track, pentathlon, biathlon, long-distance skating and Nordic-combined) examined during period of training, by clinical evaluation, ECG, echocardiogram and exercise-stress test...

Oxygen supplementation is a widely used treatment for ICU patients. However, it can lead to hyperoxia, which in turn can result in oxidative stress, cardiac remodeling, and even mortality. This paper expands upon previous research conducted by our lab to establish time-dependent cardiac changes under hyperoxia. In this study, both young and aged mice (male and female) underwent 72 h of hyperoxia exposure and were monitored at 24-hour intervals for cardiac electrophysiological and functional parameters using ECG and electrocardiogram data...

Apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (ApHCM) is an HCM variant, affecting frequently males in midlife. It is characterized by apical obliteration and persistent diastolic contraction, often resulting in microvascular ischaemia. We report five cases of ApHCM, with evidence of intramyocardial calcification on echocardiogram. On cardiac magnetic imaging (MRI), a hypointense component at early gadolinium enhancement (EGE) sequences, compatible with calcium, and a deep layer, with hyperintensity at late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) sequences, referable to fibrosis, suggest an endomyocardial fibrosis (EMF) diagnosis...

The myocardium is a highly oxidative tissue in which mitochondria are essential to supply the energy required to maintain pump function. When pathological hypertrophy develops, energy consumption augments and jeopardizes mitochondrial capacity. We explored the cardiac consequences of chronic swimming training, focusing on the mitochondrial network, in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). Male adult SHR were randomized to sedentary or trained (T: 8-week swimming protocol). Blood pressure and echocardiograms were recorded, and hearts were removed at the end of the training period to perform molecular, imaging, or isolated mitochondria studies...

BACKGROUND: In the current study, the effects of cerium oxide nanoparticles (nanocerium; NC) on doxorubicin (DOX)-induced cardiomyopathy and its possible underlying mechanisms were addressed. METHODS: 32 adult male rats were allocated into 4 groups; i) control group, ii) NC group; rats received NC (0.2 mg/kg, i.p., daily), iii) DOX group; rats received DOX 4 mg/kg (2 injections with a 14-day interval), and iv) DOX+NC group as DOX but rats received NC. At the end of the experiment, ECG and ECHO recordings and assessments of the levels of cardiac enzymes (CK-MB, LDH), and myocardial oxidative stress (MDA, catalase, and GSH), the expression of LC3 and beclin1 (markers of autophagy), caspase3 (marker of apoptosis) by immunohistochemistry, the expression of acetyl-CoA carboxylase alpha (ACCA) by PCR, and 5'adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) levels in the heart tissues were performed...

BACKGROUND: Compared to conventional cardiac troponin (cTn), the high-sensitivity cardiac troponin (hs-cTn) assay is associated with improved detection of myocardial infarction (MI). METHODS: We performed a descriptive retrospective analysis of resource utilization at Rush University Medical Center over the transition period (July 1, 2021) from a cTn to a hs-cTn assay. Inclusion criteria included emergency department (ED) encounters between January 1 to December 31, 2021, with chief complaints of "chest pain" or "dyspnea" with associated troponin orders...

BACKGROUND: Diagnosing ischemia in emergency department (ED) patients with suspected acute coronary syndrome (sACS) is challenging with equivocal disposition of intermediate risk patients. OBJECTIVE: Compare sensitivity and specificity of magnetocardiography (MCG) versus standard of care (SOC) stress testing in diagnosing myocardial ischemia. METHODS: Multicenter, prospective, observational cohort study. ED patients with sACS and HEART score ≥ 3 underwent 90 s noninvasive MCG to detect myocardial ischemia...

BACKGROUND: Coronary artery fistulae are rare cardiovascular anomalies that can present with atypical symptomatology and therefore pose diagnostic challenges, especially in young patients. CASE SUMMARY: A 34-year-old woman presented with left-sided pleuritic chest pain, haemoptysis, and flu-like symptoms. Initial evaluation revealed multiple left-sided pulmonary emboli, and her transthoracic echocardiography showed turbulent flow in a dilated coronary sinus. A right coronary artery (RCA) to coronary sinus fistula was confirmed by computed tomography coronary angiogram...

PURPOSE: Prolonged scanning of time-resolved 3D phase-contrast MRI (4D flow MRI) limits its routine use in clinical practice. An echo-planar imaging (EPI)-based sequence and compressed sensing can reduce the scan duration. We aimed to determine the impact of EPI for 4D flow MRI on the scan duration, image quality, and quantitative flow metrics. METHODS: This was a prospective study of 15 healthy volunteers (all male, mean age 33 ± 5 years)...

BACKGROUND: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a condition associated with an increased risk of sudden death compared to the general population. Extended septal myectomy surgery has been suggested to impact the reduction of sudden death events according to various publications. The aim of this study was to assess changes in the prevalence of sudden death predictors in a population of patients undergoing extended septal myectomy surgery. METHODS: Ninety-four consecutive patients underwent extended septal myectomy surgery due to symptomatic hypertrophic cardiomyopathy...

BACKGROUND: Nontraditional students bring to medicine inherent characteristics and perspectives that enrich the learning environment and contribute to expanding diversity in medicine. However, research has shown that these students, by virtue of their sociodemographic backgrounds, face unique challenges in medical education, which ultimately place them at a disadvantage compared to their peers. The purpose of this study is to explore relationships between sociodemographic characteristics, stress, and academic performance, in the context of outcomes that may be undermining efforts to diversify the physician workforce...

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of exercise-induced pulmonary hypertension (PH) among long-survivors of congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) repair. STUDY DESIGN: This is a single-center, retrospective cohort study of CDH survivors who underwent exercise stress echocardiography (ESE) at Boston Children's Hospital from January 2006 to June 2020. PH severity was assessed by echocardiogram at baseline and after exercise. Patients were categorized by right ventricular systolic pressure (RVSP) after exercise: Group 1 - no or mild PH; and Group 2 - moderate or severe PH (RVSP ≥ 60 mmHg or ≥ ½ systemic blood pressure)...

BACKGROUND: Liver fibrosis (LF) precipitates systemic hemodynamic alterations, however, its impact on the aorta remaining undefined. PURPOSE: To assess aorta hemodynamics changes during LF development in a rabbit model. STUDY TYPE: Prospective, experimental. ANIMAL MODEL: Thirty 7-month-old male rabbits underwent bile duct ligation (BDL) to induce LF. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE: Biweekly four-dimensional (4D) flow imaging incorporating a 3D gradient-echo at 3...

BACKGROUND: With one in five individuals aged 65 or older living with type 2 diabetes worldwide, it is crucial to acknowledge and address the challenges faced by this population. In this context, our study aims to evaluate the efficacy of a behavioral intervention model delivered through a smart speaker on mental health and diabetes self-care in the elderly with diabetes. METHODS: This is a single-center, pragmatic, parallel two-arm open randomized clinical trial involving elderly patients with type 2 diabetes...

PURPOSE: Chronic thromboembolic pulmonary disease (CTEPD) can lead to exercise limitations even without right ventricular (RV) dysfunction or pulmonary hypertension at rest. Combining exercise stress echocardiography with cardiopulmonary exercise testing (ESE-CPET) for RV function and pressure changes combined measuring overall function may be useful for CTEPD evaluation. This study aims to investigate CPET and ESE results to elucidate the mechanisms of exercise limitation in mild CTEPD cases...

Laser ultrasound is a widely used tool for industrial quality assurance when a contactless and fast method is required. In this work, we used a laboratory setup based on a confocal Fabry-Perot interferometer to examine weld seam models. The focus was placed on small samples with curved surfaces (small in the sense that the radius of curvature is comparable to the largest ultrasonic wavelength) and on efficient ways to detect the presence and volume of process pores, with the goal to transfer this method to industrial applications...

Previous studies have successfully applied a lightweight recurrent neural network (RNN) called Echo State Network (ESN) for EEG-based emotion recognition. These studies use intrinsic plasticity (IP) and synaptic plasticity (SP) to tune the hidden reservoir layer of ESN, yet they require extra training procedures and are often computationally complex. Recent neuroscientific research reveals that the brain is modular, consisting of internally dense and externally sparse subnetworks. Furthermore, it has been proved that this modular topology facilitates information processing efficiency in both biological and artificial neural networks (ANNs)...

INTRODUCTION: Left ventricular trabeculations (LVTs) are common findings in athletes. Limited information exists regarding clinical significance, management, and outcome. OBJECTIVES: To study the prevalence and morphologic characteristics of LVTs in elite athletes, with a focus on clinical correlates and prognostic significance. METHODS: We enrolled 1.492 Olympic elite athletes of different sports disciplines with ECG, echocardiogram, and exercise stress test...

BACKGROUND: Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), a common morbidity among very preterm infants, is associated with chronic disease and neurodevelopmental impairments. A hypothesized mechanism for these outcomes lies in altered glucocorticoid (GC) activity. We hypothesized that BPD and its treatments may result in epigenetic differences in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, which is modulated by GC, and could be ascertained using an established GC risk score and DNA methylation (DNAm) of HPA axis genes...