Giornale italiano di cardiologia : organo ufficiale della Federazione italiana di cardiologia : organo ufficiale della Società italiana di chirurgia cardiaca
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G Ital Cardiol (Rome) · Nov 2012
Case Reports[Degenerated mitral bioprosthesis and severe aortic valve stenosis in a high-risk patient: a two-step transcatheter valve implantation].
Recently, small case series have described successful off-label use of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) in patients with degenerated bioprosthetic valves in mitral position. We here report the case of a 78-year-old female patient who underwent TAVI for severe aortic stenosis and transapical valve-in-valve implantation for degenerated mitral bioprosthesis. ⋯ The postoperative course was uneventful. Following accurate patient selection and evaluation by an experienced multidisciplinary team, the transcatheter approach for double valve implantation in aortic and mitral position may represent a viable treatment option for those high-risk patients who otherwise would be inoperable.
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G Ital Cardiol (Rome) · Nov 2012
Review[Evolution in surgical repair of heart valves: implications for follow-up].
The number of patients undergoing surgical heart valve repair has been increasing during the last years, particularly in high-volume centers. Several factors related to poor outcomes after surgical repair have been identified in different observational studies, leading to a better preoperative patient selection and improved long-term clinical and echocardiographic follow-up.
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G Ital Cardiol (Rome) · Nov 2012
Review[Pharmacological prevention of coronary relapses in Italian clinical practice: a literature review].
Scientific advances in cardiovascular research during the last decades have afforded effective pharmacological treatment to those surviving their first acute myocardial infarction. This secondary prevention treatment, based upon the combined administration of statins, aspirin, beta-blockers and renin-angiotensin blockers, might avert great part of the relapses contributing substantially to the overall incidence of acute coronary syndromes in the general population. However, a treatment gap separates evidence-based recommendations from their daily clinical application, a condition frequently explored even in the Italian medical setting. However, a general overview of the problem is missing insofar, a contribution that might eventually help to improve the status of secondary coronary prevention in our national environment.
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G Ital Cardiol (Rome) · Nov 2012
[Reoperative aortic root replacement: short- and long-term outcomes in 111 patients].
The aim of this study was to report results of aortic root reoperations and to identify predictors of in-hospital and long-term mortality. ⋯ Reoperation on the aortic root can be performed with acceptable mortality and good mid- and long-term outcomes, in particular when carried out on an elective basis. Cardiopulmonary bypass time and urgent/emergent status remain the most important risk factors for reduced survival in aortic surgery.