Clinical cardiology
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Clinical cardiology · Feb 2013
Review Meta AnalysisNovel oral anticoagulants in atrial fibrillation: a meta-analysis of large, randomized, controlled trials vs warfarin.
Warfarin reduces ischemic stroke in atrial fibrillation, but has numerous limitations. Novel oral anticoagulants provide more predictable anticoagulation with fewer shortcomings. ⋯ Novel oral anticoagulants may be superior to warfarin in patients with atrial fibrillation, reducing the composite of stroke or systemic embolism and lowering all-cause mortality. The benefit is largely due to fewer hemorrhagic strokes.
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YouTube is a highly utilized Web site that contains a large amount of medical educational material. Although some studies have assessed the education material contained on the Web site, little analysis of cardiology content has been made. This study aimed to assess the quality of videos relating to heart sounds and murmurs contained on YouTube. ⋯ YouTube contains many videos relating to cardiac auscultation, but very few are valuable education resources.
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Clinical cardiology · Jan 2013
ReviewRenal denervation: a potential new treatment for severe hypertension.
Hypertension is a leading cause of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Drug-resistant hypertension remains common despite the availability of several classes of effective antihypertensive agents. ⋯ The newly developed, minimally invasive, catheter-based renal sympathetic denervation procedure has been shown in recent trials to produce impressive blood pressure reductions and a favorable safety profile in drug-resistant hypertension. Although the long-term efficacy and safety of renal denervation remains to be determined, emerging data suggest that the benefits of renal denervation may extend beyond blood pressure control.
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Clinical cardiology · Jan 2013
Comparative StudyDepression, anxiety, and quality of life after catheter ablation in patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation.
Patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) experience impaired quality of life (QoL) and psychological distress. Catheter ablation of AF can markedly improve QoL. However, the effect of catheter ablation of AF on psychological status is unknown. ⋯ Catheter ablation is more effective for improving depression, anxiety, and QoL in patients with paroxysmal AF compared with AAD therapy.
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Clinical cardiology · Jan 2013
Comparative StudyA comparison between coronary artery bypass grafting surgery and percutaneous coronary intervention for the treatment of unprotected left main coronary artery disease.
Unprotected left main coronary artery (ULMCA) disease occurs in 3% to 5% of patients with coronary artery disease and is mainly treated by coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery. Drug-eluting stents (DESs) have renewed interest for the percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) treatment of ULMCA stenosis. This study compared the long-term clinical outcome of PCI with DESs or CABG in real world patients with ULMCA disease. ⋯ In ULMCA disease, CABG tends to be chosen in patients with higher risk according to the EuroSCORE and SYNTAX scores. PCI with DESs seemed to have favorable early and long-term clinical outcomes compared with CABG in our center.