International journal of cardiology
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Persons with a clinically recognized myocardial infarction are at increased risk for atrial fibrillation. However a large proportion of all myocardial infarctions remain clinically unrecognized. Whether subjects with electrocardiographic signs of an unrecognized myocardial infarction are also at an increased risk of developing atrial fibrillation is unknown. The objective of this study was to investigate whether unrecognized myocardial infarction was associated with an increased risk of atrial fibrillation in a prospective population-based cohort study. ⋯ The presence of an unrecognized myocardial infarction is associated with a twofold increased risk of atrial fibrillation in men, independent of known cardiovascular risk factors.
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Previous studies of patients admitted for ST-elevation myocardial infarction [STEMI] have indicated that women have a higher risk of early mortality than do men. These studies have presented limited information on gender related differences in the short term and almost no information on the long term. ⋯ In STEMI, women had a higher risk of in-hospital mortality but the long-term risk of death was higher in men. More studies are needed in the primary percutaneous coronary intervention (pPCI) era that are designed to determine why women fare worse than men after STEMI during the first phase when they are in hospital.
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Limited data exist on renal complications of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) within a comprehensive program using different valves with transfemoral, transapical, and trans-subclavian approach. ⋯ TAVI is associated with a high incidence of AKI. Although in the majority of the cases AKI is of mild entity and reversible, AKI 3 holds a strong negative impact on 1-year survival. The incidence of AKI is higher with transapical access.
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Cardiac troponins are diagnostic markers in acute coronary syndrome and prognostic markers in stable coronary disease. Small increases are occasionally observed in patients with non-cardiac disease, but the prevalence and prognostic value of increased troponin in the general hospitalized population are unknown. ⋯ More than half of the hospitalized patients had hs-TnT levels above the 99(th) percentile. Elevated hs-TnT is a strong mortality risk marker in general hospitalized older patients.
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Risk stratification schemes assessing stroke and thromboembolism (stroke/TE) and bleeding relating to atrial fibrillation (AF) have largely been derived and validated in Western populations. We assessed risk factors that constitute scores for assessing stroke/TE (CHADS2, CHA2DS2-VASc) and bleeding (HAS-BLED), and the predictive value of these scores in a large cohort of Chinese patients with AF. ⋯ Vascular disease was a strong independent predictor of stroke/TE in Chinese patients with AF. The CHA2DS2-VASc score performed better than CHADS2 in predicting stroke/TE in this Chinese AF population. Cumulative survival of the patients at high risk with the CHA2DS2-VASc score (but not using CHADS2) was significantly decreased.