Heart and vessels
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Right ventricular (RV) function is associated with prognosis in chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH). This study aimed to establish an RV dysfunction score using RV echocardiographic parameters to clarify the clinical characteristics in patients with CTEPH and to compare RV dysfunction score with parameters such as World Health Organization (WHO) functional class, hemodynamics, exercise capacity, and plasma BNP level. We enrolled 35 inpatients with CTEPH (mean age, 62 ± 15 years, 15 males). ⋯ TAPSE, S', RVFAC, and RV-MPI was 18.7 ± 4.8 mm, 11.9 ± 3.1 cm/s, 33.5 ± 13.9%, and 0.39 ± 0.2, respectively. The RV dysfunction score was associated with symptom [WHO functional class (p = 0.026)], hemodynamics [mean PAP (p = 0.01), cardiac index (p = 0.009), pulmonary vascular resistance (p = 0.001), and SvO2 (p = 0.039)], exercise capacity [6-min walk distance (p = 0.046), peakVO2 (p = 0.016), and VE/VCO2 slope (p = 0.031)], and plasma BNP level (p = 0.005). This RV dysfunction score using the four RV echocardiographic parameters could be a simple and useful scoring system to evaluate prognostic factors in patients with CTEPH.
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Door to balloon (D2B) time was reported an important factor of the clinical outcome of patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). D2B time is influenced by various factors; however, modifiable factors have not been adequately evaluated. The purpose of this study was to identify modifiable factors associated with prolonged D2B time. ⋯ The median D2B time for the entire cohort was 69 min (interquartile range 54-89) and 24% had a D2B time of > 90 min. Modifiable factors associated with prolonged treatment time (D2B time > 90 min) were electrocardiogram (ECG) to puncture time > 50 min [odds ratios (OR) 96.0, 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) 25.1-652.5, P < 0.0001), door to ECG time > 10 min (OR 49.8, 95% CI 11.8-357.5, P < 0.0001), and puncture to balloon time > 30 min (OR 48.5, 95% CI 12.0-333.8, P < 0.0001). ECG to puncture time > 50 min was the most important modifiable factor associated with prolonged D2B time in STEMI patients.