Journal of cardiology
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Journal of cardiology · Mar 2016
Observational StudyThe relationship between neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, endothelial function, and severity in patients with obstructive sleep apnea.
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is characterized by repetitive intermittent hypoxia and reoxygenation during sleep with elevated oxidative stress and promotes the development of atherosclerosis, as demonstrated by vascular dysfunction and chronic inflammation. An increased neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) has been recognized to be a novel inflammatory biomarker for systemic inflammation. ⋯ NLR and endothelial dysfunction significantly correlates with the severity of OSA and FMD and other biochemical parameters improved and NLR decreased significantly after CPAP treatment.
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Journal of cardiology · Mar 2016
Paradoxical nocturnal elevation of sympathetic tone and spontaneous ventricular fibrillation in Brugada syndrome.
Nocturnal dominance of the incidence of spontaneous ventricular tachyarrhythmias has been reported in patients with Brugada syndrome (BrS). The purpose of the present study is to analyze the QT dynamics and autonomic balance as well as their diurnal variations in BrS patients. ⋯ Most first episodes of spontaneous VF in the VF-BrS patients occurred during the nighttime or at rest. The autonomic imbalance of paradoxical nocturnal elevation of the sympathetic tone along with an underlying persistent sympathetic tone throughout the day may play a key role for spontaneous VF initiation in BrS patients.
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Journal of cardiology · Feb 2016
ReviewCirrhotic cardiomyopathy in the pre- and post-liver transplantation phase.
Patients with advanced liver cirrhosis may develop a clinical syndrome characterized by a blunted contractile responsiveness to stress and/or altered diastolic relaxation, called "cirrhotic cardiomyopathy." This syndrome, which is initially asymptomatic, is often misdiagnosed due to the presence of symptoms that characterize other disorders present in patients with advanced liver cirrhosis, such as exercise intolerance, fatigue, and dyspnea. Stress and other conditions such as liver transplantation and transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) may unmask this syndrome. Liver transplantation in this group of patients results in a clinical improvement and can be a cure for the cardiomyopathy. ⋯ Since a preserved left ventricular ejection fraction may mask the presence of cirrhotic cardiomyopathy, the use of newer noninvasive diagnostic techniques (i.e. tissue Doppler, myocardial strain) is necessary to identify cirrhotics with this syndrome, in the pre-transplant phase. A pre-transplant treatment of heart failure in cirrhotics with cardiomyopathy improves the quality of life in this phase and reduces the complications during and immediately after liver transplantation. Since specific therapies for cirrhotic cardiomyopathy are lacking, due to the absence of a clear understanding of the pathophysiology of the cardiomyopathy, further research in this field is required.
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Journal of cardiology · Jan 2016
Randomized Controlled TrialRemote ischemic preconditioning in aortic valve surgery: Results of a randomized controlled study.
Although remote ischemic preconditioning (RIPC) has emerged as an attractive strategy to reduce cardiac injury in patients undergoing diverse cardiac surgical procedures, it is unclear whether RIPC has protective effects in patients undergoing aortic valve replacement surgery without coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). ⋯ RIPC did not exhibit significant cardiac or kidney protective effects in patients undergoing aortic valve replacement surgery without CABG.
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Journal of cardiology · Dec 2015
Acute kidney injury after transcatheter aortic valve implantation: Impact of contrast agents, predictive factors, and prognostic importance in 203 patients with long-term follow-up.
Acute kidney injury (AKI) frequently occurs following transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and has been related to a worse outcome. We investigated the importance of contrast medium composition, either iso-osmolar (IOCM) or low-osmolar (LOCM) and assessed predictors for AKI after TAVI. ⋯ Following TAVI, we observed no difference in the occurrence of AKI between IOCM and LOCM. Baseline creatinine was the only independent predictor of AKI, and patients who developed advanced AKI had significantly higher mortality at 2 years.