American heart journal
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American heart journal · May 2003
Clinical usefulness and prognostic value of elevated cardiac troponin I levels in acute pulmonary embolism.
Right ventricular myocardial ischemia and injury contribute to right ventricular dysfunction and failure during acute pulmonary embolism. The objective of this study was to evaluate the clinical usefulness of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) in the assessment of right ventricular involvement and short-term prognosis in acute pulmonary embolism ⋯ Patients with acute pulmonary embolism with elevated serum cTnI levels are at a higher risk for the development of right ventricular dysfunction and cardiogenic shock. Serum cTnI has a role in risk stratification and short-term prognostication in patients with acute pulmonary embolism.
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American heart journal · May 2003
ReviewBrugada syndrome and "Brugada sign": clinical spectrum with a guide for the clinician.
Patients with the manifest Brugada syndrome have an inordinate risk of sudden death and are candidates for implantation of a defibrillator. The Brugada type electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormality (the "Brugada sign"), however, is known to be associated with a wide range of conditions, many of which may not pose such a threat. Clinicians need guidance in choosing a rational approach for the evaluation and treatment of patients with a finding of the Brugada sign. ⋯ Most patients with the Brugada sign can be risk-stratified with simple clinical tools. Specific testing for the Brugada syndrome should be reserved for questionable cases and for the research setting. A provisional diagnostic-therapeutic algorithm is offered as a means of assisting the clinician in the evaluation and treatment of patients with the Brugada sign.
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American heart journal · May 2003
Randomized Controlled Trial Clinical TrialComparison of acute changes in left ventricular volume, systolic and diastolic functions, and intraventricular synchronicity after biventricular and right ventricular pacing for heart failure.
Biventricular pacing (BiV) therapy has recently been shown to improve systolic function and cause reverse remodeling in patients with advanced heart failure with electromechanical delay. In these patients, the benefit of right ventricular (RV)-based pacing was controversial. We compared the acute changes in systolic and diastolic function, left ventricular (LV) volume, and intraventricular synchronicity in BiV pacing, RV pacing, and without pacing (No) by means of echocardiography and tissue Doppler imaging (TDI). ⋯ Only BiV pacing, but not RV pacing, improves systolic function, and reduces mitral regurgitation and LV volumes in patients with heart failure and electromechanical delay. This is attributed to the improvement of systolic synchronicity. Diastolic synchronicity was unaffected, whereas early diastolic function could be jeopardized, by either pacing mode.
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American heart journal · May 2003
Multicenter StudyTime trends in long-term mortality after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest, 1980 to 1998, and predictors for death.
We studied time trends in long-term survival after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) for patient characteristics and described predictors for death after discharge. Because long-term prognosis among patients with coronary heart disease has improved in the last decades, we hypothesized that the prognosis after OHCA would improve with time. ⋯ The long-term survival rate after OHCA did not change. Baseline characteristics remained generally unchanged, but the drugs prescribed at discharge changed in several aspects. Age, a history of myocardial infarction, a history of smoking, cerebral performance category at discharge, and the prescription of beta-blockers were independent predictors of outcome.