Acta cardiologica
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The beneficial effect of pentoxifylline (PTX) on ischaemic-reperfusion injury was assessed in a rat model of transient global cerebral ischaemia. ⋯ The results suggest that PTX reduces cerebral injury and preserves neurologic function in transient global ischaemia in rats.
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Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is an important cause of sudden death in young and asymptomatic patients. Young athletes and patients with unexplained sudden death, including their relatives, should be screened for its presence. Risk stratification identifies a high-risk group, in which preventive measures should be taken to reduce the risk for sudden death: moderate to heavy physical activity has to be avoided and arrhythmias with haemodynamic impact should be rigorously prevented.
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Case Reports
Shoshin syndrome: two case reports representing opposite ends of the same disease spectrum.
Thiamine deficiency can have cardiovascular and neurological manifestations. Cardiac beriberi is classically thought to represent a high-output state with oliguria and lactic acidosis. The condition can, however, also present itself with a low cardiac output and fulminant vascular collapse, or as an acute fatal form, causing sudden death, without clear-cut signs of cardiomegaly. ⋯ We report on two cases, one with high-output failure and the other with low-output failure and cardiovascular collapse. In both patients the diagnosis of shoshin syndrome was made, and and both showed a spectacular improvement of congestive heart failure symptoms after treatment with thiamine. A therapeutic trial with thiamine is the only way to rapid diagnosis.
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Case Reports
Massive pericardial effusion in an adult case of congenital hypothyroidism due to a sublingual thyroid.
Acquired hypothyroidism is known to cause cardiac tamponade. However, pericardial effusion in cretinism in adulthood has rarely been reported. A 27-year-old dwarfish woman suffering from congestive heart failure was diagnosed with congenital hypothyroidism due to the presence of a sublingual thyroid. ⋯ Despite the existence of massive pericardial effusion, the patient had hypertension. Her metabolic abnormality responded dramatically to L-thyroxin. Pericardial effusion disappeared one year after the initiation of medical treatment.