W Indian Med J
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In Trinidad and Tobago, cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes mellitus are important causes of morbidity and mortality, and birth weight is significantly less than reference standards. Lower birth weight is associated with increased risk of these diseases. Variation in birth weight is due, in part, to deposition of adipose tissue in the foetus during the last trimester at the same time that maternal plasma triacylglycerol (TAG) increases. ⋯ There was a strong relationship (r = 0.8771, p = 0.019) between maternal and cord plasma TAG and NEFA, but not PC concentrations. There was no significant relationship between maternal TAG concentration at term and birth weight. The result suggests an impaired ability to increase plasma TAG concentrations during late gestation.
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During the period January 1994 to December 1999, a total of 395 patients--adults and children--underwent various types of open heart surgical (OHS) procedures. The age range of these patients was 10 days to 77 years. Most (43.5%) of these patients underwent valve replacement--first time and 'redo'--as a result of rheumatic heart disease of varying duration and severity. ⋯ However, the true incidence of NCs (gross and subtle) in the study group cannot be ascertained. A detailed, structured neurological and neuropsychiatric assessment, both pre- and post-operatively, is therefore needed to document the true incidence of this complication. There is also the need for public education, especially for those with valvular disease, in order to encourage changes in attitude and behaviour towards continued follow-up care and valve surgery, both first time and 'redo'.
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Atrial fibrillation and/or flutter is the most common and the most significant cardiac arrhythmia in the Caribbean. This study is an attempt to determine the echocardiographic findings in a current, consecutive series of Afro-Caribbean patients referred for evaluation of atrial fibrillation and flutter. Between May 1998 and June 2000, 50 patients (mean age 67 years, 58% male) had echocardiograms done. ⋯ Patients with lone atrial fibrillation were younger (mean 56 years) than those with valvular disease (mean 64 years), LV systolic dysfunction (mean 69 years) and those with LV hypertrophy (mean 72 years). Thus, LV hypertrophy, probably secondary to hypertension, is the most frequent echocardiographic finding, with LV dysfunction (such as seen in coronary artery disease) seen less often. Valvular disease and lone atrial fibrillation rates are similar to rates in developed countries.