Revista portuguesa de cardiologia : orgão oficial da Sociedade Portuguesa de Cardiologia = Portuguese journal of cardiology : an official journal of the Portuguese Society of Cardiology
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Reflex vasovagal syncope often affects young populations and is associated with a benign prognosis in terms of mortality. However, a minority of patients have recurrent episodes, with a considerable impact on their quality of life. ⋯ Recently, an approach based on the use of implantable loop recorders has shown that some patients with reflex vasovagal syncope could benefit from implantation with dual-chamber pacemakers, particularly patients aged >40 years, with recurrent syncopal episodes resulting in frequent injuries, in whom a long asystole (≥3 s asystole with syncope or ≥6 s asystole without syncope) has been documented with an implantable loop recorder. The authors present a literature review on the role of cardiac pacing in reflex vasovagal syncope and propose a diagnostic and therapeutic decision flowchart for patients with syncope of probable reflex etiology.
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Correct diagnosis in wide QRS complex tachycardia remains a challenge. Differential diagnosis between ventricular and supraventricular tachycardia has important therapeutic and prognostic implications, and although data from clinical history and physical examination may suggest a particular origin, it is the 12-lead surface electrocardiogram that usually enables this differentiation. Since 1978, various electrocardiographic criteria have been proposed for the differential diagnosis of wide complex tachycardias, particularly the presence of atrioventricular dissociation, and the axis, duration and morphology of QRS complexes. ⋯ To reduce such errors, several differential diagnosis algorithms have been proposed since 1991. However, in a small percentage of wide QRS tachycardias the diagnosis remains uncertain and in these the wisest decision is to treat them as ventricular tachycardias. The authors' objective was to review the main electrocardiographic criteria and differential diagnosis algorithms of wide QRS tachycardia.
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Stress-induced cardiomyopathy, also known as 'broken heart syndrome' or Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, is characterized by transient systolic dysfunction of the apical and/or mid segments of the left ventricle, in the absence of significant coronary artery disease. We report the case of a 56-year-old male patient with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), with stress-induced cardiomyopathy associated with the use of ipratropium bromide, administered in the context of an acute exacerbation of COPD.
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Biomarkers have emerged as interesting predictors of risk in patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS). The aim of this study was to determine the utility of the combined measurement of cystatin C (CysC), C-reactive protein (CRP), N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) and red blood cell distribution width (RDW) in the risk stratification of patients with ACS. ⋯ A multimarker approach using CysC, NT-proBNP, CRP and RDW was an independent predictor of 6-month mortality and added prognostic information to the GRACE risk score in patients with ACS and high risk defined by GRACE, with increasing mortality in patients with a higher number of elevated biomarkers on admission.
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Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is an alternative therapeutic approach to patients not considered suitable for surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) due to their high operative risk. We sought to assess the impact of TAVI on the profile and operative results of patients with severe aortic stenosis undergoing SAVR. ⋯ Since the introduction of a TAVI program at our center, the number of patients undergoing SAVR has increased, with a slight rise in surgical risk, but without worsening the final operative results. The implementation of a TAVI program has thus had a positive impact on the volume of procedures, patient selection and outcomes in SAVR.