The international journal of cardiovascular imaging
-
Int J Cardiovasc Imaging · Jan 2015
Prediction of hemodynamic improvement after pulmonary endarterectomy in chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension using non-invasive imaging.
Pulmonary endarterectomy (PEA) is the recommended treatment in chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH). Prediction of outcome after PEA remains challenging. In search for pre-operative predictors we evaluated non-invasive parameters measured by chest CT-scan and echocardiography. ⋯ All patients who died within 30 days (9.6 %) had persistent pulmonary hypertension, with a post-operative mean PAP of 51.6 ± 14.1 mmHg and PVR of 692 ± 216 dyn s cm(-5). The pre-operative PA diameter indexed for body surface area is the only independent predictor for hemodynamic improvement after PEA in CTEPH patients. In all patients who died within 30 days after PEA, persistent pulmonary hypertension was present.
-
Int J Cardiovasc Imaging · Jan 2015
Radial access during percutaneous interventions in patients with acute coronary syndromes: should we routinely monitor radial artery patency by ultrasonography promptly after the procedure and in long-term observation?
Access-site vascular complications in patients undergoing transradial coronary procedures are rare but may have relevant clinical consequences. The aim of the study was to evaluate: (1) radial artery's (RA) patency immediately after the procedure and in long-term observation, (2) factors influencing the frequency of radial artery's occlusion (RAO) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedures performed via transradial access in the group of 220 patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS). RA ultrasound was performed 48-72 h after the procedure and in those who were diagnosed with RAO-again after 6-12 months. ⋯ In the follow-up, right RA remained still obstructed in 28 patients (12.7 %) whereas in five patients (2.3 %) the regular flow in RA was resumed. The chronic RAO was clinically silent. Due to insignificant frequency of the occurrence of RAO after PCI procedure in patients with ACS as well as practically lack of clinical consequences of this artery's occlusion in long-term observation, we do not see any implications to routine ultrasound periprocedural RA evaluation.
-
Int J Cardiovasc Imaging · Dec 2014
Determinants of pulmonary hypertension development in moderate or severe aortic stenosis.
Pulmonary hypertension (PHT) is not uncommon in patients with aortic stenosis (AS) and portends a dismal prognosis. We attempted to determine the prevalence of PHT and to identify contributors to its development in patients with moderate or severe AS. A total of 189 patients were enrolled. ⋯ However, LV-GRS and LV-GCS were similar in patients with or without PHT. On multivariate logistic regression analysis, LV-GLS and E/e' were independently associated with PHT, whereas LV-EF and indexed AV area were not. PHT complicating moderate or severe AS is commonly found and is independently associated with systolic and diastolic dysfunction assessed by Doppler and strain imaging, but not with LV-EF.
-
Int J Cardiovasc Imaging · Dec 2014
Comparative StudyProsthesis-patient mismatch after transcatheter aortic valve implantation: impact of 2D-transthoracic echocardiography versus 3D-transesophageal echocardiography.
To investigate the role of 2D-transthoracic echocardiography (2D-TTE) and 3D-transesophageal echocardiography (3D-TEE) in the determination of aortic annulus size prior transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and its' impact on the prevalence of patient prosthesis mismatch (PPM). Echocardiography plays an important role in measuring aortic annulus dimension in patients undergoing TAVI. This has great importance since it determines both eligibility for TAVI and selection of prosthesis type and size, and can be potentially important in preventing an inadequate ratio between the prosthetic valvular orifice and the patient's body surface area, concept known as prosthesis-patient mismatch (PPM). ⋯ The echocardiographic evaluation 3 months post-TAVI showed 25 % moderate PPM in the 3D-TEE group compared with 24 % in the 2D-TTE group (p value = n.s) and no cases of severe PPM in the 3DTEE group comparing to 20 % in the 2D-TTE group (p = 0.032). Our results indicate a higher incidence of severe PPM in patients who performed 2DTTE compared to those performing 3DTEE prior TAVI. This suggests that the 3D technique should replace the 2DTTE analysis when investigating the aortic annulus diameter in patients undergoing TAVI.