BackgroundTranscranial Doppler can detect cerebral perfusion alteration in septic patients. We correlate static Transcranial Doppler findings with clinical signs of sepsis-associated encephalopathy.MethodsForty septic patients were examined with Transcranial Doppler on the first and third day of sepsis diagnosis. The pulsatility index (PI) and cerebral blood flow index (CBFi) were calculated by blood velocity in the middle cerebral artery (cm/sec). Patients underwent a daily cognitive assessment with the Confusion Assessment Method for the Intensive Care Unit (CAM-ICU) test.ResultsTwenty-one patients (55%) were found to present confusion. The majority of the patients presented a PI > 1.1 (76%). PI on the first day (but not the third day) could predict a positive CAM-ICU test in septic patients (PI cut-off: 1.3, AUC: 0.905, p < 0.01, sensitivity: 95%, specificity: 88%, AUC: 0.618, p = 0.24). Multivariable analysis showed that PI on the first day is related to a positive CAM-ICU test independent of age and APACHE II score (OR: 5.6, 95% CI: 1.1-29, p = 0.03). A decrease of the PI on the third day was observed in the group that presented initially high PI (>1.3) (2.2 ± 0.71 vs. 1.81 ± 0.64; p = 0.02). On the other hand, an increase in PI was observed in the other patients (1.01 ± 0.15 vs. 1.58 ± 0.57; p < 0.01). On only the first day, the mean blood velocity in the middle cerebral artery and CBFi were found to be lower in those patients with a high initial PI (36 ± 21 vs. 62 ± 28 cm/sec; p < 0.01, 328 ± 101 vs. 581 ± 108; p < 0.01, respectively).ConclusionsCerebral perfusion disturbance observed with Transcranial Doppler could explain clinical symptoms of sepsis-associated encephalopathy.
Arterial stiffness is increased in asymptomatic, nondiabetic women with a putative PCOS phenotype, independently of age, BMI or blood pressure. This might present one mechanism through which PCOS increases the risk of CVD and hypertension later in life.
In the current study, the authors sought to assess whether the time rate of systolic and diastolic blood pressure variation is associated with advanced subclinical stages of carotid atherosclerosis and plaque echogenicity assessed by gray scale median. The authors recruited 237 consecutive patients with normotension and hypertension who underwent 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure monitoring and carotid artery ultrasonography. There was an independent association between low 24-hour systolic time rate and increased echogenicity of carotid plaques (adjusted odds ratio for highest vs lower tertiles of gray scale median, 0.470; 95% confidence interval, 0.245-0.902 [P = .023]). Moreover, increased nighttime diastolic time rate independently correlated with the presence (adjusted odds ratio, 1.328; P = .015) and number of carotid plaques (adjusted odds ratio, 1.410; P = .003). These results indicate differential associations of the systolic and diastolic components of time rate of blood pressure variation with the presence, extent, and composition of carotid plaques and suggest that when blood pressure variation is assessed, both components should be considered.
Renin-angiotensin system (RAS) inhibition may exert beneficiary pleiotropic effects on heart hemodynamics in hypertensive patients. We aimed to assess these effects on coronary flow reserve (CFR) and left ventricular (LV) filling pressure after acute and long-term treatment. Thirty-nine patients (48.4±6.8 years) with newly diagnosed, never-treated essential arterial hypertension were consecutively recruited from an outpatient hypertension clinic. CFR in the left anterior descending artery and the ratio of mitral inflow E wave to the averaged mitral annulus tissue velocity of the E waves (E/e' ratio), as an estimate of LV filling pressure, were assessed by Doppler echocardiography. In the acute phase of the study, consecutive eligible patients were assigned to receive po Quinapril (Q) 20 mg (n=15) or Losartan (L) 100 mg (n=14) or no treatment (n=10) and were reexamined 2 h post treatment. In the chronic phase of the study, the patients were reevaluated after 1 month on the assigned treatment. During the acute phase, CFR (P=0.005) was significantly improved in the RAS inhibition as compared with the control group, independently of blood pressure (BP) changes. The E/e' ratio was also marginally improved (P=0.053), but this effect was more pronounced in patients with E/e' ratio>8 (P=0.005). CFR and E/e' ratio were also improved after 1 month of treatment, particularly in responders after the acute phase. In hypertensive patients, RAS inhibition acutely improved CFR and E/e' ratio independently of BP changes. An acute positive response in these parameters was closely related to sustained improvement after 1 month of single-drug treatment.
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