There was a positive correlation between mean platelets volume and loss in luminal diameter between post-angioplasty and follow-up angiographies (r = +2.345, p = 0.01). There was no association between restenosis and haemoglobin, haematocrit, red cell count, white cell count, platelet count, platelet mass and plasma fibrinogen level. The development of restenosis after successful coronary angioplasty may be mainly influenced by the platelet size.

Background: A circadian and seasonal variation of QT dispersion (QTd) has been shown in healthy individuals. Nevertheless, no data exist regarding the weekly influences on the QTd in healthy individuals and in patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). Design: This study was designed to determine whether there is a weekly variability of QTd in healthy individuals and in patients with CHD. Methods: In this prospective registry study, 53 patients with documented CHD and 57 healthy control subjects were involved. Resting electrocardiograms (ECGs) with double amplitude were recorded at a speed of 50 mm/s on Monday and Friday mornings. QT intervals were measured and QTd were determined by calculating the difference between maximum and minimum QT intervals. Then, rate-corrected QTd (QTcd) were calculated using Bazett’s formula. Results: There was a significant weekly variation of QTd in control subjects (39.3 ± 6.3 vs. 36.2 ±6.1 ms) (p < 0.05) and in patients (56 ± 7.3 vs. 47.4 ± 5.4 ms) (p < 0.0001). There was also a significant weekly variation of QTcd both in control subjects (33 ± 5.3 vs. 30.7 ± 5.6 ms) (p < 0.05) and in patients (47.4 ± 6.4 vs. 41.9 ± 5.4 ms) (p < 0.0001). Conclusions: There is a weekly variation of QTd and QTcd in healthy individuals and in patients with CHD, both with a Monday preference. This fact should be taken into consideration during the chronopharmacological treatment or advisal of primary or secondary preventive measures to these subjects or patients.

This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or adaptations are made. AbstractBackground: Heart rate variability (HRV) is a predictor of cardiac autonomic functions. Ventricular repolarization markers can indicate ventricular arrhythmias. We aimed to evaluate variations of HRV and these repolarization markers in five healthy male groups between age 30 and 79 years according to decades. Materials and Methods:The study group consisted of 500 healthy male subjects between October 2018 and May 2019. The male subjects were divided into five categories according to their ages. Then, electrocardiograms (ECG), transthoracic echocardiograms (TTE), and treadmill exercise test (TET) were performed. T-wave peak-end (Tp-e) interval was defined as the time between the peak point and end of T-wave. Tp-e, corrected Tp-e (cTp-e), QT, and corrected QT (QTc) were measured from the resting ECGs and HRV temporal parameters (SDNN, SDNN Index, SDANN Index, RMSSD, sNN50, and pNN50), and HRV frequency parameters (VLF, LF, HF, and LF/HF) were obtained from 24-hour Holter monitorization recordings. One-way ANOVA test was used for the differences between the groups. Pearson correlation test was used to determine the correlations between the values of all groups. Results:Considering the repolarization parameters, there are significant differences in five groups in terms of Tp-e interval, but not Tp-e/QT and Tp-e/QTc ratios.Considering the HRV parameters, there were statistically significant differences between the five male healthy groups in terms of HRV temporal parameters and there are no significant differences in terms of HRV frequency parameters. Conclusion:As the age increases, basal Tp-e interval increases and HRV temporal parameters decrease significantly in the male subjects aged between 30 and 79 years, but HRV frequency parameters do not change. K E Y W O R D Shealthy male subjects, heart rate variability, Tp-e interval, Tp-e/QT ratio, Tp-e/QTc ratio, variation according to decades | 509 COSGUN aNd OREN

Introduction: The risk of sudden cardiac death (SCD) and arrhythmias has been shown to be common in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) subjects. We aimed to evaluate the markers of arrhythmia such as QT, QTc (corrected QT), Tp-e, and cTp-e (corrected Tp-e) intervals, Tp-e/QT ratio, and Tp-e/QTc ratio in newly diagnosed COPD subjects in both right and left precordial leads. Materials and Methods: The study group consisted of 74 subjects with obstructive respiratory function tests (RFTs). The control group consisted of 78 subjects who had nonobstructive RFTs. RFTs, electrocardiograms (ECG), and transthoracic echocardiograms (TTE) were performed, and QTR (QT interval in right precordial leads), QTL (QT interval in left precordial leads), Tp-eR (Tp-e interval in right precordial leads), and Tp-eL (Tp-e interval in left precordial leads) intervals; systolic pulmonary arterial pressure (sPAP); forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV 1)/forced vital capacity (FVC); and peripheral oxygen saturation(POS) values were measured. Results: Tp-eR interval 85.82 ± 5.34 millisecond (ms) versus 62.87 ± 3.55 ms (t = 31.29/p < .00001), cTp-eR interval 97.51 ± 7.18 ms versus 71.07 ± 4.58 ms (t = 27.20/p < .00001), Tp-eR/QTR ratio 0.234 ± 0.02 versus 0.164 ± 0.01 (t = 2.2/p = .014), and Tp-eR/QTcR ratio 0.201 ± 0.01 versus 0.141 ± 0.01 (t = 1.92/p = .028) were statistically significantly higher in COPD subjects. There was a strong negative correlation between RFT and sPAP (sPAP, 29.93 ± 5.1 mm Hg; and FEV 1 /FVC, 63.78 ± 3.33%, r = −.85/p < .00001). There was a moderate positive correlation between sPAP and Tp-eR. Conclusion: We found Tp-e and cTp-e intervals, Tp-e/QT ratio, and Tp-e/QTc ratio were significantly higher in the COPD patients than in the control group. In addition, in the COPD group, heart rate variability (HRV) parameters were significantly lower on ECG.

Background/Aim: Hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin are frequently used for the treatment of coronavirus disease 2019 . The use of these medications increases the risk of adverse cardiovascular events. The aim of our study was to investigate the effects of these drugs on the arrhythmogenic electrocardiographic (ECG) markers, QRS duration, and QRS dispersion, and also to evaluate gender differences with respect to these effects. Methods: Between March and June 2020, 107 (54 males, 53 females) patients admitted to our hospital's isolation ward with COVID-19 diagnosis with no history, risk factors, or clinical findings of cardiovascular diseases were included in this prospective cohort study. All participants had a mild illness, and none of them required intensive care unit admission. ECGs of the patients were recorded before starting treatment with combined hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin, and a second ECG was recorded on the next morning following the last dose of the treatment. All ECGs were evaluated by two blinded cardiologists in terms of QRS duration and dispersion. Results: Among study participants, QRS duration was significantly prolonged after treatment with hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin (81.14 (9.11) versus 85.5 (10.48) ms [P < 0.01]), and the same pattern was observed with QRS dispersion (36.67 (9.54) versus 40.18 (9.35) ms [P < 0.01]). When gender differences were evaluated, male patients also showed significant changes in both QRS duration (82.65 (8.04) versus 87.31 (10.7) ms [P < 0.01]), and dispersion (36.93 (8.61) versus 41.31 (9.63) ms [P < 0.01]), while in females the difference was statistically insignificant for both QRS duration (79.06 (10.18) versus 82.8 (9.79) ms [P = 0.056]), and dispersion (36.31 (10.83) versus 38.62 (8.86) ms [P = 0.23]). Conclusions: The combined use of hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin led to an increase in both QRS duration and dispersion in all patients. These changes were more significant in males than in female patients. No clinical effects of these ECG changes were observed in the short-term, and further studies are needed to investigate the possible clinical implications of these drugs during longer follow-up periods.

Previous studies showed that increased QT dispersion (QTd) has been observed during episodes of myocardial ischemia or infarction and identify the patients at risk of arrhythmia or sudden death. The objective of this study is to investigate the relationship between coronary artery disease and QTd during the Valsalva maneuver. The study population included 85 subjects (21 with normal coronary arteries, 35 with stable angina pectoris, and 29 with unstable angina pectoris). Twelve-lead surface ECGs were recorded at 50-mm/sec paper speeds and were obtained before the Valsalva maneuver and during the strain phase. The results indicate a significant difference in mean time increase between the control group and the group with stable angina pectoris (mean difference = 16.10 milliseconds, p<0.000), and between the control group and the group with unstable angina pectoris (mean difference = 35.26 milliseconds, p<0.000). The mean difference in time between these groups was also compared (mean difference = 19.17 milliseconds), and was statistically significant (p<0.000). There are some conditions like constipation, severe coughing spells, nausea, vomiting, and carrying or lifting heavy objects that increase intrathoracic pressure and may increase QT dispersion. Therefore, all these conditions should be treated appropriately and carrying or lifting heavy objects is forbidden, especially in patients with coronary artery disease.

No abstract

Background: Attention is drawn to the increased incidence of atrial fibrillation (AF) in benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) patients recently. Early predicting of AF in these patients can help in decreasing its clinical consequences. The aim of our study is to determine the association between BPH symptoms and AF predictors atrial electromechanical delay (AEMD) and the P-wave dispersion (PWD). Methods: 218 healthy individuals recently diagnosed with BPH were assigned into three groups according to symptoms severity using the International prostate symptom score (IPSS) questionnaire. The first group with mild symptoms (IPSS score between 0 and 7, n = 78), the second group with moderate symptoms (IPSS score between 8 and 19, n = 86), and the third group with severe symptoms (IPSS score between 20 and 35, n = 54). PWD and AEMD calculations were performed for all participants.Results: There were statistically significant differences between the three groups in terms of AEMD and PWD (p < .01 and p < .01, respectively). In all three study groups, a significant positive correlation was observed between IPSS questionnaire scores and both AEMD and PWD (for AEMD r = .29, p = .013 and for PWD r = .27, p = .017).On the other hand, there were significant differences between the three groups in terms of the inflammatory markers C-reactive protein (CRP) and fibrinogen (p < .01 and p < .01, respectively) and in terms of serum testosterone levels (p < .01). Conclusions:We concluded that periodic evaluation of patients with BPH in terms of symptoms severity can be helpful not only from urological aspect, but also in the early prediction of possible serious cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.