Percutaneous closure of pmVSD when performed in a selected subgroup of patients is associated with similar procedural success rate without increased risk of significant valvular regurgitation or heart block when compared with surgical closure.

Introduction Vitamin D is a sectosteroid that functions through Vitamin D receptor (VDR), a transcription factor, which controls the transcription of many targets genes. Vitamin D deficiency has been linked with cardiovascular diseases, including heart failure and coronary artery disease. Suppressor of cytokine signaling (SOCS)3 regulates different biological processes such as inflammation and cellular differentiation and is an endogenous negative regulator of cardiac hypertrophy. Objective The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that vitamin D deficiency causes cardiomyocyte hypertrophy and increased proinflammatory profile in epicardial adipose tissue(EAT), and this correlates with decreased expression of SOCS3 in cardiomyocytes and EAT. Methods Eight female Yucatan miniswine were fed vitamin D-sufficient (900 IU/d) or vitamin D-deficient hypercholesterolemic diet. Lipid profile, metabolic panel, and serum 25(OH)D levels were regularly measured. After 12 months animals were euthanized and histological, immunohistochemical and qPCR studies were performed on myocardium and epicardial fat. Results Histological studies showed cardiac hypertrophy, as judged by cardiac myocyte cross sectional area, in vitamin D-deficient group. Immunohistochemical and qPCR analyses showed significantly decreased mRNA and protein expression of VDR and SOCS3 in cardiomyocytes of vitamin D-deficient animals. EAT from vitamin D-deficient group had significantly higher expression of TNF-α, IL-6, MCP-1, and decreased adiponectin in association with increased inflammatory cellular infiltrate. Interestingly, EAT from vitamin D-deficient group had significantly decreased expression of SOCS3. Conclusion These data suggest that vitamin D deficiency induces hypertrophy in cardiomyocytes which is associated with decreased expression of VDR and SOCS3. Vitamin D deficiency is also associated with increased inflammatory markers in EAT. Activity of VDR in the body is controlled through regulation of vitamin D metabolites. Therefore, restoration of VDR function by supplementation of VDR ligands in vitamin D- deficient population might be helpful in reducing inflammation and cardiovascular risk.

Transient cortical blindness (CB) is a rare complication of dye usage during cardiac catheterization, percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) or directed coronary atherectomy (DCA), and is limited to few case reports. In this paper, we are describing three such cases of CB who, upon reexposure to dye during subsequent cardiac catheterization, did not develop CB. To our knowledge, the consequences of reexposure of these patients to dye has not been described in literature.

These results show that coronary vessels are more prone to develop significant intimal hyperplasia and subsequent restenosis than internal iliac vessels. A better insight into how different arteries and arterial components behave is important in understanding and developing newer and better therapeutic measures for restenosis.

Context COVID-19 caused a worldwide pandemic, and there are still many uncertainties about the disease. C-reactive protein (CRP) levels could be utilized as a prognosticator for disease severity in COVID-19 patients. Objectives This study aims to determine whether CRP levels are correlated with COVID-19 patient outcomes and length of stay (LoS). Methods A retrospective cohort study was conducted utilizing data obtained between March and May 2020. Data were collected by abstracting past medical records through electronic medical records at 10 hospitals within CommonSpirit Health. Patients were included if they had a positive COVID-19 test from a nasopharyngeal swab sample, and if they were admitted and then discharged alive or had in-hospital mortality and were ≥18 years. A total of 541 patients had CRP levels measured and were included in this report. Patient outcome and LoS were the endpoints measured. Results The 541 patients had their CRP levels measured, as well as the demographic and clinical data required for analysis. While controlling for body mass index (BMI), number of comorbidities, and age, the first CRP was significantly predictive of mortality (p<0.001). The odds ratio for first CRP indicates that for each one-unit increase in CRP, the odds of death increased by 0.007. For LoS, the first CRP was a significant predictor (p<0.001), along with age (p=0.002). The number of comorbidities also predicted LoS (p=0.007), but BMI did not. The coefficient for the first CRP indicates that, for each one-unit increase in CRP, LoS increased 0.003 days. Conclusions The results indicate that there is a positive correlation between the CRP levels of COVID-19 patients and their respective outcomes with regard to death and LoS.