The incidence of appropriate ICD shocks within the first 6 months postimplantation was significantly higher in ChC patients than in CAD patients. ChC patients were younger and more often women than CAD patients.
Chagas' disease is a parasitic affliction, endemic to certain regions of South America, which may lead to a chronic dilated nonischemic cardiomyopathy. Ten Chagasic patients were compared to 18 coronary patients undergoing transvenous ICD implantation for ventricular tachycardia (VT), ventricular fibrillation (VF), or aborted cardiac arrest. Indications for ICD implantation were either drug intolerance or refractoriness, or no inducible tachyarrhythmia at EPS. There were no statistically significant differences between the Chagas and coronary artery disease groups with respect to age (60.2 vs 62.6 yrs), NYHA Class II (50% vs 62%), ejection fraction (31.1% vs 29.7%), and incidence of cardiac arrest (20% vs 33%), respectively. The following ICD implant and long-term follow-up variables were compared between the two groups: pacing threshold (0.94 V vs 0.95 V), defibrillation threshold (19.5 J vs 19.6 J), number of VT episodes (414 vs 435), number of spontaneous VT terminations (86 vs 187), percent efficacy of antitachycardia pacing (93.9% vs 92.1%), and total number of shocks (112 vs 145). These differences were not statistically significant. We conclude that patients with Chagas' disease, compared with coronary artery disease patients, have similar clinical characteristics leading to ICD implantation. Furthermore, no differences were found with respect to ICD and long-term follow-up characteristics between the two groups.
An application-directed learning style predominates in this group of residents. Information regarding learning styles can provide foundations upon which arguments can be made for changes in education that are traditionally not evidence-based.
Background:
MAZE IV surgery is effective in restoring sinus rhythm (SR) and atrial contraction (AC) in patients with nonrheumatic persistent atrial fibrillation (AF). However, there is less information on its effectiveness to restore AC in patients with rheumatic disease.
Aims:
To assess the effectiveness of the MAZE IV surgery in restoring AC in patients with rheumatic disease and long persistent AF.
Methods:
Prospective, consecutive study in patients who underwent cardiovascular surgery and had long persistent AF in whom MAZE IV surgery was performed. The presence of AC was assessed by lateral mitral annulus tissue Doppler.
Results:
A total of 75 patients were included. Mean age 60 years (±11.7); 27 men (36%). AF duration was 63 months (±34.1). Primary indication for surgery: rheumatic mitral stenosis 67 patients and mitral insufficiency eight patients. Mean left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) was 51.8% (±12.1) and mean left atrial area was 37 cm2 (±10.3). After a mean follow‐up of 28 months (±9.3), 69 patients remained alive and 59 were in SR. AC was detected in 37.3% (Group A) and absent in 62.7% (Group B). The mean difference between groups was the high prevalence of AF longer than 5 years in group B (P = 0.000001). There were no differences related to left atrial size, LVEF, and age.
Conclusions:
In patients with rheumatic disease, the absence of correlation between SR recovery and AC recovery post MAZE IV surgery is significant. A history of long persistent AF lasting more than 5 years was a strong predictor for the absence of AC.
(PACE 2012; 35:999–1004)
Primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is the preferred reperfusion method in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). In patients with STEMI who cannot undergo timely primary PCI, pharmacoinvasive treatment is recommended, comprising immediate fibrinolytic therapy with subsequent coronary angiography and rescue PCI if needed. Improving clinical outcomes following fibrinolysis remains of great importance for the many patients globally for whom rapid treatment with primary PCI is not possible. For patients with acute coronary syndrome who underwent primary PCI, the PLATO trial demonstrated superior efficacy of ticagrelor relative to clopidogrel. Results in the predefined subgroup of patients with STEMI were consistent with the overall PLATO trial. Patients who received fibrinolytic therapy in the 24 hours before randomization were excluded from PLATO, and there is thus a lack of data on the safety of using ticagrelor in conjunction with fibrinolytic therapy in the first 24 hours after STEMI. The TREAT study addresses this knowledge gap; patients with STEMI who had symptom onset within the previous 24 hours and had received fibrinolytic therapy (of whom 89.4% had also received clopidogrel) were randomized to treatment with ticagrelor or clopidogrel (median time between fibrinolysis and randomization: 11.5 hours). At 30 days, ticagrelor was found to be non-inferior to clopidogrel for the primary safety outcome of Thrombolysis in Myocardial Infarction (TIMI)-defined first major bleeding. Considering together the results of the PLATO and TREAT studies, initiating or switching to treatment with ticagrelor within the first 24 hours after STEMI in patients receiving fibrinolysis is reasonable.
Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in our country. It is very important to have data on the reality of this entity in Argentina as a starting point for the development of prevention policies and treatment improvement.
ObjectiveThe aim of the study was to describe demographic variables, situations associated to stress, established treatments, implementation times, in-hospital complications and medication at discharge of patients with AMI admitted to centers associated to the Argentine Council of Residents in Cardiology (CONAREC).
MethodsBetween December 2009 and July 2010, 1182 consecutive patients admitted to 45 centers across the country with a diagnosis of AMI with or without ST segment elevation were included in the study.
ResultsMean age was 64 ± 12 years; 705 patients presented ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and 477 non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI). In the STEMI group, reperfusion rate was 92% of eligible patients, with primary angioplasty in 80% of cases. In this group, prehospital time delay was 165 minutes and door-to-balloon time was 80 minutes. In the NSTEMI group, coronary angiography was performed in 75% of patients and 46% underwent angioplasty. The main complication was the development of heart failure (22% in the STEMI group and 11% in the NSTEMI group), followed by bleeding and arrhythmias. Mortality was 8.8% in the STEMI group and 5.1% in the NSTEMI group.
ConclusionsPatients with AMI admitted to centers with medical residency present a high rate of reperfusion and treatment at hospital discharge, in agreement with international recommendations. Aspects to be improved are the high prevalence of risk factors and prolonged prehospital time delays, situations which have not changed in the last 15 years.
Third-generation implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) offer tiered therapy and can provide significant advantage in the management of patients with life-threatening arrhythmias. Three different types of ICDs were implanted in 21 patients with ventricular tachycardia (VT) or ventricular fibrillation (VF). Arrhythmia presentation was VT (76%), VF (10%), or both (14%). The mean left ventricular ejection fraction for the group was 32.4 +/- 7%. No surgical mortality occurred. Prior to discharge individual EPS determined the final programmed settings of the ICDs. During a mean follow-up of 13 +/- 1.4 months (range 2-20) the overall patient survival was 85.7%. No sudden arrhythmic or cardiac death occurred. Twenty of 21 patients (95%) received therapy by their device. In 14 patients (67%) antitachycardia pacing (ATP) was programmed "on," 13 of which was self-adaptative autodecremental mode. There were 247 VT episodes, 231 of which were subjected to ATP with 97% success and 3% acceleration or failure. Low energy shocks reverted all other VT episodes. VF episodes were successfully reverted by a single shock (93%), two shocks (6%), or three shocks (1%). We conclude that ATP therapy of VT is successful in the large majority of episodes with rare failures, and that VF episodes are generally terminated by a single ICD shock.
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