Purpose To compare the visual fields (VFs) and optic nerve head changes between obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) in normotensive patients and an age-matched non-OSA population. Design Case-control study. Participants A total of 41 ethnic Chinese patients diagnosed with moderate to severe OSA referred from the Sleep Laboratory, ENT Department, Tuen Mun Hospital. A total of 35 age-matched non-OSA subjects recruited from the Ophthalmology Department, North District Hospital. Methods Comprehensive ophthalmological and systemic history, complete ophthalmological examination, including central-30 computerized perimetry for all studied patients. Main outcome measures Polysomnographic data, VF indices, optic disc changes Results In the OSA arm, VF indices were significantly subnormal and the incidence of suspicious glaucomatous disc changes was four times higher than that of the control arm. None of the studied patients suffered from any form of anterior segment complications. Conclusions Moderate to severe OSA is associated with a higher incidence of VF defect and glaucomatous optic nerve changes.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is one of the risk factors for dementia. Female sex is an inconsistent risk factor for dementia after adjusting for age in the general population, and there lacks research on its impact in developing dementia in patients with AF. This paper aims to investigate whether female sex is a risk factor for dementia in AF patients. Data of patients with newly diagnosed AF between 2001–2013 were retrieved from Taiwan’s National Health Insurance Research Database. Exclusion criteria were: patients with incomplete demographic data, age < 20 years, rheumatic heart disease, hyperthyroidism, past valvular heart surgery, and a history of dementia. Propensity score matching (PSM) between sexes was performed, including comorbidities, medications and index date stratified by age. The primary outcome was a new diagnosis of dementia at follow-up. A total of 117,517 men and 156,705 women were eligible for analysis. After 1:1 PSM, both 100,065 men and women (aged 72.5 ± 12.5 years) were included for analysis. Dementia risk varied with age in women compared with men. The difference was negligible for ≤55 years (sub distribution HR (SHR) = 0.89, 95% CI 0.73–1.07), but increased between 56–65 years (SHR = 1.13, 95% CI 1.02–1.25), 66–75 years (SHR = 1.14, 95% CI 1.09–1.20), 75–85 years (SHR = 1.11, 95% CI 1.07–1.15) and >85 years (SHR 1.10, 95% CI 1.04–1.16) for females. This study establishes that female sex increases the risk of developing dementia compared to male sex in AF patients aged >56 years. However, the impact of female sex on dementia in AF patients differs between dementia types.

Background: Acute fulminant myocarditis (AFM) is a serious disease that progresses rapidly, and leads to failing respiratory and circulatory systems. When medications fail to reverse the patient’s clinical course, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) is considered the most effective, supportive and adjunct strategy. In this paper we analyzed our experience in managing AFM with ECMO support. Methods: During October 2003 and February 2017, a total of 35 patients (≥18 years) were enrolled in the study. Twenty patients survived, and another 15 patients expired. General demographics, the hemodynamic condition, timing of ECMO intervention, and laboratory data were compared for the survival and non-survival groups. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were performed to identify the associations with in-hospital mortality following ECMO use in this situation. Results: The survival rate was 57.1% during the in-hospital period. The average age, gender, severity of the hemodynamic condition, and cardiac rhythm were similar between the survival and non-survival groups. Higher serum lactic acid (initial and 24 h later), higher peak cardiac biomarkers, higher incidence of acute kidney injury and the need for hemodialysis were noted in the non-survival group. Higher 24-h lactic acid levels and higher peak troponin-I levels were associated with in-hospital mortality. Conclusions: When ECMO was used for AFM, related cardiogenic shock and decompensated heart failure, higher peak serum troponin-I levels and 24-h serum lactic acid levels following ECMO use were independently associated with in-hospital mortality.

Obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS) is an important risk factor for atrial fibrillation (AF). GJA1 gene encoding connexin43, a major protein in cardiac gap junctions, plays a crucial role in the synchronized contraction of the heart and in cardiac arrhythmia. However, little is known regarding the role of GJA1 expression in the incidence of AF in patients with OSAS. All prospectively enrolled OSAS patients underwent polysomnography, electrocardiography, a 24-hour Holter test, and echocardiography. Moderate-to-severe OSAS was defined as an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) ≥ 15. Exosomes were purified from the plasma of all OSAS patients and incubated in HL-1 cells to investigate the effect of exosomes from patients with and without AF on GJA1 expression. A total of 129 patients were recruited for this study; 26 were excluded due to an AHI < 15. Of the 103 enrolled patients, 21 had AF, and 82 did not. Multivariate analysis showed diabetes mellitus, lower sleep efficiency, lower left ventricular ejection fraction, and larger left atrial (LA) size were independent predictors of AF occurrence in OSAS patients. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for LA with a size ≥ 38.5 mm for predicting AF occurrence in OSAS patients was 0.795 (95% confidence interval [0.666, 0.925]); p < 0.001). GJA1 expression in HL-1 cells incubated with exosomes from OSAS patients with AF was lower than that with exosomes from patients without AF after controlling for age and sex and was negatively correlated with the AHI and oxygen desaturation index (ODI), especially during the non-rapid eye movement period (NREM) of OSAS patients with AF (all p < 0.05). LA size was an independent predictor of AF occurrence in OSAS patients. The AHI and ODI in the NREM period of OSAS patients with AF were negatively correlated with GJA1 expression in HL-1 cells, which offers a hint that GJA1 may play a crucial role in the development of AF in patients with OSAS.