[Extensive cardiac thombosis in a patient with disseminated intravascular coagulation].

Disseminated intravascular coagulation is a syndrome characterized by thrombin and fibrin generation which is associated with organ failure and death. Intracardiac thrombus may occur and further deteriorate prognosis. We report the case of a patient with massive intraventricular thrombus revealed by an acute ischemia of the upper left limb in a context of pulmonary adenocarcinoma complicated by a disseminated intravascular coagulation.

Major impact of vitamin D deficiency and supplementation on left ventricular torsional mechanics during dobutamine stress in uncomplicated type 2 diabetes.

Background And Aims: Hypovitaminosis D is associated with the risk of diabetic complications. Its role in diabetic-related cardiac abnormalities remain poorly understood. We aimed therefore to evaluate the effect of vitamin D deficiency and supplementation on early left ventricular (LV) dysfunction in vitamin D deficient patients with uncomplicated T2D.

Additive effects of type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome on left ventricular torsion and linear deformation abnormalities during dobutamine stress echocardiography.

Objective: The interplay between metabolic syndrome (MS) and type 2 diabetes (T2D) on regional myocardial mechanics and the potential additional effects of their combination remain poorly understood. In this context, we evaluated left ventricular (LV) torsion and linear deformation at rest and under dobutamine (DB) stress in patients with T2D, MS or both.

Methods: Thirty-nine T2D patients without MS (T2D), 37 MS patients free from T2D (MS), 44 patients with both T2D and MS (T2D-MS group) and 38 healthy patients (control group) were prospectively recruited.

Left ventricular function and mechanics in backs and forwards elite rugby union players.

Unlabelled: Purpose: The aim of the present study was to assess left ventricular (LV) morphological and regional functional adaptations in backs and forwards elite rugby union (RU) players.

Methods: Thirty-nine elite male RU players and twenty sedentary controls have been examined using resting echocardiography. RU players were divided into two groups, forwards ( = 22) and backs ( = 17).

[Ruptured sinus of Valsalva aneurysm presenting as an idiopathic pericardial effusion].

Aneurysm of the sinus of Valsalva is a rare cardiac condition, which could be either acquired or congenital. The most frequent complication is a rupture into right cavities or more rarely into left cavities or pericardium. Rupture could be either asymptomatic or poorly tolerated with hemodynamic instability, acute heart failure or sudden death.

A Thrombus on a Journey: A Massive Thrombus in Transit With Cerebral, Coronary, and Pulmonary Embolization.

Impending paradoxical embolism is a biatrial thrombus in transit across a patent foramen ovale. It constitutes a rare clinical condition, possibly associated with multiple embolization and high mortality. We report the exceptional case of a 71-year-old-man presenting a giant impending paradoxical thrombus, complicated with pulmonary, cerebral, and coronary embolization.

[Dobutamine speckle tracking imaging for evaluation of microvascular dysfunction in a patient with exertion dyspnea].

Microcirculatory dysfunction despite the absence of angiographically obvious significant coronary artery disease may potentially generate symptomatic myocardial ischemia; comprehensive assessment both noninvasive and invasive could prove to be of critical interest. We report the case of a 54-year old patient referred for an exertion dyspnea that proved to be caused by both micro and microvascular dysfunction. We present key elements for diagnosis, functional evaluation and management and demonstrate the potential role of speckle tracking imaging in that setting.

[Cardiac metastasis of a lung adenocarcinoma mimicking atrial myxoma].

Secondary cardiac tumors constitute a rare and severe pathology usually associated with an advanced-stage of the primary cancer and consequently correlated to dark prognosis. Clinical presentations are variable and potentially misleading. We present the case of a 76-year-old woman in whom initial echocardiographic presentation evocated left atrial myxoma though the final diagnosis was pulmonary adenocarcinoma invasion.

[Cocaine-induced acute myocarditis].

Cocaine is a potent sympathomimetic drug usually associated with cardiotoxicity, including ventricular arrhythmia, systemic hypertension and acute myocardial infarction. It constitutes the most frequent cause of drug-related death reported by medical examiners in the US, and these events are most often related to the cardiovascular manifestations of the drug. However; to the best of our knowledge; cocaine induced acute myocarditis has very rarely been reported.

[Adipose epicardial tissue association with subclinical systolic dysfunction detected by longitudinal strain in diabetic patients with poor glycemic control].

Objective: The aim of this study is to assess the association between epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) and infraclinical myocardial dysfunction detected by strain imaging in diabetic patients (T2DM) with poor glycemic control.

Methods: 22 patients with T2DM and 22 healthy control subjects of similar age and sex were prospectively recruited. Echocardiographic parameters were investigated.

Dobutamine Stress Echocardiography Unmasks Early Left Ventricular Dysfunction in Asymptomatic Patients with Uncomplicated Type 2 Diabetes: A Comprehensive Two-Dimensional Speckle-Tracking Imaging Study.

Background: Discrepancies are present in the literature on resting myocardial mechanics in patients with uncomplicated type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Data are noticeably sparse regarding circumferential function and torsional mechanics. Resting deformation imaging may not be sensitive enough to detect subtle dysfunctions.

Delayed Formation of a Massive Atrial Hematoma After Coronary Intervention Manifesting With an Isolated Cough: Multimodality Imaging and Outcome.

Coronary artery perforation is a relatively rare but potentially life-threatening complication of percutaneous coronary intervention because it could result in cardiac tamponade; exceptionally, distal coronary perforation could cause an acute formation of a mural hematoma, which could also prove lethal without adequate management. We report an exceptional case of a 76-year-old man in whom an important left atrial hematoma formed progressively over weeks after a planned percutaneous coronary intervention and manifested with an isolated cough. Diagnosis was made using multimodality imaging.

[Impressive extension into the right heart cavities and the inferior vena cava of renal carcinoma].

Renal carcinoma is an aggressive cancer with a high metastatic tendency. It may invade the renal vein, inferior vena cava and potentially extend in some cases to the right heart cavities. We report a case of a 71-year-old male presenting with an impressive polylobular tissular mass inside the right atrium and the right ventricle revealing an aggressive renal carcinoma extending through the inferior vena cava.

[Stress dobutamine echocardiography or resting strain rate imaging to unveil an early symptomatic diabetic cardiomyopathy?].

Diabetes mellitus has been associated with changes in the structure and function of the myocardium manifesting in the early stages of the disease as subtle systolic and diastolic dysfunction; myocardial strain imaging has recently been favored over dobutamine stress echocardiography for early detection of diabetic cardiomyopathy. We report a case of an elderly diabetic patient presenting with pulmonary edema in whom at rest echocardiographic parameters including strain rate were all within normal range, while dobutamine stress echocardiography induced a deep systolic deterioration unmasking an early-stage diabetic cardiomyopathy.

[Lead-related infective endocarditis with massive vegetation causing severe functionnal tricuspid stenosis].

Lead-related infective endocarditis with negative hemocultures constitutes a severe condition potentially associated with a pejorative prognosis. It may induce a functional tricuspid stenosis caused by an important obstructive vegetation. We report the case of an 82 year-old woman in whom the lead-related endocarditis produced massive vegetation causing a severe functional tricuspid stenosis.

[Massive intraatrial mass?].

Posterior mediastinal hematoma in a rare and potentially lethal disease and is frequently consecutive to a traumatism. We report the original case of a 88-year-old male admitted to our department for lipothymia and syncope related to a severe compression of the left atrium by an important mediastinal hematoma mimicking in transthoracic echocardiography an obstructive intraatrial mass.

[Prethrombus acute constitution during dobutamine stress echocardiography].

Although generally regarded as a safe stress modality, dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) has been associated with several well described complications. However, to our knowledge, acute constitution of thrombi during the stress test has never been described. In this report, we present the case of a 64 year-old man with a history of ischemic heart disease who underwent a preoperative DSE; during the test, we witnessed a striking acute constitution of an intense prethrombotic state with almost a formation of a highly mobile massive thrombus adjacent to the infero-apical segment spontaneously resolving few minutes after the end of the test.

[Atypical form of cor triatrium in a 59-year-old man].

Cor triatrium is a rare congenital heart disease typically diagnosed amongst very young patients. Delayed diagnosis in the elderly is much more unusual. We report the case of a 59-year-old male with unremarkable medical history in whom we have discovered, on an echocardiography performed for an exploration of transient ischemic accident with atrial fibrillation, a particular form of an isolated cor triatrium dextrum investigated with multimodality imaging.

[Biphasic reaction to dobutamine stress echocardiography as a predictor of coronary artery spasm: Apropos of 3 cases].

Dobutamine-related coronary spasm is a possible complication of dobutamine stress echocardiography potentially explaining a part of some erroneously labeled "false positive tests". Presently, there are no established echographic predictors of coronary spasm. We report 3 clinical cases in which dobutamine-induced spasm was strongly suspected on the basis of a biphasic reaction including an initial deterioration rapidly followed by a spontaneous recovery in well-defined echocardiographic territory.

[Dobutamine-related coronary spasm among patients with false positive dobutamine stress echocardiography: Prevalence and predictors].

Background And Objective: Dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) is being consistently used as an exercise-independent stress modality aimed at the detection of coronary artery disease (CAD) and the evaluation of myocardial ischemia. It may though occasionally induce coronary vasospasm. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the prevalence and predictors of dobutamine-related coronary spasm in patients without known CAD and false positive DSE (positive DSE but no significant coronary lesions on angiogram).

[High pressure trap].

Pheochromocytoma is a rare tumor potentially life-threatening and associated with non specific and diverse symptomatology. Cardiac symptoms may mislead diagnosis; they could manifest as myocardial sideration concomitant to a hypertensive peak or supraventricular arythmia. We report a case of pheochromocytoma associated with hypokaliemia revealed by a myocardial ischemia with acute cardiac failure and severe left ventricular depression and complete reversal after surgery.

[Partial anomalous pulmonary venous return in a 64-year-old woman].

Partial anomalous pulmonary venous return (PAPVR) represents 3 % of the congenital cardiopathies. Diagnosis in adults is challenging as clinical symptomatology is non-specific and echocardiographic signs are discrete and misleading potentially confusing with idiopathic pulmonary hypertension. We report the case of a 64-year-old woman in whom we diagnosed PAPVR associated with sinus venosus atrial septal defect.