The Prevention and Cardiac Rehabilitation Group of the Saudi Heart Association Recommendations Regarding Establishing a Cardiac Rehabilitation Service.

Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is a cornerstone in the secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease (CVD). Comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation has obtained the highest class of recommendation and the level of evidence for the treatment of patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction, after myocardial revascularization, with chronic coronary syndromes, and in patients with heart failure (HF). Comprehensive cardiac rehabilitation should be implemented as soon as possible, be multi-phasic, and adjusted to the individual needs of the patient.

Role of left atrial speckle tracking echocardiography in predicting persistent atrial fibrillation electrical cardioversion success and sinus rhythm maintenance at 6 months.

Purpose: We assessed the value of left atrium speckle tracking imaging (STI) indices, and clinical and other echocardiographic parameters in persistent atrial fibrillation (AF) patients to predict the efficacy of electrical cardioversion (EC) and sinus rhythm (SR) maintenance at 6 months.

Material/methods: Eighty persistent AF patients planned to receive EC, underwent echocardiography including STI. After 24h, patients with successful EC were examined to predict SR maintenance.

Speckle tracking echocardiography derived 2-dimensional myocardial strain predicts left ventricular function and mass regression in aortic stenosis patients undergoing aortic valve replacement.

Regression of left ventricular (LV) mass in severe aortic stenosis (AS) following aortic valve replacement (AVR) reduces the potential risk of sudden death and congestive heart failure associated with LV hypertrophy. We investigated whether abnormalities of resting LV deformation in severe AS can predict the lack of regression of LV mass following AVR. Two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) was performed in a total of 100 subjects including 60 consecutive patients with severe AS having normal LV ejection fraction (EF > 50 %) and 40 controls.

Risk factors of asymptomatic restenosis in patients with first anterior ST elevation myocardial infarction treated by primary percutaneous coronary intervention.

Background: The issue of predicting coronary artery restenosis, especially silent, in patients following primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has been extensively studied, however, risk factors have not been fully defined.

Aim: To asses the frequency of silent restenosis and its predictors in patients with anterior ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) treated with primary PCI and implantation of bare metal stents (BMS).

Methods: We recruited a cohort of 114 patients with first anterior STEMI treated with primary PCI within 12 hours of the onset of symptoms, and with the left anterior descending coronary artery occlusion (TIMI 0) and successful flow restoration (TIMI 3).