A Retrospective Analysis of AngioVac Outcomes at a Tertiary Care Center.

Background: The AngioVac system is a vacuum aspiration device approved for removal of right-sided cardiac thrombi. It has also been used for management of right-sided endocarditis in selected cases. Retrospective case series have reported high success rate and acceptable 30-day mortality, but there is limited data regarding outcomes beyond the immediate postoperative period.

Non-invasive Neuromodulation of Arrhythmias.

Dysfunction of the cardiac autonomic nervous system (CANS) is associated with various cardiac arrhythmias. Subsequently, invasive techniques have successfully targeted the CANS for the treatment of certain arrhythmias, such as sympathetic denervation for ventricular tachycardia storm. Non-invasive strategies capable of modulating the CANS for arrhythmia treatment have begun to gain interest due to their low-risk profile and applicability as an adjuvant therapy.

Hypertension Induced Morphological and Physiological Changes in Cells of the Arterial Wall.

Morphological and physiological changes in the vasculature have been described in the evolution and maintenance of hypertension. Hypertension-induced vascular dysfunction may present itself as a contributing, or consequential factor, to vascular remodeling caused by chronically elevated systemic arterial blood pressure. Changes in all vessel layers, from the endothelium to the perivascular adipose tissue (PVAT), have been described.

Quantifying the hepatotoxic risk of alcohol consumption in patients with rheumatoid arthritis taking methotrexate.

Background: Patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) who take methotrexate (MTX) are advised to limit their alcohol intake due to potential combined hepatotoxicity. However, data are limited to support this. The aim of this study was to quantify the risk of developing abnormal liver blood tests at different levels of alcohol consumption, using routinely collected data from primary care.