[Appropriateness of requests for urgent outpatient cardiological services and impact on waiting lists: the experience of the Azienda Socio-Sanitaria Territoriale of the Province of Lodi].

Background: The Cardiology Complex Structure of the Azienda Socio Sanitaria Territoriale (ASST) of Lodi, Italy, assists patients with clinical conditions ranging from emergency to chronicity. The model of Homogeneous Waiting Groups should guide the appropriateness of prescriptions categorized as U (urgent), B (brief), D (deferrable), and P (programmable). This study aims to describe and analyze the characteristics of prescription and delivery of clinical and instrumental cardiology outpatient services with U and B priority during the November 2023-January 2024 quarter, paying particular attention to the clinical appropriateness of prescribing.

The Additional Value of Three-Dimensional Transesophageal Echocardiography in the Diagnosis of Unusual Complication of Bioprosthetic Mitral Valve.

Primary tissue failure of bioprosthetic mitral valves due to cusp perforations or ruptures is an unusual complication on short-term follow-up. An 88-year-old male with a known history of mitral regurgitation (MR) treated with bioprosthetic valve replacement in 2016 was referred to our center for recurrent heart failure. The two-dimensional (2D) transthoracic echocardiography documented an intraprosthetic jet of regurgitation without identifying a clear morphological mechanism, nor quantifying precisely the mitral insufficiency.

Acute Cardiovascular Adaptation to Strenuous Exercise: An Integrative Ultrasound Study.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the acute effects of participation in an Ironman distance triathlon competition on arterial function by ultrasound, in relation to cardiac function and body water content.

Methods: Twenty-eight male triathletes participating in an Ironman distance competition underwent carotid, femoral, and cardiac ultrasound examinations. Moreover, the presence of extravascular lung water was identified by lung echo B-lines (echogenic coherent wedge-shaped signal with a narrow origin from the hyperechoic pleural line) at rest and within 20 minutes of arrival.

[Pro-arrhythmic effect of cardiac memory in a patient with long QT syndrome].

We describe the case of a patient with a congenital long QT syndrome (LQTS) who showed signs of cardiac memory associated with early afterdepolarizations and ventricular arrhythmias, after a change in the pacing mode from VVI to AAI. Cardiac memory, further altering the potassium ion channel function, may have pro-arrhythmic potential in patients with LQTS.

Assessment of carotid elasticity during exercise: a reproducibility study.

The study aimed to evaluate the reproducibility of carotid elasticity during exercise. Eighteen healthy volunteers (nine males, age 34 ± 3 years, BMI 22 ± 6 kg/m(2)) underwent maximal exercise testing on a graded semi-supine cycle ergometer in two different sessions 3 days apart. Ultrasound B-mode image sequences of the right common carotid were acquired at different steps and analyzed by an automatic system; pressures were estimated by tonometry.

Patterns of left ventricular remodeling in chronic heart failure: prevalence and prognostic implications.

Background And Aim: Many descriptors of left ventricular (LV) remodeling have important prognostic implications in patients with chronic systolic heart failure (HF). We sought to assess the prognostic value of the combination of increased LV mass with a disproportion between wall thickness and internal diameter.

Methods And Patients: Patients (n = 536) with chronic HF, ejection fraction <50% and LV end-diastolic volume index >91 mL/m(2), classified according to LV mass index and relative wall thickness (RWT), were followed up for 33 ± 21 months.

[Common pathogenetic features between calcific aortic stenosis and atherosclerosis: role of receptor for advanced glycation end-products].

Clinical and experimental studies identified several similarities between calcific aortic stenosis and atherosclerosis, suggesting the involvement of similar pathogenic pathways in both conditions.There are several molecules involved in regulating the development, progression and calcification of the valve sclerosis and in growth and complications of atherosclerotic plaque. Among these molecules, the receptor of advanced glycation end-products, a multi-ligand receptor involved in the pathogenesis of several degenerative, inflammatory and immune diseases, could have an important regulatory role in both diseases and therefore worthy of study as a potential target therapeutic for both conditions.