The interleukin-6 -174 G>C promoter polymorphism is associated with a higher risk of death after an acute coronary syndrome in male elderly patients.

Background: Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) are key mediators of inflammation and their increased plasma levels are associated with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Polymorphisms in the promoter region of IL-6 (-174 G>C) and TNF-alpha (-308 G>A) demonstrated to affect gene expression were analyzed to test their predictive power for cardiovascular death over one year follow-up in elderly male ACS patients.

Methods: We assessed the IL-6 -174 G>C polymorphism and TNF-alpha -308 G>A polymorphism in 139 consecutive elderly male patients affected by an ACS, such as ST-Elevation (STEMI), No ST-Elevation (NSTEMI) Myocardial Infarction and Unstable Angina.

Acute myocarditis associated with adenoviral infection in a patient with scleroderma.

We describe a 40-year-old man with limited scleroderma who presented with acute heart failure following a flu-like illness. He was known to have incomplete left anterior bundle branch block, initial isolated pulmonary hypertension with enlarged right atrium, and no pulmonary fibrosis. He received therapy for acute heart failure and was transferred to a scleroderma centre for specific treatment of scleroderma cardiomyopathy.

Ibutilide in rapid conversion of atrial flutter in octogenarians.

Introduction: Atrial flutter is a common sustained atrial tachyarrhythmia for which frequency increases with age. Ibutilide is a novel class III antiarrhythmic agent used for the rapid cardioversion of atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter.

Aim: The aim of our study was to assess the use of ibutilide in a selected population of very elderly patients (octogenarians) with recent-onset atrial flutter.