Publications by authors named "Antonio Castello"
A 55-years-old woman, with a history of hypertension and ischemic stroke with residual left hemiparesis, was admitted to our hospital because of dyspnoea with clinical evidence of acute pulmonary edema. She was found to have a sinus tachycardia with ST-elevation in leads D1, aVL and V1-V4 in the electrocardiogram, and akinesis of the left ventricular apex with overall left ventricular systolic function being severely impaired and an ejection fraction of 28% on echocardiography. Orotracheal intubation was performed and mechanical ventilation was immediately started.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Exercise causes enhanced sympathetic discharge and results in physiologic tachycardia. However, in some patients with a diseased conduction system resulting from acute ischemia, exercise can precipitate heart block.
Methods And Results: In this report we describe a 51 years old male patient with transient advanced degree atrioventricular (AV) block developed during recovery from exercise stress testing, resolved after the administration of atropine.
Effect of physical training on exercise capacity, gas exchange and N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide levels in patients with chronic heart failure.
Eur J Cardiovasc Prev Rehabil
October 2006
Article Synopsis
- The study found that a 3-month supervised exercise program significantly improved exercise capacity and quality of life in patients with chronic heart failure.
- The training led to notable increases in exercise duration, peak oxygen consumption (VO2), and anaerobic threshold, while also decreasing NT pro-BNP levels, which indicate better heart function.
- Results suggest that regular physical training can enhance functional ability and potentially improve clinical outcomes for heart failure patients.
Background: Cystatin C is the most abundant protease inhibitor in the plasma. Low plasma levels have been found in patients with aortic aneurysms and they seem correlated with the extension of the aortic lesions in early aneurysms detected by ultrasonography.
Methods: In this study, plasma levels of cystatin C have been investigated in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI), unstable angina and controls.
Background: Non-invasive positive pressure ventilation (NIPPV) is an effective treatment for acute respiratory failure in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. We assessed the efficacy and safety of this therapy in acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema (ACPE).
Methods: In addition to routine therapy consisting of oxygen, nitrates and diuretics, 60 patients (39 male, 21 female, mean age 72.