Left atrial appendage closure using AMPLATZER™ devices: A large, multicenter, Italian registry.

Background: Left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) has been proven to be effective for stroke prophylaxis in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). We aim to assess the safety and efficacy of LAAO by AMPLATZER™ devices in a large, multicenter, single-nation cohort of NVAF patients at high-risk of stroke and bleeding.

Methods: From December 2008 to April 2015 613 NVAF patients (75.

Clinical experience with a novel, irrigated, flexible tip ablation catheter in atrial fibrillation ablation.

Aim: This paper aimed at assessing clinical efficacy and safety of a new fully irrigated and flexible tip catheter (Therapy™ Cool Flex™, St Jude Medical, St. Paul, MN, USA) in ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF).

Methods: The study enrolled 117 consecutive patients with symptomatic AF who underwent for the first time a circumferential pulmonary vein isolation with a new irrigated and flexible tip catheter.

Successful treatment of end-stage hypertrophic cardiomyopathy with biventricular cardiac pacing.

The beneficial use of biventricular pacing is reported in a patient with end-stage hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, intraventricular conduction delay and echocardiographic evidence of intraventricular dyssyncrony. Marked improvement in clinical status, left ventricular ejection fraction and peak VO2 were observed. As far as we know, this is the first report of a beneficial effect of a biventricular device in this subset of patients, and may be worth further investigation.

[Neural regulation of heart rate. Spectrum analysis of the RR interval in healthy subjects].

Dynamic 24-hour recordings were obtained in 10 healthy non hospitalized subjects. Spectral analysis of RR interval variabilities provided quantitative markers of sympatho-vagal balance throughout the day and night. The low frequency (0.