Three-dimensional transoesophageal echocardiography (3D TOE) has been rapidly developed in the last 15 years. Currently, 3D TOE is particularly useful as an additional imaging modality for the cardiac echocardiographers in the echo-lab, for cardiac interventionalists as a tool to guide complex catheter-based procedures cardiac, for surgeons to plan surgical strategies, and for cardiac anaesthesiologists and/or cardiologists, to assess intra-operative results. The authors of this document believe that acquiring 3D data set should become a 'standard part' of the TOE examination.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMany studies suggest that the potential impact of bisphenol S (BPS) as an endocrine disruptor is comparable to that of bisphenol A (BPA). However, in vitro-to-in vivo and from animal to human extrapolations require knowledge of the plasma free fraction of the active endocrine compounds. The present study aimed to characterise BPA and BPS binding to plasma proteins both in humans and different animal species.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: This study aimed to describe the heterogeneous extension of mitral annular disjunction (MAD) and assess the hypotesis that different phenotypes of disjunction are not associated with increased surgical challenges.
Background: Mitral regurgitation (MR) is the most common end-stage scenario of degenerative mitral valve disease (DMVD). Few data exist on the three-dimensional extension and geometry of MAD, as well as for its role in valvular dynamic and coaptation.
• Understanding the mechanism of AR informs the surgical approach. • A repair-oriented classification of AR is not well appreciated by cardiologists. • Multiple mechanisms of AR frequently coexist.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEur J Cardiothorac Surg
August 2022
Objectives: To determine the 4D Flow Cardiac Magnetic Resonance (CMR) thresholds that achieve the best agreement with transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) for grading mitral regurgitation (MR).
Methods: We conducted a single-center prospective study of patients evaluated for chronic primary MR in 2016-2020. MR was evaluated blindly by TTE and 4D Flow CMR, respectively by two cardiologists and two radiologists with decades of experience.
Eur J Cardiothorac Surg
September 2022
Int J Cardiovasc Imaging
July 2021
Tricuspid regurgitation is associated with a poor outcome and its quantification remains a challenge. Tricuspid annulus dilatation is one of the parameters that influences clinical decision-making. The aim of this study was to compare the use of 2D transoesophageal echocardiography with surgical assessment for the measurement of the tricuspid annulus.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDue to restriction of the use of BPA, several structural analogues such as BPS and BPF have been proposed for its replacement in many consumer products. This has increased the prevalence of BPS and BPF in urine from tested cohorts. However, these substitutes have similar endocrine disrupting properties to BPA, particularly on reproductive and metabolic functions, which suggests that fetal exposure to these analogues could be of concern for human health.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFStructural mitochondrial abnormalities and genetic aberrations in mitochondrial proteins have been known in Myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), yet there is currently little data regarding MDS's metabolic properties and energy production cells. In the current study, we used state-of-the-art methods to assess OXPHOS in peripheral blood cells obtained from MDS patients and healthy controls. We then assessed the effect of food supplements-Coenzyme Q10 and carnitine on mitochondrial function and hematological response.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Cardiovasc Surg (Torino)
February 2021
A pregnant woman presented with symptomatic bioprosthetic mitral valve stenosis. We discuss the difficulties of decision making in this particular situation where two lives are at stake, the fetus's and the mother's, questioning whether transcatheter mitral valve-in-valve implantation can be an effective and safe option for this challenging condition. ().
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAortic valve (AV) repair is the preferred surgical treatment in young patients with aortic regurgitation (AR) and/or proximal aorta aneurysm, as noted in the recent European Society of Cardiology (ESC) guidelines. However, this surgical option is still underused in clinical practice. This emphasizes the need to build a heart team dedicated to AV repair with expert surgeons and echocardiographers.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The efficacy of prophylaxis to prevent prenatal toxoplasmosis transmission is controversial, without any previous randomized clinical trial. In France, spiramycin is usually prescribed for maternal seroconversions. A more potent pyrimethamine + sulfadiazine regimen is used to treat congenital toxoplasmosis and is offered in some countries as prophylaxis.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInt J Gynecol Pathol
September 2019
A 53-yr-old woman who presented with elevated renal indices was discovered to have a 4.5 cm right renal mass and an incidental 9.7 cm left ovarian mass on imaging studies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPrimary osteosarcoma (OS) of the uterus is distinctly rare. We report a case of primary uterine OS with pulmonary metastasis in a 74-yr-old woman. Histopathologic features of the uterine tumor were in keeping with a pure chondroblastic OS composed of neoplastic cells with osteoblastic/chondroblastic differentiation and neoplastic bone formation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Myopathy in patients being treated with corticosteroids is known primarily among chronically treated patients or in critically ill and mechanically ventilated patients receiving corticosteroids, often in high doses.
Aim: To highlight the entity of acute, early onset corticosteroid-treatment-associated myopathy and its characteristics.
Design And Methods: Reporting our experience with four patients and reviewing all published reports of myopathy developing ≤14 days of initiating corticosteroid-treatment.
Objectives: Surgical mortality and long-term outcomes are important considerations when determining strategies for multiple reoperations on the aortic valve (AV). With the rise of percutaneous valve-in-valve, we sought to evaluate the current outcomes of conventional surgery for AV reoperation, focusing first on the effect of the number of previous AV interventions with a subsequent analysis of the risk factors for adverse outcomes.
Methods: From January 2007 to December 2016, 316 consecutive patients underwent an open redo operation (replacement) on their AV at a single centre.
Real time three dimensional transesophageal echocardiography (3D TEE) is probably the most powerful and convincing imaging method for understanding the complicated multiform morphology and for evaluating geometry, dynamics and function of degenerative and functional mitral valve (MV) regurgitation. Moreover, color Doppler 3D TEE has been valuable to identify the location of the regurgitant orifice and the severity of the mitral regurgitation. 3D TEE has been shown to be of enormous value in helping surgeons to perform MV repair.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFOral health is of particular importance in patients with heart valve diseases because of the risk of infective endocarditis. Recommendations for antibiotic prophylaxis before dental procedures have been restricted, but the modalities of oral evaluation and dental care are not detailed in guidelines. Therefore, a multidisciplinary working group reviewed the literature to propose detailed approaches for the evaluation and management of buccodental status in patients with valvular disease.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: In patients with asymptomatic aortic stenosis (AS), exercise stress echocardiography (ESE) provides additional prognostic information beyond baseline. The coronary flow velocity reserve (CFVR) is impaired in AS, but its link with exertion is unknown in this setting. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that CFVR could predict exercise capacity and abnormal exercise test results in AS.
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