Pseudomonas arthropathy in an older patient.

Background: septic arthritis caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa is uncommon in the immunocompetent older population, despite its occurrence in younger patients with open injuries and in intravenous drug abusers.

Case Report: here we report a case of septic arthritis caused by P. aeruginosa complicated by death in an older patient with recently treated Pseudomonas urinary tract infection.

Prevalence and correlates of anaemia in essential hypertension.

1. Anaemia is an independent predictor of mortality in pro-atherosclerotic conditions with impaired endothelial function, such as diabetes and chronic kidney disease. However, the prevalence of anaemia in hypertension, a condition characterized by endothelial dysfunction, is unclear.

Analysis of short-term reproducibility of arterial vasoreactivity by pulse-wave analysis after pharmacological challenge.

1. Pulse-wave analysis (PWA) is an established method to assess arterial wave reflections and arterial vasoreactivity in humans. A high short-term reproducibility of baseline augmentation index (AIx) has been reported.

Diagnostic and prognostic significance of plasma N-terminal-pro-brain natriuretic peptide in decompensated heart failure with preserved ejection fraction.

Background: Preserved ventricular function is increasingly recognised in CHF. Although, NTpro-BNP is a well-established diagnostic marker in heart failure with impaired EF, its significance in heart failure with preserved EF is unclear. NT pro-BNP is secreted from the ventricular wall and plasma levels correlate to ventricular function.

Domiciliary oxygen therapy improves sub-maximal exercise capacity and quality of life in chronic heart failure.

Introduction: A high prevalence of nocturnal hypoxia is noted in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). Nocturnal hypoxia can be reversed by nasal oxygen or non-invasive assisted ventilation. However, controversy exists over the use of oxygen in CHF.

Evaluation and management of the cardiac amyloidosis.

Cardiac amyloidosis describes clinically significant involvement of the heart by amyloid deposition, which may or may not be associated with involvement of other organs. The purpose of this review is to summarize the current state of evidence for the effective evaluation and management of cardiac amyloidosis. Acquired systemic amyloidosis occurs in more than 10 per million person-years in the U.

Influence of comorbidities and medication use on tilt table test outcome in elderly patients.

Background: The tilt table test (TTT) is a useful diagnostic tool in people with unexplained syncope, dizziness, and falls. However, preexisting comorbidities and medications affecting hemodynamic response might affect TTT outcome (i.e.