Cryptococcus magnus Periprosthetic Shoulder Infection: A Case Report.

Case: We present a 68-year-old diabetic man with a periprosthetic shoulder infection (PSI) by Cryptococcus magnus. The fungus was identified 4 weeks after a revision surgery for a chronic bacterial PSI. Treatment was successful with a 2-week course of intravenous liposomal amphotericin B (5 mg/kg) followed by 6 weeks of fluconazole (200 mg/d).

Impact of pre-hospital emergency in the management and prognosis of acute myocardial infarction.

Introduction: In recent decades pre-hospital emergency plans have been developed in Portugal, in order to improve the quality and efficiency of medical care in acute situations. However, the real impact of these measures in the treatment of acute coronary patients has not been thoroughly studied.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of pre-hospital emergency care (PHE) in the management and prognosis of patients admitted to hospital with acute myocardial infarction (AMI).

Acute coronary syndrome and predictors of quality of life.

Introduction: Coronary disease in its various forms of presentation is associated with a reduction in the patients' own perception of their quality of life (QoL). QoL is an important measure of effectiveness of treatment; however, the predictors of QoL after admission for acute coronary syndrome (ACS) are not completely clear.

Aim: To identify the clinical, demographic and psychosocial characteristics of patients admitted for ACS that were predictive of QoL in clinical follow-up.

Left ventricular dysfunction after acute myocardial infarction--the impact of cardiovascular risk factors.

Introduction: Left ventricular (LV) systolic function is an important prognostic factor in coronary heart disease. Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) should be assessed in all patients after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Although reperfusion therapy has been found effective in the reduction of complications of AMI, LVEF impairment is a common consequence of an acute coronary event.

Impact of cardiac rehabilitation on quality of life and depression after acute coronary syndrome.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of cardiac rehabilitation programs (CRP) on quality of life (QL) and depression at one-year follow-up after acute coronary syndrome (ACS).

Methods: Two hundred and three patients, without previous cardiological follow-up and referred to the outpatient clinic after hospitalization for ACS between 9/1/2001 and 12/31/2002, were randomly allocated to a 12-week, 3-times-a-week CRP or standard cardiology follow-up only, after giving their informed consent. Baseline population characteristics were recorded and, in patients with more than 4 years' education, QL and depression were evaluated during hospitalization and at one-year follow-up by self-reported responses to the SF-36 QL survey and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) respectively.

Acute coronary syndrome and depression.

Introduction: Clinical depression is associated with poor compliance in risk reduction recommendations and has been suggested as an independent risk factor for increased postmyocardial infarction morbidity and mortality.

Aim: To determine the prevalence of depressive symptoms, their main determinants and their influence on clinical evolution in acute coronary syndromes (ACS) patients.

Methods: We studied depressive symptoms, sociodemographic variables, cardiovascular status and therapeutic procedures in 240 consecutive patients admitted for ACS.

Impact of a structured intensive follow-up program on the control of hypertension in coronary patients--a randomized trial.

Introduction: Hypertension is an important risk factor for cardiovascular events. Although several anti-hypertensive agents have shown to be effective in the treatment of hypertension, adequate blood pressure control is not frequent in most populations. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of a structured intensive follow-up program (SIFUP) on the control of blood pressure in coronary patients.

[Myocardial revascularization surgery, depressive symptoms and labeling effect].

Introduction: The individual awareness of one's own disease, the so called labeling effect, may result in a reduction of one's sense of perceived health. In patients submitted to coronary artery bypass surgery it has been reported that the diagnosis of depression is associated with a higher rate of hospitalization and it's an independent risk factor for cardiac events. The aim of this study was to evaluate the modification of depressive symptoms induced by the information of medical indication for myocardial revascularization surgery.