Self-measurement and self-titration in hypertension: a pilot telemedicine study.

Background: Because of poor patient compliance and clinical inertia, hypertension control rates remain poor. Home blood-pressure measurements (HBPM) improve compliance of patients and achievement of blood pressure (BP) targets. However, few studies have evaluated self-BP management by patients.

A home blood pressure monitoring study comparing the antihypertensive efficacy of two angiotensin II receptor antagonist fixed combinations.

Background: The objective of this prospective, randomized, open-label, blinded-endpoint study was to compare the antihypertensive efficacy of valsartan 80 mg v irbesartan 150 mg when combined with hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) 12.5 mg.

Methods: Untreated or uncontrolled hypertensive adults (n = 800) were enrolled by primary care physicians.

Electrocardiographic predictors of Brugada type response during Na channel blockade challenge.

Aim: To identify ECG predictors of Brugada type response during Na channel blockade challenge.

Methods: We studied prospectively 103 patients (M = 76, 45 +/- 13 years) in whom ECGs were collected during ajmaline challenge. ECG recordings included the high right precordial leads (-2V(1) and -2V(2)).

Atrial septal pacing to prevent atrial fibrillation in patients with sinus node dysfunction: results of a randomized controlled study.

Background: In order to assess the preventive effects of right atrial septal pacing on atrial fibrillation (AF) in patients with sinus node dysfunction, we conducted a prospective randomized controlled study in patients requiring atrial pacing.

Methods: The inclusion criterion was the presence of a sinus node dysfunction with or without episodes of AF. Pacing sites were randomized to either the right atrial septum or appendage.

Prevalence of drug-induced electrocardiographic pattern of the Brugada syndrome in a healthy population.

To determine the prevalence of drug-induced Brugada's syndrome (BrS) electrocardiograms (ECGs) in a healthy population, a sodium channel blockade challenge was performed in previously identified subjects with BrS-compatible (BrC) ECGs. These subjects were detected in 1,000 normal patients in whom first ECGs were systematically recorded. Because of the intermittent nature of electrocardiographic modifications in BrS, second ECGs were also recorded in a representative sample of the population presenting with first ECGs with normal results.

Radioiodine ablation of the thyroid to prevent recurrence of amiodarone-induced thyrotoxicosis in patients with resistant tachyarrhythmias.

Unlabelled: Amiodarone-induced thyrotoxicosis (AIT) is a common complication of amiodarone therapy. Although permanent withdrawal of amiodarone is recommended due notably to the risk of worsening of tachyarrhythmias, some patients may require the reintroduction of amiodarone several months after normalizing their thyroid function. We, retrospectively, assessed the effects of (131)I therapy to prevent recurrence of AIT in euthyroid patients requiring reintroduction of amiodarone.

Atrial septal versus atrial appendage pacing: feasibility and effects on atrial conduction, interatrial synchronization, and atrioventricular sequence.

Atrial septal (Se-P) and atrial appendage pacing (Ap-P) were compared in a randomized, controlled study to assess the feasibility, the reliability, and the effects of Se-P on atrial conduction, interatrial synchronization, and the AV sequence. The main baseline characteristics of the patients were comparable in both groups. There was no difference in feasibility or reliability between the two techniques.

Coronary-to-bronchial artery communication: report of two patients successfully treated by embolization.

We report two cases of coronary-to-bronchial artery communication responsible for coronary steal. In both cases the anastomosis originated from the proximal circumflex artery and developed because of bronchiectasis. In both cases closure of the anastomosis was achieved successfully by embolization.

Comparative efficacy of the intravenous administration of linsidomine, a direct nitric oxide donor, and isosorbide dinitrate in severe unstable angina. A French multicentre study. French Group of Investigators.

Aims: Although linsidomine shares common properties with nitrovasodilators, it releases nitric oxide directly without catalytic involvement by thiols. We conducted a prospective, randomized, multicentre, parallel group, single-blind study to compare the efficacy of intravenous administration of linsidomine with that of isosorbide dinitrate in unstable angina.

Methods And Results: Between November 1990 and July 1992, 568 patients with suspected unstable angina (class IIIB of the Braunwald classification) received a continuous infusion of either linsidomine (1 mg.

Familial incidence of late ventricular potentials and electrocardiographic abnormalities in arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia.

Familial forms of arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia (ARVD) have been described. Signal-averaged electrocardiograms (SAECGs) and standard electrocardiograms have been used to detect ARVD. The purpose of this prospective study, for a given family member, was to evaluate the risk of having ARVD or only belonging to an affected family.

Long-term (10 years) prognostic value of a normal thallium-201 myocardial exercise scintigraphy in patients with coronary artery disease documented by angiography.

In order to assess the prognostic significance of normal exercise thallium-210 myocardial scintigraphy in patients with documented coronary artery disease, we studied the incidence of cardiac death and non-fatal myocardial infarction in 69 symptomatic patients without prior Q wave myocardial infarction, who demonstrated one or more significant coronary lesions (stenosis > or = 70%) on an angiogram performed within 3 months of scintigraphy (Group 1). These patients were compared to a second group of 136 patients with an abnormal exercise scintigram, defined by the presence of reversible defect(s) and angiographically proven coronary artery disease (Group 2), and to a third group of 102 patients with normal exercise scintigraphy without significant coronary lesions (stenosis < or = 30%) or with normal coronary angiography (Group 3). In contrast to coronary lesions observed in Group 2, patients in Group 1 presented more frequently with single-vessel disease (83% vs 35%, P < 0.

[Linsidomine, direct donor of EDRF/NO: a new treatment for unstable angina].

Linsidomine 10 mg, administered intravenously, has become available for the treatment of unstable angina since the beginning of 1996. It reinforces a range which consists of oral molsidomine, 2 and 4 mg, and the 1 mg intracoronary linsidomine dosage, thereby providing a more complete management of symptomatic coronary patients. Linsidomine is a direct donor of EDRF/NO which has an action on blood vessels (reduction of preload and dilatation of the large epicardial coronary vessels) and on platelets (inhibition of aggregation) without risk of tolerance.

Hemodynamics, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics of linsidomine (SIN-1) infusion during the acute phase of uncomplicated myocardial infarction.

To determine a dose regimen and evaluate the hemodynamic effects of linsidomine administered by continuous intravenous (i.v.) infusion, 10 patients were studied during the acute phase of uncomplicated myocardial infarction (MI).

[EDRF/NO and endothelial functions].

Our appreciation of the vascular endothelium has changed considerably over the last decade. This organ, finally recognized as such, participates actively in vasomotor regulation and haemostasis. It secretes several relaxing and contracting factors which act locally to determine resting vascular tone.

Early exercise testing after acute myocardial infarction in the elderly: clinical evaluation and prognostic significance.

Early exercise testing (EET) after acute myocardial infarction (MI) is a well-established means of detecting patients at high risk for subsequent cardiac events. However, the value of this test is not well documented in elderly patients. We evaluated the clinical and prognostic significance of EET in 188 patients, aged 70 years or more, 14 +/- 3 days after an uncomplicated acute MI.

Comparison of planar imaging and single-photon emission computed tomography for the detection and localization of coronary artery disease.

Although single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) has become widely utilized, the superiority of this technique compared to planar conventional imaging remains controversial. In order to compare these two techniques, we retrospectively analysed the results obtained in 70 patients who performed a thallium-201 exercise scintigraphy with a double acquisition during the same test, and who also underwent coronary and ventricular angiography. Overall, SPECT imaging yielded a higher sensitivity (93% vs 82% for SPECT and planar imaging respectively, p < 0.

Blood conservation techniques for cardiac surgery: a survey of French centres.

A survey resulting from a partnership between CECEC (Centre d'Etudes en Circulation Extra-Corporelle) and Laboratoires Hoechst, France was carried out amongst all French adult cardiac surgery centres. The aim of this study was to investigate the various strategies used to decrease blood loss during open-heart surgery. Due to an exceptionally high response rate, we are able to report the current practice of French cardiac centres which account for 75% of open-heart adult surgery.

Limits of thallium-201 exercise scintigraphy to detect coronary disease in patients with complete and permanent bundle branch block: a review of 134 cases.

We reviewed the records of 68 patients with right bundle branch block (RBBB) and 66 patients with left bundle branch block (LBBB), who had undergone thallium-201 exercise scintigraphy and coronary arteriography, to determine the sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values of thallium-201 imaging for the detection of coronary artery disease in the presence of intraventricular conduction abnormalities. In patients with RBBB the sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values were, respectively, 83%, 89%, 79%, and 92% for the anteroseptal region and 83%, 84%, 83%, and 84% for the inferoposterior region. In patients with LBBB these values were, respectively, 94%, 33%, 36%, and 93% for the anteroseptal region and 77%, 90%, 81%, and 88% for the inferoposterior region.

Effects of oral isradipine on left ventricular function at rest and during exercise in patients with stable chronic angina: a double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study.

We evaluated the effects of a single oral dose of 5 mg of isradipine compared to placebo in a randomized, double-blind, crossover study using gated radionuclide angiography at rest and during exercise in 20 patients with stable chronic angina. Isradipine improved both anginal symptomatology and ST-segment depression during exercise, with a concomitant favorable effect on the isotopic parameters exploring systolic and diastolic left ventricular function. There was a marked increase of the ejection fraction during exercise with isradipine compared to placebo (61 +/- 14% vs.

[Effect of high-dose verapamil on systolic and diastolic cardiac function of non-cardiological patients and review of the literature].

We studied the effects of high doses of oral verapamil (480 mg daily) in a group of 28 patients undergoing intravenous drug therapy for terminal digestive tumor. One additional patient was prematurely withdrawn from the study due to the occurrence of second degree atrioventricular block, which regressed after the interruption of verapamil. Gated radionuclide angiocardiography was performed before and after treatment (mean duration 2 days).

[Determination of transmitral blood flow by pulsed echodoppler. Correlation with aortic blood flow in 30 patients].

The aim of this study was to assess the validity of mitral valve blood flow measured by pulsed Doppler echocardiography (PDE) with the sample volume positioned at the tips of the mitral leaflets. Thirty patients with a mean age of 38.4 years underwent calculation of transmitral blood flow: by Touche's method (A) in which the mitral orifice is assumed to be an ellipse with a constant long axis equal to the diameter of the mitral annulus and a variable short axis equal to the distance between the mitral leaflets measured on the M mode recording.

Evaluation of left ventricular diastolic function at rest and during exercise by gated radionuclide angiocardiography in coronary artery disease patients.

The peak filling rate (PFR) is an index of the diastolic function and has been proposed as an excellent parameter for the evaluation and early detection of left ventricular (LV) dysfunction. This study contributes to the assessment of LV diastolic function at rest and during submaximal exercise in 19 normal subjects and in 42 patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). The PFR was compared to the ejection fraction (EF) and the peak ejection rate (PER)--both indexes of systolic LV function--after acquiring a high-resolution time-activity curve (time/frame between 10 and 30 msec) with gated radionuclide angiocardiography.

Determination of left ventricular inflow by pulsed Doppler echocardiography: influence of mitral orifice area and blood velocity measurements.

Pulsed Doppler echocardiography was performed in 30 patients to assess the influence of mitral orifice area and velocity on the determination of mitral stroke volume and inflow. Aortic forward stroke volume and outflow were measured at the centre of the aortic annulus, and compared with mitral flow measurements calculated by three methods. Both mitral stroke volume and inflow derived from an instantaneous velocity-area method showed an excellent correlation with aortic flow measurements.

[Study of left ventricular filling by gamma-angiography and echocardiography].

In order to establish which indices of early diastolic function obtained by Doppler echocardiography and the time/activity curve of 99mTc radionuclide angiography are the most useful clinically, the two investigations were performed in 41 subjects aged 52 +/- 15 years. The maximum velocity of LV filling and mitral E wave provided the best correlation (r = 0.48); the Doppler A wave did not correlate with its scintigraphic homologue.