Loss of dystrophin is associated with increased myocardial stiffness in a model of left ventricular hypertrophy.

Transition from compensated to decompensated left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is accompanied by functional and structural changes. Here, the aim was to evaluate dystrophin expression in murine models and human subjects with LVH by transverse aortic constriction (TAC) and aortic stenosis (AS), respectively. We determined whether doxycycline (Doxy) prevented dystrophin expression and myocardial stiffness in mice.

Severe aortic stenosis with preserved ejection fraction and evidence of impairment in structure, myocardial strain and ventricular function: A new contribution to clinical decision making.

Background: Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) is among the parameters that are usually employed to define surgical timing of severe aortic stenosis (AS). Our hypothesis states that even when their LVEF is preserved, patients with severe symptomatic AS have impaired myocardial structure and function, and such impairment is related to the deleterious progression of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) from the compensated to the decompensated stage, as shown by the changes in diastolic function and the increase in left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (LVEDP).

Methods And Results: A total of 26 patients with severe AS and LVEF > 50% referred for aortic valve replacement underwent catheterization, echocardiography and an intraoperative biopsy.

Obstructive membrane at the base of the left atrial appendage, a multi-imaging approach.

The left atrial appendage (LAA) is a small muscular extension that grows from the anterolateral wall of the left atrium, in the proximity of the left pulmonary veins. The presence of a membrane in the LAA is a rare clinical entity whose origin is not known. Its clinical implication in the genesis of atrial arrhythmias and thromboembolic risk remains unknown.

Clinical value of the tissue Doppler s wave to characterize left ventricular hypertrophy as defined by echocardiography.

Unlabelled: Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) may be a physiological finding and may also be associated with different disease entities and hence, with different outcomes. Regional myocardial function can be assessed with color Doppler tissue imaging, specifically by the waveform of the isovolumic contraction (IC) period and the regional systolic wave ("s").

Methods And Results: We studied five groups (G): healthy, sedentary young volunteers (G1, n:10); healthy sedentary adult volunteers (G2, n:8); and subjects with LVH (left ventricular mass index >125 g/m(2)) including: high performance athletes (G3, n:21), subjects with hypertension (G4, n:21), subjects with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) (G5, n:18).

Atrial septal aneurysm and spontaneous echo contrast: an association with higher embolic risk?

We report the transesophageal echocardiogram of a patient who was admitted to the intensive care unit with a diagnosis of acute ischemic stroke, in whom a large atrial septal aneurysm (ASA) was seen bulging toward the right atrium with marked spontaneous echo contrast (SEC) inside but without thrombi, suggesting that ASA and SEC could represent a new association with higher embolic risk.

Left cavities spontaneous contrast opacification.

We report a transesophageal echocardiography study of a patient in a critical care unit under mechanical respiratory assistance in whom left cavities spontaneous contrast opacification was seen, suggesting systemic gas embolism as the probable mechanism.