Previous studies have shown that the cardioprotective effect of ischemic preconditioning (IPC) can be mimicked pharmacologically with clinically relevant agents, including nitric oxide (NO) donors. However, whether pharmacological preconditioning shares the same molecular mechanism with IPC is not fully elucidated. The present study aimed to determine the activation of mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) (ERK1/2, p38 MAPK and p46/p54 JNKs) during ischemia and at reperfusion in nitroglycerin-induced preconditioning as compared to IPC and to correlate this with the conferred cardioprotection in anesthetized rabbits.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) pacing has been proposed as an additional treatment to medical therapy to improve heart failure patients with left ventricular asynchrony. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of CRT treatment on proinflammatory cytokines in patients with heart failure.
Methods: Twenty patients, with a mean age 64 +/- 2 years, with severe chronic heart failure NYHA class II-IV (mean ejection fraction 25 +/- 2%), were included in the study.
Background: Endothelial dysfunction and oxidative stress are believed to be central mechanisms in atherogenesis. We aimed to determine the effects of tirofiban on oxidative stress and neutrophil-endothelium interaction markers in patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS).
Materials And Methods: We measured malondialdehyde (MDA), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and soluble endothelial intercellular and vascular adhesion molecules (sICAM-1 and sVCAM-1) on admission, at 48 and 72 h and on 5th day of hospitalization in 34 patients (age 66.
We report coronary angioplasty of the same coronary artery in identical twin sisters. The patients had similar risk factors but differed in their coronary anatomy. The angioplasties were carried out on the same day and by the same cardiologist.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: We aimed to investigate the role of long axis contraction in patients with asymptomatic chronic aorta regurgitation (AR).
Methods: In 84 consecutive patients (48 men, mean age 55.5 +/- 13.
Background: There is substantial evidence that cerebral ischaemia triggers an inflammatory response. We examined the short-term prognostic value on mortality of C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and serum amyloid A (SAA) in patients with ischaemic stroke.
Methods: We recruited 203 consecutive patients, under the age of 66 years (mean age=54.
The familial origin of atrial septal defects has been previously reported. This is the first study describing 2 families with atrial septal aneurysm of familial origin. The present study represents both clinically manifested and silent atrial septal aneurysms.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Postconditioning with multiple very short coronary occlusions immediately after prolonged ischemia is a new endogenous mechanism for protection of the ischemic heart. We tested whether postconditioning is effective in limiting infarct size in hypercholesterolemic rabbits.
Methods: Male rabbits were fed a cholesterol-enriched diet for 6 weeks.
Aim: We examined whether there is a differential effect of endothelin-A antagonism on coronary artery compliance in type 2 diabetes mellitus compared to non-diabetic patients.
Patient And Methods: We examined 32 patients, 11 type 2 diabetes mellitus and 21 non-diabetic patients, with atherosclerotic epicardial arteries free of significant luminal stenoses. Intracoronary BQ-123 (6 micromol), an endothelin-A receptor antagonist, was infused over 20 min.
Background: It has been shown that acute intake of red wine improves endothelial-dependent vasodilatation. It is not clear, however, which constituents of red wine are responsible for this effect. We examined whether acute intake of a red grape polyphenol extract has a positive effect on brachial artery flow-mediated dilatation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFLevosimendan is a novel calcium-sensitising agent that has been shown to have beneficial inotropic, metabolic and vasodilatory effects in the treatment of acute and advanced chronic heart failure. Levosimendan binds to troponin-C in cardiomyocytes and, thereby, improves cardiac contractility without disturbing the metabolic status of the heart and increasing myocardial oxygen demand or provoking fatal cardiac arrhythmias. Levosimendan also opens ATP-sensitive potassium channels, causing peripheral arterial and venous dilatation, and increasing coronary flow reserve.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe report the case of a patient who was transferred to our hospital with acute thrombosis of a prosthetic mitral valve. Her admission INR was subtherapeutic. The transoesophageal echocardiographic images are presented.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAims: Stimulation of atrial 5-HT4 receptors is associated with arrhythmias. Their blockade prolongs atrial effective refractory period (ERP), following short runs of atrial fibrillation (AF). The role of 5-HT4 receptors during longer periods of AF is unknown.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe thalassemias are common monogenic disorders of hemoglobin synthesis. beta-thalassemias are the most important among the thalassemia syndromes and have become a worldwide clinical problem due to an increasing immigrant population. In beta-thalassemia major, regular blood transfusions are necessary early in life.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAnomalous origin of the left coronary from the pulmonary artery (ALCAPA) is a rare congenital malformation, which may result in myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure, and sudden death if left untreated. Despite frequently advanced pathologic changes, there seems to be significant potential for the recovery of myocardial function in individuals with left ventricular dysfunction after the establishment of physiologic coronary circulation, particularly in the pediatric population. Reports of ALCAPA repair in adulthood are scarce and little information exists regarding the response of the left ventricle to revascularization in this age group.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjectives: To apply magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for the assessment of myocardial iron deposition in patients with beta-thalassemia and compare the results with cardiac biopsy data.
Background: Myocardial iron accumulation is the main cause for cardiac complications in beta-thalassemia.
Methods: Twenty-five consecutive thalassemic patients were studied using a 0.
Background: Depression has been reported to be an independent risk factor for coronary heart disease (CHD). We investigated the association of depressive symptoms with lipids and coagulation factors in young individuals free of CHD.
Methods: We recruited 1073 young healthy individuals candidates for military academies (mean age=18.
In this randomized, placebo-controlled study, it was found that a 24-hour levosimendan infusion improves echocardiographic markers of abnormal left ventricular diastolic function (transmitral flow patterns and mitral annulus velocities, as assessed by transthoracic pulse-wave Doppler and tissue Doppler imaging, respectively) and reduces substances of excessive neurohormonal activation (plasma B-type natriuretic peptide and interleukin-6) in patients with advanced heart failure. Moreover, levosimendan-treated patients had fewer events and longer progression-free survival during a 5-month follow-up compared with those who received placebo. Thus, levosimendan seems to be effective in improving left ventricular diastolic function and reducing neurohormonal activation in patients with severe heart failure.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDepression is four to five times as common in chronic heart failure (CHF) patients as in the general population, may confer a higher risk of developing CHF in susceptible populations, and is significantly related to higher hospital readmission rates and increased mortality in established CHF. This effect may be mediated via the pathophysiological mechanisms that are shared between CHF and depression, including increased hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal function, sympathoadrenal hyperactivity, diminished heart-rate variability and excessive pro-inflammatory cytokine activation. Each of these pathways of linkage represents a potential therapeutic target to improve outcome in CHF.
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