Impact of abciximab on prognosis in diabetic patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention.

Background: The impact of diabetes in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) treated with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is unclear. The benefit of abciximab in this subset of patients remains controversial.

Methods And Results: Three hundred and twenty-seven consecutive and unselected patients with acute AMI treated with primary PCI were included in our single-center retrospective registry, 103 diabetic (31%) and 224 nondiabetic (69%).

Thrombolysis in acute nonmassive pulmonary embolism: potential role of multidetector-row spiral computed tomography in decision making.

In the setting of suspected or confirmed nonmassive pulmonary embolism (PE), transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) is an important tool to identify patients who could benefit from thrombolytic therapy, because of right ventricle (RV) dysfunction, and to monitor the dynamic response of the RV to reperfusion therapy. Unfortunately, certain patient characteristics such as obesity, lung disease, postsurgical state, or respiratory distress often lead to inadequate ultrasonographic imaging quality. In such patients, multidetector-row spiral computed tomography (MSCT) may become even more important.

Implantable cardioverter-defibrillator therapy for prevention of sudden death in patients with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy/dysplasia.

Background: Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy/dysplasia (ARVC/D) is a condition associated with the risk of sudden death (SD).

Methods And Results: We conducted a multicenter study of the impact of the implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) for prevention of SD in 132 patients (93 males and 39 females, age 40+/-15 years) with ARVC/D. Implant indications were a history of cardiac arrest in 13 patients (10%), sustained ventricular tachycardia in 82 (62%), syncope in 21 (16%), and other in 16 (12%).