Characteristics of patients with atrial fibrillation prescribed edoxaban in Belgium and The Netherlands: insights from the ETNA-AF-Europe study.

Background: Studies on the use of non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants in unselected patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) show that clinical characteristics and dosing practices differ per region, but lack data on edoxaban.

Methods: With data from Edoxaban Treatment in routiNe clinical prActice for patients with AF in Europe (ETNA-AF-Europe), a large prospective observational study, we compared clinical characteristics (including the dose reduction criteria for edoxaban: creatinine clearance 15-50 mL/min, weight ≤60 kg, and/or use of strong p-glycoprotein inhibitors) of patients from Belgium and the Netherlands (BeNe) with those from other European countries (OEC).

Results: Of all 13,639 patients in ETNA-AF-Europe, 2579 were from BeNe.

The Left Atrial Septal Pouch as a Possible Risk Factor for Stroke.

Background: The left atrial septal pouch (LASP) is formed by the caudal fusion of the area of overlap of the septum primum and the septum secundum, leaving an opening toward the left atrium. The association between LASP and stroke has not been validated by the previous studies.

Methods: The prevalence of the LASP was determined in 223 ischemic stroke patients and 223 control subjects with other cardiac pathologies, in a monocentric retrospective case-control study design.

Aortic stiffness aging is influenced by past profound immunodeficiency in HIV-infected individuals: results from the EVAS-HIV (EValuation of Aortic Stiffness in HIV-infected individuals).

Objective: We compared aortic stiffness between HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected individuals and examined the determinants of vascular aging during HIV infection.

Methods: Aortic stiffness using carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cf-PWV) was evaluated cross-sectionally between HIV-infected individuals and uninfected controls frequency-matched for age and sex, and longitudinally in a subgroup of HIV-infected individuals. Determinants of elevated cf-PWV levels were assessed using logistic regression.

The mitral annular displacement by two-dimensional speckle tracking: a new tool in evaluating the left atrial function.

Background: The methods used to characterize the volume change and the deformation of the left atrium are highly dependent on technical factors and difficult to use in a clinical environment. The aim of this study was to demonstrate that mitral annular displacement by speckle tracking can be an alternative method to studying the longitudinal left atrial function.

Methods: Ninety study participants (54% men), with a mean age of 53(±15) years, underwent a complete echocardiographic examination, comprising two-dimensional, three-dimensional and tissue Doppler imaging (TDI).

Atypical presentation of tuberculous constrictive pericarditis: case report and review of the literature.

An 18-year-old Romanian man with no known history of cardiac disease was admitted to the hospital for the management of right heart failure and bilateral pleural effusions. Further investigations revealed mediastinal lymph nodes and a constrictive cardiac haemodynamic pattern. Lymph node biopsy demonstrated a purulent liquid from which cultures were positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

An unusual right atrial mass: case report and review of the literature.

An 80-year-old woman presented with dyspnoea. Laboratory test results and ECG were normal but echocardiography revealed a right atrial round mobile mass measuring about 20 mm. CT scan and cardiac MRI showed a mass appending on the right atrial free wall above the tricuspid annulus, enhanced by contrast, without any thoracic or abdominal extension, and confirmed the diagnosis of a tumour.

Fulminant hepatic necrosis resulting from heart failure.

A 60-year-old man without any history of cardiac disease was admitted for fulminant hepatic failure (FHF) with coma which revealed severe dilated cardiomyopathy. The patient improved with an adapted medical treatment and was finally discharged from the hospital. Congestive heart failure is a rare cause of FHF, but an important differential diagnosis because it has a specific and potentially efficient treatment.

Efficacy of therapeutic hypothermia after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest due to ventricular fibrillation.

Aim Of The Study: We investigated implementation and efficacy of mild therapeutic hypothermia in the treatment of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest due to ventricular fibrillation.

Materials And Methods: Two periods were compared, an historical one (36 patients) between 2000 and 2002 where therapeutic hypothermia was never used, and a recent period (32 patients) between 2003 and 2005 where therapeutic hypothermia (32-34 degrees C) was implemented prospectively in our unit. Cooling was obtained by simply using wet cloths and ice packs.