Day-to-day variability of electrocardiographic diagnosis of left ventricular hypertrophy in hypertensive patients. Influence of electrode placement.

Objective: Although electrocardiography (ECG) is recommended in all subjects with hypertension, no information is available on the influence exerted by random changes in the placement of electrodes on the day-to-day variability of ECG criteria for diagnosis of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH).

Methods: In a multicentre, randomized study, two standard 12-lead ECG were recorded, 24 h apart, from 276 consecutive hypertensive patients (mean age 65 +/- 12 years, 49.6% men).

Prognostic impact of prolonged ventricular repolarization in hypertension.

Background: QT interval prolongation on the surface electrocardiogram (ECG) predicts cardiovascular complications in high-risk subjects, but its prognostic role in uncomplicated hypertension has been understudied.

Methods: For up to 13 years (average, 5.3 years), we followed up 2110 white patients with initially untreated essential hypertension (mean +/- SD age, 49 +/- 12 years; 55% men) without prevalent cardiovascular or renal disease who underwent 12-lead ECG before therapy.

Different impact of the metabolic syndrome on left ventricular structure and function in hypertensive men and women.

Metabolic syndrome (MS) is increasingly recognized as an important cardiovascular risk factor in hypertension, but its influence on left ventricular (LV) mass and function in the 2 genders has not been specifically addressed. Among 618 nondiabetic, untreated hypertensive subjects, echocardiographically detected LV mass was significantly greater in subjects with MS. A significant interaction was observed between sex and the MS (P<0.

Artichoke juice improves endothelial function in hyperlipemia.

Artichoke extracts have been shown to produce various pharmacological effects, such as the inhibition of cholesterol biosynthesis and of LDL oxidation. Endothelial dysfunction represents the first stage of atherosclerotic disease; it is usually evaluated in humans by a noninvasive ultrasound method as brachial flow-mediated vasodilation (FMV) and by the determination of several humoral markers such as vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1), intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), and E-selectin. Aim of the study was to investigate the effects of dietary supplementation with artichoke juice on brachial FMV of hyperlipemics.

Attenuation of inflammation with short-term dietary intervention is associated with a reduction of arterial stiffness in subjects with hypercholesterolaemia.

Background: Increased arterial stiffness has been found in patients with chronic high-grade inflammatory diseases. Whether mitigation of low-grade systemic inflammation, through a low-cholesterol/low-saturated fat diet, may have a role in improving arterial stiffness is still untested.

Design: We investigated whether variations in blood lipids and plasma C-reactive protein induced by low-cholesterol/low-saturated fat diet are associated with variations in large-artery stiffness in hypercholesterolaemia.

Simvastatin increases bone mineral density in hypercholesterolemic postmenopausal women.

Statins are able to reduce cardiovascular morbility and mortality mainly through their hypocholesterolemic effect. Beyond the inhibition of cholesterol synthesis, the identification of "ancillary" mechanisms has motivated studies evaluating the relationship between the use of statins and the modification of bone mineral density (BMD). To date, clinical trials have provided discordant results.

Prognostic value of the metabolic syndrome in essential hypertension.

Objectives: We sought to determine the prognostic significance of the metabolic syndrome in hypertension.

Background: Increased cardiovascular risk in hypertensive patients might be partially attributable to metabolic disturbances.

Methods: We prospectively followed for up to 10.

Prognostic significance of isolated, non-specific left ventricular repolarization abnormalities in hypertension.

Objective: Clinicians are often confronted with the incidental finding of isolated minor, non-specific repolarization changes on the electrocardiogram (ECG) in hypertensive patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the prognostic significance of such changes.

Design: Prospective, observational study.

Increased C-reactive protein concentrations in never-treated hypertension: the role of systolic and pulse pressures.

Objective: To test whether the plasma concentration of C-reactive protein (CRP), a sensitive marker of systemic inflammation, is increased in patients with newly diagnosed, never-treated hypertension and whether blood pressure and its pulsatile component, pulse pressure, are correlated with plasma CRP concentration independently of a consistent number of cardiovascular risk factors.

Design: Cross-sectional study in a hospital outpatient hypertension clinic.

Methods: A total of 135 newly diagnosed, never-treated patients with hypertension and 40 healthy matched non-hypertensive controls underwent office and 24-h blood pressure measurement and blood sampling for determination of plasma CRP and serum lipid concentrations.

Effect of body weight changes on 24-hour blood pressure and left ventricular mass in hypertension: a 4-year follow-up.

Background: Few data are available on the long-term effects of weight loss on 24-h blood pressure (BP) and left ventricular mass in overweight hypertensive patients.

Methods: A total of 181 never-treated overweight hypertensive subjects (body mass index, 25 to 39 kg/m(2), office BP 145/94 +/- 12/7 mm Hg) had 24-h BP monitoring and echocardiography twice, at baseline and after 3.8 +/- 2 years (minimum 1 year).

Plasma C-reactive protein in subjects with hypo/hyperalphalipoproteinemias.

Hypoalphalipoproteinemia (Hypo-A), a lipid disorder characterized by low high-density lipoprotein (HDL)-cholesterol (HDL-C) levels, is frequently associated with an increased risk of suffering future coronary heart disease (CHD). Conversely, hyperalphalipoproteinemia (Hyper-A) is a characterized by high HDL-C concentrations and is possibly associated with longevity and protection against CHD. Whether plasma C-reactive protein (CRP) level, an emerging marker of CHD risk, may be influenced by either extremely low or high HDL-C concentrations is yet to be determined.