Background: Increasing evidence suggests that prostate-specific antigen kallikrein (PSA) relates to the cardiovascular system. Recently, an association between PSA levels and aortic stiffness has been also reported in untreated essential hypertensive males. Elevated pulse pressure, a surrogate measure for increased proximal aortic stiffness, predisposes to myocardial infarction and atrial fibrillation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRandomized clinical studies have demonstrated that tissue plasminogen activator thrombolytic therapy improves functional outcomes. Recently the time window for tissue plasminogen activator thrombolytic therapy has been extended from 3 to 4.5 h after ischemic stroke onset, which will allow more ischemic stroke patients to benefit from this treatment.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChanging axis deviation has been reported also during atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter. Changing axis deviation has been also reported during acute myocardial infarction associated with atrial fibrillation too or at the end of atrial fibrillation during acute myocardial infarction. Left bundle branch block is usually associated with normal or left axis deviation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSubclinical hyperthyroidism is an increasingly recognized entity that is defined as a normal serum free thyroxine and free triiodothyronine levels with a thyroid-stimulating hormone level suppressed below the normal range and usually undetectable. It has been reported that subclinical hyperthyroidism is not associated with coronary heart disease or mortality from cardiovascular causes but it is sufficient to induce arrhythmias including atrial fibrillation and atrial flutter. Nowadays, there is growing interest regarding endogenous sublinical hyperthyroidism and the cardiovascular system.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFElectrocardiographic changes mimicking an acute coronary event with T-wave inversion have been reported in the resting electrocardiogram in patients without ischemic heart disease but with acute ischemic stroke, or subarachnoid hemorrhage, or intracerebral hemorrhage, or a severe head injury. We present a case of T-wave inversion in a 73-year-old Italian woman admitted to the Emergency Department following a severe head injury. Pericarditis, pericardial effusion, and acute coronary event were excluded.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChanging axis deviation has been reported also during atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter. Changing axis deviation has been also reported during acute myocardial infarction associated with atrial fibrillation too or at the end of atrial fibrillation during acute myocardial infarction. We present a case of revelation of changing axis deviation at the end of atrial fibrillation without acute myocardial infarction in a 74-year-old Italian man.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIon channels are essential to a wide range of physiological functions including neuronal signaling, muscle contraction, cardiac pacemaking, hormone secretion and cell proliferation. Linking ion-channel gene mutations to inherited disorders has been described. Ankyrins are intracellular proteins required for the biogenesis and maintenance of membrane domains in both excitable and non-excitable cells.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlterations of main pulmonary artery have been described in literature. Main pulmonary artery aneurysm is very rare with few available published data. We present a case of echocardiographic finding of a main pulmonary artery aneurysm in a 78-year-old Italian woman.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRecently, attention has focused on prostate-specific antigen kallikrein and the cardiovascular system. The finding of diminished PSA during acute myocardial infarction and the correlation of variation of PSA with coronary lesions and occurrence of major adverse cardiac events have opened a possible new intriguing scenario. As with many stories in biology, the tale of PSA can be more complex than was first appreciated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSubclinical hyperthyroidism is an increasingly recognized entity that is defined as a normal serum free thyroxine and free triiodothyronine levels with a thyroid-stimulating hormone level suppressed below the normal range and usually undetectable. Exogenous sublinical hyperthyroidism is a thyroid metabolic state caused by L-thyroxine administration. Endogenous subclinical hyperthyroidism is a thyroid metabolic state in patients with autonomously functioning thyroid nodule or multinodular goiter, various forms of thyroiditis, in areas with endemic goiter and particularly in elderly subjects.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChanging axis deviation has been reported also during atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter. Changing axis deviation has been also reported during acute myocardial infarction associated with atrial fibrillation too or at the end of atrial fibrillation during acute myocardial infarction. Left bundle branch block is usually associated with normal or left axis deviation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFChanging axis deviation has been reported also during atrial fibrillation or atrial flutter. Changing axis deviation has been also reported during acute myocardial infarction associated with atrial fibrillation too or at the end of atrial fibrillation during acute myocardial infarction. Left bundle branch block is usually associated with normal or left axis deviation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFrom time to time, it may be necessary to interrupt oral anticoagulant therapy in preparation for surgical procedures. In high-risk patients or for longer periods, unfractionated or low-molecular-weight heparin bridging treatment has been reported safe. This case focuses attention on treatment failure of low molecular weight heparin bridging therapy in a patient with atrial fibrillation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFWe greatly appreciated the letter to the Editor by Rana Olgunturk and Serdar Kula. We can say that his interpretation coincides with our interpretation and with the knowledge about patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) and secundum atrial septal defects. Although functional closure of PDA usually occurs in the first few hours of life in healthy infants born at term (about 15 h of life in healthy infants born at term), true anatomic closure, in which the ductus loses the ability to reopen, may take several weeks.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPrevious studies have suggested that subclinical thyroid dysfunction is associated with detrimental effects on the cardiovascular system. Subclinical hyperthyroidism is an increasingly recognized entity that is defined as a normal serum free thyroxine and free triiodothyronine levels with a TSH level suppressed below the normal range and usually undetectable. It has been reported that subclinical hyperthyroidism is not associated with coronary heart disease or mortality from cardiovascular causes but it is sufficient to induce arrhythmias including atrial fibrillation and atrial flutter.
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