Interatrial conduction times in paroxysmal atrial fibrillation patients with normal atrial volume and their correlation with areas of local prolonged bipolar electrograms.

Background: Recent evidence has shown that the presence of abnormal substrate can be demonstrated also among patients with "lone" AF.

Objectives: Interatrial conduction slowing is likely to characterize patients with paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (AF) and it could be correlated to the left atrium area of prolonged local bipolar endocardial electrograms.

Methods: P-wave duration (PWD), amplified PWD and endocavitary interatrial conduction time (IACT), were analyzed in 60 patients; 30 undergoing de novo ablation for paroxysmal AF with normal atrial volumes and without any other cardiac disease and 30 of similar age undergoing electrophysiological study for atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia or atrioventricular re- entrant tachycardia.

Multiple 3D inversion recovery imaging for volume T1 mapping of the heart.

In this article, a three-dimensional inversion recovery sequence was optimized with the aim of generating in vivo volume T(1) maps of the heart using a 1.5-T MR system. Acquisitions were performed before and after gadolinium diethylenetriamine penta-acetic acid (Gd-DTPA) administration in one patient with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and in two healthy volunteers.

Swelling of the submandibular glands after administration of low-osmolarity contrast agent: Ultrasound findings.

Swelling of the salivary glands occurring after injection of iodine based contrast agent is a rare late adverse reaction. Only a few cases in the literature report such diagnostic findings. We present our color Doppler ultrasound findings in a case of swelling of both submandibular glands occurring after administration of iodinated contrast agent.

[A new drug in the therapy of chronic myeloid leukemia: ST1571].

The therapy of chronic myeloid leukemia, characterized by the presence of the Philadelphia chromosome in the clonal hematopoietic stem cells, has changed dramatically in the last years with the development of a specific inhibitor of the BCR-ABL tyrosine kinase: tyrosine kinase inhibitor imatinib mesylate (formerly STI571, [Glivec]). Glivec selectively blocks cellular proliferation and induces apoptosis in Philadelphia chromosome-positive (Ph+) cells harbouring the Bcr-Abl tyrosine kinase. Clinical development of imatinib mesylate began with 3 large, multicenter, phase II trials.