[The heart damage in patients with psoriatic arthritis].

Aim: To examine the rate and features of heart damage in psoriatic arthritis (PA) patients and find out whether some parameters of PA are associated with cardiac involvement.

Material And Methods: The study enrolled 370 PA patients aged 15 to 72 years with the disease history 1 to 44 years having different variants of the articular and skin syndromes. The patients have undergone various tests including chest x-ray, ECG, echocardiography.

[Survival and prognostic factors of death risk in antiphospholipid syndrome: results of 8-year follow-up].

Aim: To evaluate survival and mortality in antiphospholipid syndrome (APS) as well as prognostic factors of APS deterioration.

Material And Methods: We retrospectively studied 248 case histories of patients admitted to the Institute of Rheumatology for 8 years. Primary APS was diagnosed in 35 patients, SLE + APS (according to criteria of ACR, 1982)--in 122 patients and SLE without APS--in 91 patients.

[Cardiological aspects of the antiphospholipid syndrome. Part I. Valvular lesions in the primary and secondary antiphospholipid syndrome and systemic lupus erythematosus].

Aim: To assess prevalence of cardiac valvular lesions in patients with primary (P) antiphospholipid syndrome (APLS) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) with and without secondary APLS.

Material And Methods: Patients with PAPLS (n=56, 15 men and 41 women), SLE and APLS (n=88, 23 men, 65 women) and SLE without APLS (n=51, 19 men, 32 women) were followed up for 9 years. Serological markers of APLS were anticardiolipin antibodies and lupus anticoagulant.

Endocarditis with left atrial thrombus formation in Behçet's disease mimicking myxoma.

A 51-year-old male patient with Behçet's disease had a large echogenic mass in the left atrium mimicking myxoma, documented by echocardiography. Postoperative pathological examination revealed left atrial thrombus, deep ulcerations of mitral valve leaflets with signs of active endocarditis. Cardiac evaluation with echocardiography should be considered in patients with Behçet's disease.