Spontaneous coronary artery dissection in an antilles man with acute inferior myocardial infarction.

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection is a rare cause of myocardial infarction. It has been reported mainly in young women during or after pregnancy. The diagnosis is usually confirmed at autopsy.

What indices quantify regional myocardial function during supine bicycle in healthy subject: natural strain and strain rate?

Background: Evaluation and quantification of regional myocardial function remain a challenge for imaging techniques in stress test. Strain and strain rate can be calculated from velocity gradients in time and space. This new technique has been developed to allow quantifiable stress echocardiography.

Management of mobile right heart thrombi: a prospective series.

Background: Mobile right heart thrombi (MRHT) are uncommon but their true prevalence is unknown. The aim of our study was to assess the prevalence of MRHT by a systemic use of transthoracic echocardiography in a prospective series of consecutive patients admitted for acute severe pulmonary embolism (PE) and to adopt intravenous thrombolysis with recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA) as the first line intention to treat patients with proven MRHT.

Methods And Results: We performed a systematic transthoracic echocardiogram from November 1997 to June 1999 in 335 consecutive patients admitted for suspected acute massive PE in whom the diagnosis was subsequently confirmed by perfusion lung scan or angiography.

Can regional strain and strain rate measurement be performed during both dobutamine and exercise echocardiography, and do regional deformation responses differ with different forms of stress testing?

Background: Regional strain (epsilon) and strain rate (SR) measurement could be the optimal approach to quantifying stress echocardiography images. However, signal noise could preclude their use. Study aims Our aim was to compare the feasibility of regional peak systolic (p) velocity (Vel), pSR/epsilon measurement, and their normal responses during upright (group 1, n = 10) and supine (group 2, n = 10) bicycle exercise and (group 3, n = 10) dobutamine stress.