Conventional surgery results in patients originally referred for transcatheter aortic valve implantation.

Aims: Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) is increasingly considered as a viable alternative to conventional aortic valve replacement (AVR) in high-risk patients. Long-term results, however, are still scarce and medical community hesitates in enlarging indications to lower-risk patients. Moreover, available devices are expensive and a strict potential candidate selection is necessary.

A management of blunt thoracic trauma in an emergency department observation unit: pre-post observational study.

Background: The best management of patients with isolated blunt thoracic trauma at high risk of pulmonary complications (HRPC-BTT: ≥3 isolated rib fractures, sternal fracture, single or few pulmonary contusions or minimal pneumothorax) is still unclear. We compared efficacy and cost-effectiveness of a new clinical pathway involving an Emergency Department Observation Unit (EDOU) with routine care.

Design: Retrospective before-after study.

[Cardiomyopathy induced by frequent premature ventricular complexes originating from the right ventricular outflow tract: left ventricular systolic function recovery after transcatheter ablation].

Left ventricular dysfunction due to frequent isolated premature ventricular complexes originating from the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) in patients without structural heart disease and in the absence of sustained ventricular tachycardia is a rare and poorly characterized entity. Successful identification and radiofrequency catheter ablation of the focal source of ventricular ectopy is the most effective treatment for these patients, leading to a complete normalization of ventricular dimensions and contractile function. In this article, we report two cases of left ventricular dysfunction resulting from frequent isolated premature ventricular complexes originating from the RVOT.

[The diagnostic admission in an internal medicine service: clinical and economic aspects].

Efficacy and costs of the diagnostic process have been under extensive investigation for a long time. In this study we present a detailed, retrospective analysis of the clinical and economic aspects of 347 diagnostic admissions in a teaching hospital. We have, furthermore, investigated the clinical history of a group of 50 patients, from the beginning up to one year after definitive diagnosis, through a structured questionnaire.