Atrial myxomas: a single unit's experience in the modern era.

Background: Although an atrial myxoma is the commonest cardiac tumor, it is still relatively rare, with an annual incidence of approximately 0.5 per million. In our unit, which performs 1000 major cardiac procedures per year, this equates to approximately 3 patients annually.

Hemodynamic assessment of mitral mechanical prostheses under high flow conditions: comparison between dynamic exercise and dobutamine stress.

Background And Aim Of The Study: The study aim was to compare the effects of dobutamine stress and exercise on prosthetic mitral valve hemodynamics.

Methods: Twenty-three patients who had recently (3 +/- 1 months) undergone mechanical mitral valve implantation were studied. Hemodynamic variables, two-dimensional echocardiographic and Doppler mitral/aortic flows were recorded at rest, and then repeated during exercise and dobutamine stress.

Hemodynamic performance of the Ultracor and Carpentier-Edwards aortic prostheses using exercise and dobutamine stress echocardiography.

Background And Aim Of The Study: The study aim was to compare the hemodynamic profiles of the aortic standard porcine Carpentier-Edwards (C-E) and Ultracor (tilting-disc) valve using exercise and dobutamine stress.

Methods: A total of 36 patients was examined, 18 for each valve type. When analyzing the data, valve types were matched for valve size, which ranged from 21 to 25 mm.