[Long term results of mitral balloon valvuloplasty].

Background: Mitral balloon valvuloplasty (MBV) is the therapy of choice for the treatment of symptomatic mitral stenosis with suitable anatomy. Although its short and mid-term results are favorable, there is a paucity of information about long-term follow-up.

Aim: To assess the late results of MBV.

[Are low-molecular-weight heparins safe in patients with chronic kidney disease?].

Due to their efficacy and convenience, low-molecular-weight heparins (LMWH) are used as substitutes of unfractionated heparin. Unfortunately, most of the evidence about safety and usefulness of LMWH have excluded patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), in whom their elimination clearance is reduced, allowing an increased anticoagulant effect. Accordingly, there is a growing number of reports about major and fatal bleeding episodes in this group of patients using LMWH.

[Metabolic Syndrome: clinical and pathophysiological basis for a rational therapeutical approach].

Regardless of the diagnostic criteria, the metabolic syndrome is found at least in 20% of the population. The adipose tissue plays an important role in the insulin resistance found in this syndrome. Free fatty acids released by intra-abdominal adipocytes produce an inflammatory and pro-thrombotic response and the persistence of the insulin resistance state, phenomenon termed lipotoxicity.