Survival after Consecutive Myocardial Infarction and Stroke: A Case Report.

Background: Myocardial infarction and stroke are prevalent and potentially fatal urgent medical conditions. Stroke as a subsequent cardiovascular event after the myocardial infarction significantly decreases the odds of survival for the patient.

Clinical Case: We report a case of a 48-year-old man admitted to Vilnius University Hospital Santaros Klinikos due to an ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction.

Assessment of the disease severity in patients hospitalized for COVID-19 based on the National Early Warning Score (NEWS) using statistical and machine learning methods: An electronic health records database analysis.

Background: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was a cause of concern in the healthcare system and increased the need for disease severity indicators. However, they still vary in use to evaluate in-hospital outcomes and severity. The National Early Warning Score (NEWS) is routinely used to evaluate patient health status at the hospital.

The association of catestatin and endocan with the effects of cardiac shock wave therapy: Biomarker sub-study of the randomized, sham procedure-controlled trial.

Introduction: Cardiac shock-wave therapy (CSWT) is a non-invasive regenerative treatment method based on low-frequency ultrasound waves, which stimulate angiogenesis. Current data about the effects of revascularization procedures on angiogenesis biomarkers is limited. Recently, an association of catestatin and endocan with coronary collateral development was shown in several trials.

Epidemiology of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Comorbidities in Lithuanian National Database: A Cluster Analysis.

Various comorbidities and multimorbidity frequently occur in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), leading to the overload of health care systems and increased mortality. We aimed to assess the impact of COPD on the probability and clustering of comorbidities. The cross-sectional analysis of the nationwide Lithuanian database was performed based on the entries of the codes of chronic diseases.

Structure and Distribution of Health Care Costs across Age Groups of Patients with Multimorbidity in Lithuania.

Background: Patients with multimorbidity account for ever-increasing healthcare resource usage and are often summarised as big spenders. Comprehensive analysis of health care resource usage in different age groups in patients with at least two non-communicable diseases is still scarce, limiting the quality of health care management decisions, which are often backed by limited, small-scale database analysis. The health care system in Lithuania is based on mandatory social health insurance and is covered by the National Health Insurance Fund.

The effect of cardiac shock wave therapy on myocardial function and perfusion in the randomized, triple-blind, sham-procedure controlled study.

Background: Recent triple-blind sham procedure-controlled study revealed neutral effects of the cardiac shock wave therapy (CSWT) on exercise tolerance and symptoms in patients with stable angina. Current data about the effects of CSWT on global and regional myocardial contractility and perfusion is limited. Hereby we report the results of an imaging sub-study that evaluated the capacity of CSWT to ameliorate myocardial ischemia induced during dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) and cardiac single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT).

A randomized, triple-blind trial of cardiac shock-wave therapy on exercise tolerance and symptoms in patients with stable angina pectoris.

Background: Despite major advances in managing coronary artery disease and continuous research on alternative techniques to enhance myocardial perfusion and reduce symptoms, coronary artery disease is still one of the leading causes of adult disability worldwide. Cardiac shock-wave therapy (CSWT) has shown promising results in the amelioration of myocardial ischemia in experimental studies; however, clinical results are limited to single-center, mostly uncontrolled and underpowered trials. The current study aimed to evaluate whether CSWT can improve exercise tolerance and relieve angina symptoms in addition to optimal medical treatment in patients with stable angina.

Efficacy of cardiac shock wave therapy in patients with stable angina: The design of randomized, triple blind, sham-procedure controlled study.

Objective: Despite revascularization and optimal medical treatment (OMT), patients with angina often have a reduced quality of life due to inadequate relief from symptoms. Recent studies have shown that the application of shock waves may reduce angina symptoms and improve quality of life, exercise capacity, and myocardial perfusion due to the stimulation of angiogenesis. However, there is limited evidence due to small, single-arm, single-center studies of low to moderate quality.

Cardiac shock-wave therapy in the treatment of coronary artery disease: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Aim: To systematically review currently available cardiac shock-wave therapy (CSWT) studies in humans and perform meta-analysis regarding anti-anginal efficacy of CSWT.

Methods: The Cochrane Controlled Trials Register, Medline, Medscape, Research Gate, Science Direct, and Web of Science databases were explored. In total 39 studies evaluating the efficacy of CSWT in patients with stable angina were identified including single arm, non- and randomized trials.

Combination of single quantitative parameters into multiparametric model for ischemia detection is not superior to visual assessment during dobutamine stress echocardiography.

Background: To evaluate if the combination of several quantitative parameters into a mathematical model would enhance the detection of myocardial ischemia during dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) when compared to conventional wall motion analysis.

Methods: In a prospective study design 151 patients (age 61.8 ± 9.

Long-term results of minimally invasive stand-alone bi-atrial surgical ablation with a bipolar ablation device for persistent and longstanding persistent AF: a single-center case series of 91 patients.

Background: Minimally invasive surgical treatment of lone atrial fibrillation (AF) is an alternative for AF that is refractory to medical treatment. We present long-term results of standalone surgical ablation of AF using a bipolar ablation device in 91 consecutive patients.

Methods: This was an observational, retrospective study of 91 patients (77 % males; mean age, 53 ± 10 years [range, 23-75 years]) who underwent minimally invasive standalone surgical ablation of persistent and longstanding persistent AF using a bipolar ablation device from 2008 to 2014.

Impact of renal sympathetic denervation on cardiac sympathetic nerve activity evaluated by cardiac MIBG imaging.

Aims: The objective of the present study was to investigate an effect of renal artery sympathetic denervation (RASD) on patients with resistant hypertension and RASD effect on cardiac sympathetic nerve activity. It is known that an abnormally activated sympathetic tone is associated with progression of heart failure (HF).

Methods And Results: We investigated 16 patients with resistant arterial hypertension (mean age 54.