Immunologic profiles in patients with chronic limb-threatening ischemia undergoing endovascular revascularization.

Background: Inflammation and immune dysregulation have been associated with adverse outcomes in cardiovascular disease. There is limited understanding of the association of different profiles of white blood cell (WBC) subsets and red cell distribution width (RDW) in patients with chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI).

Methods: Patients with CLTI undergoing endovascular revascularization in our single-center, tertiary care hospital from 2017 to 2019, who had a preceding complete blood count (CBC) with WBC differentials ( =213), were included in the analysis.

How Tactile Afferents in the Human Fingerpad Encode Tangential Torques Associated with Manipulation: Are Monkeys Better than Us?

Dexterous object manipulation depends critically on information about forces normal and tangential to the fingerpads, and also on torque associated with object orientation at grip surfaces. We investigated how torque information is encoded by human tactile afferents in the fingerpads and compared them to 97 afferents recorded in monkeys ( = 3; 2 females) in our previous study. Human data included slowly-adapting Type-II (SA-II) afferents, which are absent in the glabrous skin of monkeys.

Clinical impact of right ventricular pacing burden in patients with post-transcatheter aortic valve replacement permanent pacemaker implantation.

Aims: Patients who undergo permanent pacemaker (PPM) implantation after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) have a worse outcome. The aim of this study was to identify risk factors of worse outcomes in patients with post-TAVR PPM implantation.

Methods And Results: This is a single-centre, retrospective study of consecutive patients who underwent post-TAVR PPM implantation from 11 March 2011 to 9 November 2019.

Risk Stratification of New Persistent Left Bundle Branch Block After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation.

Previous studies reported that new-onset persistent left bundle branch block (NOP-LBBB) was related to worse outcomes after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). However, these results can be confounded by the presence of permanent pacemaker (PPM) implantation before and after TAVI. Long-term outcomes and the risk stratification of NOP-LBBB not having PPM implantation before and after TAVI have not been fully investigated.

Cardiac rehabilitation in heart failure: Indications for exercise training based on heart failure phenotype.

Exercise intolerance with dyspnea and fatigue is pervasive amongst individuals with heart failure (HF) due to both central and peripheral mechanisms. Cardiac rehabilitation (CR) is a cornerstone therapy for numerous cardiovascular disease (CVD) processes, and it's use in HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) has shown significant benefit in improved mortality and quality of life (QoL). Less is known about the benefit of CR in the setting of HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), and optimal exercise therapy (ET) may vary based on underlying disease phenotype.

Insights from Monitoring Aspirin Adherence: A Medication Adherence Cascade Tool.

Background: Adherence to recommended medications is a key issue in the care of patients with cardiovascular disease (CVD) and barriers to adherence are well established during the medication adherence cascade, the processes of prescribing, obtaining, taking, and maintaining medication use. Aspirin avoids many of the barriers in the medication adherence cascade as it does not require a prescription (prescribing) and is inexpensive, easily accessible (obtaining), prescribed once-daily (taking) as an over-the-counter medication and is generally perceived by patients as safe (maintaining). The purpose of this paper is to report aspirin adherence and propose the Medication Adherence Cascade Tool to assist clinicians to consider all aspects of medication adherence.

Fibromuscular dysplasia in a middle-aged transgender man: The role of hormones in disease pathogenesis.

Fibromuscular dysplasia is an uncommon non-inflammatory arteriopathy. Hormonal factors are believed to play a role in disease pathogenesis given the overwhelming female predominance of this disease. We describe a case of a 56-year-old transgender man on prolonged testosterone therapy diagnosed with renal fibromuscular dysplasia after presenting with hypertensive urgency.

Recurrent ventricular septal defect following closure CorMatrix: A case report.

Ventricular septal ruptures are an uncommon complication following acute myocardial infarction. Operative repair, utilizing a patch for closure of the defect, is the primary treatment modality to achieve hemodynamic stability. The use of an extracellular matrix derived from small intestinal submucosa as a scaffold for tissue repair is becoming increasingly common.

Risk Prediction Model for Cardiac Implantable Electronic Device Implantation After Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to develop and validate a risk prediction model for high-grade atrioventricular block requiring cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) implantation after transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR).

Background: High-grade atrioventricular block requiring CIED remains a significant sequelae following TAVR. Although several pre-operative characteristics have been associated with the risk of post-operative CIED implantation, an accurate and validated risk prediction model is not established yet.

RGS Proteins and Gαi2 Modulate Sleep, Wakefulness, and Disruption of Sleep/ Wake States after Isoflurane and Sevoflurane Anesthesia.

Study Objectives: This study tested the hypothesis that Regulators of G protein Signaling (RGS) proteins contribute to the regulation of wakefulness, non-rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep, and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, and to sleep disruption caused by volatile anesthetics.

Methods: The three groups used in this study included wild-type (WT; n = 7) mice and knock-in mice that were heterozygous (+/GS; n = 7) or homozygous (GS/GS; n = 7) for an RGS-insensitive allele that causes prolonged Gαi2 signaling. Mice were implanted with electrodes for recording sleep and conditioned for 1 week or more to sleep in the laboratory.

Encoding of tangential torque in responses of tactile afferent fibres innervating the fingerpad of the monkey.

Torsional loads are ubiquitous during everyday dextrous manipulations. We examined how information about torque is provided to the sensorimotor control system by populations of tactile afferents. Torsional loads of different magnitudes were applied in clockwise and anticlockwise directions to a standard central site on the fingertip.

Sensory signals in neural populations underlying tactile perception and manipulation.

For humans to manipulate an object successfully, the motor control system must have accurate information about parameters such as the shape of the stimulus, its position of contact on the skin, and the magnitude and direction of contact force. The same information is required for perception during haptic exploration of an object. Much of these data are relayed by the mechanoreceptive afferents innervating the glabrous skin of the digits.

Human ability to scale and discriminate forces typical of those occurring during grasp and manipulation.

When humans manipulate objects, the sensorimotor system coordinates three-dimensional forces to optimize and maintain grasp stability. To do this, the CNS requires precise information about the magnitude and direction of load force (tangential to skin surface) plus feedback about grip force (normal to skin). Previous studies have shown that there is rapid, precise coordination between grip and load forces that deteriorates with digital nerve block.