Definition, clinical classification and initial diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension: Updated recommendations from the Cologne Consensus Conference 2018.

In the summer of 2016, delegates from the German Society of Cardiology (DGK), the German Respiratory Society (DGP), and the German Society of Pediatric Cardiology (DGPK) met in Cologne, Germany, to define consensus-based practice recommendations for the management of patients with pulmonary hypertension (PH). These recommendations were built on the 2015 European Pulmonary Hypertension guidelines, aiming at their practical implementation, considering country-specific issues, and including new evidence, where available. To this end, a number of working groups was initiated, one of which was specifically dedicated to the definition, clinical classification and initial diagnosis of PH.

[Current recommendations for diagnostic echocardiography in cancer patients : Is echocardiography too late or too early?].

Cardiac dysfunction caused by cardiotoxic treatment can appear at any time during or after therapy and sometimes even after years. To evaluate systolic left ventricular (LV) function assessment of the ejection fraction (EF), especially using 3D technology, is the established base value for cancer therapy-related cardiac dysfunction (CTRCD). It has been found that additional analysis of the LV function using deformation imaging is a more accurate and sensitive tool for detecting subclinical systolic LV dysfunction.

[Clinical classification and initial diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension: recommendations of the Cologne Consensus Conference 2016].

The 2015 European Guidelines on Diagnosis and Treatment of Pulmonary Hypertension are also valid for Germany. The guidelines contain detailed information about the clinical classification and diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension, and furthermore provide novel recommendations for risk stratification and follow-up assessments. However, the practical implementation of the European Guidelines in Germany requires the consideration of several country-specific issues and already existing novel data.

Gender differences in patients with atrial fibrillation.

Aims: We aimed to compare gender differences with respect to presentation of consecutive ambulatory patients with atrial fibrillation (AF), management of their disease, and outcomes.

Methods: Post-hoc analysis of an observational (non-interventional) study performed by 616 office- and hospital-based cardiologists in Germany. Consecutive (mainly ambulatory) patients with Electrocardiography (ECG) -confirmed AF and available data from baseline (BL) and two follow-up visits at 6 and 12 months were assessed.