Diabetic Cardiomyopathy: Current Approach and Potential Diagnostic and Therapeutic Targets.

Although ischemic heart disease is the major cause of death in diabetic patients, diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is increasingly recognized as a clinically relevant entity. Considering that it comprises a variety of mechanisms and effects on cardiac function, increasing the risk of heart failure and worsening the prognosis of this patient category, DCM represents an important complication of diabetes mellitus, with a silent development in its earlier stages, involving intricate pathophysiological mechanisms, including oxidative stress, defective calcium handling, altered mitochondrial function, remodeling of the extracellular matrix, and consequent deficient cardiomyocyte contractility. While DCM is common in diabetic asymptomatic patients, it is frequently underdiagnosed, due to few diagnostic possibilities in its early stages.

Inflammatory and Genetic Markers (APO B100 and Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Gene) in the Coronary Artery Disease.

Aim: To analyze the correlations between inflammation markers and ApoB100 and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) gene polymorphism and the severity of coronary artery disease (CAD).

Material And Methods: We conducted a study in 58 patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) who underwent coronarography at the Iasi "Prof. Dr.

Vasopressin receptor antagonists for the treatment of heart failure: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Background/objectives: Elevated vasopressin may increase systemic vascular resistance and pulmonary capillary wedge pressure, subsequently decrease stroke volume and cardiac output. Vasopressin receptor antagonists may counteract these effects and improve outcomes in heart failure. We aimed to assess benefits and harms of vasopressin receptor antagonists (VRAs) versus placebo in addition to standard care in adults with heart failure (HF).

Polycythemia vera syndrome--as a protrombothic state.

Unlabelled: The aim of our study was to investigate whether the disorder of coagulation and fibrinolysis factors are mechanisms that contribute to the prothrombotic state in patients with polycythemia vera (PV) syndrome with or without cardiovascular disease (CVD), in order to identify the patients having high risk for thrombotic events.

Material And Methods: The study comprises 20 patients divided in 2 groups: 10 patients with PV syndrome (PV) and 10 patients with PV and cardiovascular diseases associated (PV+CVD). The patients were tested by determining three factors of coagulation profile: protein S, free fraction (PS), antithrombin III (AT III) and Protein C (PC).