Diuretic vs. placebo in intermediate-risk acute pulmonary embolism: a randomized clinical trial.

Aims: The role of diuretics in patients with intermediate-risk pulmonary embolism (PE) is controversial. In this multicentre, double-blind trial, we randomly assigned normotensive patients with intermediate-risk PE to receive either a single 80 mg bolus of furosemide or a placebo.

Methods And Results: Eligible patients had at least a simplified PE Severity Index (sPESI) ≥1 with right ventricular dysfunction.

Pentraxin 3 in primary percutaneous coronary intervention for ST elevation myocardial infarction is associated with early irreversible myocardial damage : Kinetic profile, relationship to interleukin 6 and infarct size.

Background: The inflammatory marker long pentraxin 3 (PTX3) has been shown to be a strong predictor of 30-day and one-year mortality after acute myocardial infarction. The aim of this study was to evaluate the kinetic profile of PTX3 and its relationship with interleukin 6 (IL-6), high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) and infarct size.

Methods: PTX3, IL-6 and hs-CRP were measured at predefined time points, at baseline (before percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI)), at 12 and 72 hours after PCI in 161 patients with first-time ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI).

Perioperative Outcomes of Adjunctive Hypnotherapy Compared with Conscious Sedation Alone for Patients Undergoing Transfemoral Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation.

Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) using a transfemoral approach under local anesthesia with conscious sedation (LACS) is becoming an increasingly common TAVI strategy. However, patients who are awake during the TAVI procedure can experience stress, anxiety, and pain, even when LACS is used. Clinical hypnotherapy is an anxiolytic intervention that can be beneficial for patients undergoing invasive surgery.

Computed tomography for transcatheter tricuspid valve development.

Background: Patients with severe symptomatic tricuspid regurgitation (TR) are often deemed ineligible for surgical valve repair due to comorbidities. In this setting, transcatheter tricuspid valve replacement (TTVR) is undergoing development, but delivery technique and prosthesis design have yet to be optimized. We sought to assess the challenges of TTVR and the determinants of venous route using computed tomography (CT) analysis.

Peridevice Leak After Left Atrial Appendage Closure: Incidence, Risk Factors, and Clinical Impact.

Background: Limited studies reported the rate and clinical impact of peridevice leaks (PDL) after percutaneous left atrial appendage closure (LAAC).

Methods: All consecutive patients with a nonvalvular atrial fibrillation admitted for LAAC between November 2011 and October 2016 were prospectively enrolled. The follow-up included clinical, transesophageal echocardiography, and/or cardiac computed tomography angiogram (CCTA).