Leiomyosarcoma of the inferior vena cava: a case report.

Leiomyosarcoma (LMS) of the inferior vena cava (IVC) is an extremely rare malignancy with <400 cases reported. We present a 42-year-old woman with a 3-day history of vague and non-specific abdominal pain. Examination revealed mild tenderness to the epigastrium and right upper quadrant with no other findings.

Thoracoscopic Left Atrial Appendage Clipping: A Multicenter Cohort Analysis.

Objectives: This study sought to document the closure rate, safety, and stroke rate after thoracoscopic left atrial appendage (LAA) clipping.

Background: The LAA is the main source of stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation, and thoracoscopic clipping may provide a durable and safe closure technique.

Methods: The investigators studied consecutive patients undergoing clipping as part of a thoracoscopic maze procedure in 4 referral centers (the Netherlands and the United States) from 2012 to 2016.

Atrial Fibrillation Associated Genetic Variants and Left Atrial Histology: Evaluation for Molecular Sub-Phenotypes.

Introduction: Genome wide association studies have identified several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with atrial fibrillation (AF), but the mechanisms underlying these relationships have not yet been elucidated. Inflammation and fibrosis have been posited as important mechanisms responsible for AF. We sought to investigate the impact of SNP carrier status on inflammation and fibrosis in left atrial appendage tissue.

The ABLATE Trial: Safety and Efficacy of Cox Maze-IV Using a Bipolar Radiofrequency Ablation System.

Background: The Cox Maze-IV procedure (CMP-IV) has replaced the Cox Maze-III procedure as the most common approach for the surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF). The Food and Drug Administration-regulated AtriCure Bipolar Radiofrequency Ablation of Permanent Atrial Fibrillation (ABLATE) trial sought to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of the CMP-IV performed with the Synergy ablation system (AtriCure, Inc, Cincinnati, OH).

Methods: Fifty-five patients (aged 70.

Targeted deep sequencing reveals no definitive evidence for somatic mosaicism in atrial fibrillation.

Background: Studies of ≤15 atrial fibrillation (AF) patients have identified atrial-specific mutations within connexin genes, suggesting that somatic mutations may account for sporadic cases of the arrhythmia. We sought to identify atrial somatic mutations among patients with and without AF using targeted deep next-generation sequencing of 560 genes, including genetic culprits implicated in AF, the Mendelian cardiomyopathies and channelopathies, and all ion channels within the genome.

Methods And Results: Targeted gene capture and next-generation sequencing were performed on DNA from lymphocytes and left atrial appendages of 34 patients (25 with AF).

Telomere length and the risk of atrial fibrillation: insights into the role of biological versus chronological aging.

Background: Advanced age is the most important risk factor for atrial fibrillation (AF); however, the mechanism remains unknown. Telomeres, regions of DNA that shorten with cell division, are considered reliable markers of biological aging. We sought to examine the association between leukocyte telomere length (LTL) and incident AF in a large population-based cohort using direct LTL measurements and genetic data.