The Prognostic Value of Heart Type Fatty Acid Binding Protein in Patients with Suspected Acute Coronary Syndrome: A Systematic Review.

Background: Heart type fatty acid protein (HFABP) is a cytosolic protein released early after acute coronary syndrome (ACS) even in the absence of myocardial necrosis.

Objectives: The purpose of this systematic review was to determine whether HFABP levels in patients with suspected, or confirmed ACS, improve risk stratification when added to established means of risk assessment.

Methods: We searched Medline, Pubmed and Embase databases from inception to July 2015 to identify prospective studies with suspected or confirmed ACS, who had HFABP measured during the index admission with at least 1 month follow up data.

The intersection of atrial fibrillation and heart failure in a hospitalised population.

Objectives: This work set out to comprehensively characterize patients admitted to hospital with both atrial fibrillation (AF) and heart failure (HF) and to compare this cohort of patients to the global hospital population of patients with only one of these diagnoses.

Methods And Results: This was a retrospective analysis of all in-patients with HF and AF admitted to a large urban hospital over a 3-month period. Patients with AF were identified by both discharge codes and electrocardiograms.

Early and late mortality in hospitalised patients with raised cardiac troponin T.

Aims: Cardiac troponins are measured in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and other conditions. The authors investigate the prognostic significance of cardiac troponin T (TnT) test and comorbid medical conditions.

Methods: Consecutive patients admitted to the Aintree University Hospital, Liverpool, between 2 January 2004 and 29 February 2004 who had TnT measurement were included.

Effusive-constrictive pericarditis in the absence of overt pericardial disease on multiple imaging modalities.

Effusive-constrictive pericarditis (ECP) is a rare condition that may prove fatal without appropriate treatment. In ECP, there is concomitant existence of a pericardial effusion and CP, that together lead to impaired cardiac filling. Therapeutic pericardiocentesis only addresses part of the problem; surgical pericardiectomy may be required to relieve the constrictive element.