Association between Right Ventricular Function and Exercise Capacity in Patients with Chronic Heart Failure.

Background: The association between right ventricular function and exercise capacity in patients with chronic heart failure remains uncertain. Several studies very recently mentioned the association between right ventricular reserve and exercise capacity, whereas the implication of tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE) remains uninvestigated. We aimed to assess the impact of TAPSE on exercise capacity in cardiac rehabilitation candidates.

A novel surgical approach to the lumbar spine involving hemilateral split-off of the spinous process to preserve the multifidus muscle: technical note.

In the conventional posterior approach to the lumbar spine, the lamina is exposed by stripping the paravertebral muscles from the spinous process, and the resulting paravertebral muscle damage can produce muscle atrophy and decreased muscle strength. The author developed a novel surgical approach to the lumbar spine in which the attachment of the paravertebral muscles to the spinous process is preserved. In the novel approach, the spinous process is split on the midline without stripping the attached muscles, and a hemilateral half of the spinous process is then resected at the base, exposing only the ipsilateral lamina.

Lifespan and Reproductive Senescence in a Free-Ranging Ring-Tailed Lemur (Lemur catta) Population at Berenty, Madagascar.

The lifespan and age-specific fecundity of female ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) were estimated from a 24-year longitudinal dataset based on individual identification at Berenty Reserve, Madagascar. The mean lifespan of females in 10-year (1989-1998) birth cohorts was 4.9 ± 4.

Acute kidney injury after transcatheter aortic valve implantation: Impact of contrast agents, predictive factors, and prognostic importance in 203 patients with long-term follow-up.

Background: Acute kidney injury (AKI) frequently occurs following transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and has been related to a worse outcome. We investigated the importance of contrast medium composition, either iso-osmolar (IOCM) or low-osmolar (LOCM) and assessed predictors for AKI after TAVI.

Methods And Results: We assessed AKI in 203 TAVI patients treated mainly with trans-femoral implantation and analgosedation.

Aortic regurgitation after transcatheter aortic valve implantation with balloon- and self-expandable prostheses: a pooled analysis from a 2-center experience.

Objectives: This study sought to assess aortic regurgitation (AR) after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) with the self-expandable Medtronic CoreValve (MCV) (Medtronic Inc., Minneapolis, Minnesota) versus balloon-expandable Edwards Sapien XT valve (ESV) (Edwards Lifesciences, Irvine, California).

Background: AR after TAVI has been associated with poor survival, but limited data exist comparing MCV with ESV.