Start and initial results of the Fukushima Prefecture acute myocardial infarction registration survey.

Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) remains one of the most serious heart diseases and elucidation of its pathogenesis and advances in treatment strategies have been desired. In 2009, to understand the status of AMI in Fukushima Prefecture for improving treatment outcomes, a new AMI registration survey system was conducted throughout the prefecture. A total of 1,556 cases were registered in the initial 2 years from 2009 to 2010.

Dilated phase of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy caused by two different sarcomere mutations, treated with surgical left ventricular reconstruction and cardiac resynchronization therapy with a defibrillator.

We herein report the case of a 61-year-old woman with dilated phase of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (D-HCM) who had been diagnosed with HCM 17 years previously. On admission, her left ventricle (LV) had marked dilation, dyssynchrony with diffuse severe hypokinesis, and ventricular tachycardia. She had two mutations in the cardiac myosin binding protein-C gene, which were suspected to be the causes of the D-HCM.

Acute myocardial infarction in Fukushima area of Japan.

Although acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is the most serious coronary disease, the background of its onset and the mortality are not fully understood, especially in Japan. From June 1999 to May 2005, we mailed an annual questionnaire to eighteen hospitals in which emergency cardiac catheterization and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) were available in the Fukushima area of Japan. A total of 1,590 patients were included.

Alterations of alpha-adrenergic modulations of coronary microvascular tone in dogs with heart failure.

Background: It remains unclear whether coronary microvascular response to alpha-adrenergic activation alters in chronic heart failure (CHF).

Methods And Results: We investigated the alpha-adrenergic receptor-mediated effects on coronary pressure-flow relationship (CPFR) in a tachycardia-induced canine heart failure model. The dogs studied were male (29 of 31) and the drugs were given intracoronary.

Alterations of endothelium-dependent and -independent regulation of coronary blood flow during heart failure.

Conflicting data concerning the changes in basal coronary blood flow and nitric oxide (NO)-releasing capacity in chronic heart failure may be due to different phases or duration of heart failure. To investigate endothelium-dependent and -independent regulation of coronary blood flow in different phases of heart failure, coronary pressure-flow relationships during long diastole were obtained before and after rapid pacing of 3 and 5 wk at 240 beats/min in 12 or 6 dogs. Neither basal coronary blood flow nor the slope of coronary pressure-flow relationships changed; however, zero-flow pressure increased slightly after rapid pacing.