Protocol: Prospective observational study aiming for micro-elimination of hepatitis C virus in Nagawa town: The Nagawa Project.

Background: The World Health Organization has set a goal of hepatitis C virus (HCV) elimination by the year 2030. However, no regions in Japan have succeeded in eradicating HCV. Micro-elimination is an approach to attain hepatitis C eradication in which national eradication goals are applied to specific populations so that viral treatment and control efforts can move forward quickly and efficiently.

Usefulness of scintigraphy to predict electrical storms in severe idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy.

Background: Although several predictors of an electrical storm (ES) are indicated in patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (IDCM), whether the severity of the myocardial tissue damage (SMTD) evaluated by myocardial perfusion SPECT (MPS) has an association with an ES remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to elucidate the clinical significance of SMTD for the prediction of ES in IDCM patients with an ICD.

Methods: Thirty-seven (27 men, mean age 58 ± 15 years) IDCM patients receiving ICD implantations for secondary prevention with preoperative MPS were enrolled in this study.

Incessant monomorphic ventricular tachycardia induced by the proarrhythmic effect of amiodarone.

This case report describes incessant monomorphic ventricular tachycardia (VT), not torsade de pointes, induced by intravenous amiodarone in a 48-year-old woman with dilated cardiomyopathy. VT was reproducibly triggered by short coupled premature ventricular complex (PVC) with different morphology from VT. After amiodarone infusion, the coupling interval of initiating PVC was prolonged, and moreover, the morphology of initiating PVC became the same as that of VT.

Augmented ST-segment elevation during recovery from exercise predicts cardiac events in patients with Brugada syndrome.

Objectives: The goal of this study was to evaluate the prevalence and the clinical significance of ST-segment elevation during recovery from exercise testing.

Background: During recovery from exercise testing, ST-segment elevation is reported in some patients with Brugada syndrome (BrS).

Methods: Treadmill exercise testing was conducted for 93 patients (91 men), 46 ± 14 years of age, with BrS (22 documented ventricular fibrillation, 35 syncope alone, and 36 asymptomatic); and for 102 healthy control subjects (97 men), 46 ± 17 years of age.

Clinical characteristics of focal atrial tachycardias arising from the atrial appendages during childhood.

Background: Focal atrial tachycardias (ATs) arising from the atrial appendages (AAT) are uncommon in adults. On the other hand, we frequently encounter AATs during childhood. However, the topographic distribution and clinical characteristics of focal ATs during childhood have not yet been clearly revealed.

Clinical effect of implantable cardioverter defibrillator replacements: when should you resume driving after an implantable cardioverter defibrillator replacement?

Background: The intervals of the driving restrictions after an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) replacement vary across the different countries around the world. However, little is known regarding the appropriate duration for driving restrictions after an ICD replacement. The aim of this study was to investigate the clinical effect of ICD replacements and to elucidate when to resume driving an automobile after an ICD replacement.

Predictors of electrical storm in patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy--how to stratify the risk of electrical storm.

Background: Electrical storm (ES) is a serious problem in patients with an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD). However, insufficient reports have indicated the predictors of ES in ICD patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). The purpose of this study was to clarify the predictors of ES for risk stratification in DCM patients with an ICD.

Relationship between oral amiodarone and inappropriate therapy from an implantable cardioverter defibrillator.

Background: This study evaluated the efficacy of amiodarone for avoiding inappropriate therapies by implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs).

Methods And Results: A total of 232 patients with structural heart disease (58+/-13 years; 78% males) who underwent an initial ICD implantation were retrospectively investigated to compare baseline characteristics and event rates of inappropriate ICD therapy delivery between patients with oral amiodarone therapy (amiodarone group, n=116) and those without (non-amiodarone group, n=116). During a mean follow-up of 29+/-21 months, inappropriate therapies occurred less frequently in the amiodarone group than in the non-amiodarone group (12% vs 27%, P=0.

Radiofrequency catheter ablation of parasystole originating from the inferior vena cava.

A 76-year-old man with a history of atrial septal defect repair underwent radiofrequency (RF) ablation of typical atrial flutter. During electrophysiological study, incessant sharp potentials were recorded, originating from the ostium of the inferior vena cava (IVC), and dissociated from atrial activity. During sinus rhythm, these potentials propagated to the atria and caused premature complexes when falling beyond the atrial refractory period.

The positional relationship between the coronary sinus musculature and the atrioventricular septal junction.

Aims: The atrioventricular (AV) septal junction includes the coronary sinus (CS) and the compact part of the AV node and its posterior extensions. It has been recognized as the target site for ablation therapy of the AV nodal reentrant tachycardia and its variant forms. Despite the clinical significance of this region, the arrangement of the musculature in the AV septal junction, including the CS, has not fully been elucidated.

Destructive device removal - sparks and deletion of therapy history from an implantable cardioverter defibrillator.

A 74-year-old female with a diagnosis of idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy and ventricular tachycardia died suddenly 9 years after an implantation of an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD). The destructive removal of an ICD generator and the leads by an uninformed coroner resulted in the loss of the fragile electrograms during the terminal episodes of VT/VF and caused severe charring on the surface of the ICD generator. In order to observe the conditions in which the shock deliveries occurred during the noise detection, we programmed the ICD to deliver the maximum shock energy via a programmer while keeping continuous contact between the device surface and shock lead.

Long-term prognosis of probands with Brugada-pattern ST-elevation in leads V1-V3.

Background: The prognosis of patients with saddleback or noncoved type (non-type 1) ST-elevation in Brugada syndrome is unknown. The purpose of this study was to clarify the long-term prognosis of probands with non-type 1 ECG and those with coved (type 1) Brugada-pattern ECG.

Methods And Results: A total of 330 (123 symptomatic, 207 asymptomatic) probands with a coved or saddleback ST-elevation > or = 1 mm in leads V(1)-V(3) were divided into 2 ECG groups-type 1 (245 probands) and non-type 1 (85 probands)-and were prospectively followed for 48.

Neurally mediated syncope as a cause of syncope in patients with Brugada electrocardiogram.

Introduction: Patients with type 1 Brugada electrocardiogram (ECG) and an episode of syncope are diagnosed as symptomatic Brugada syndrome; however, all episodes of syncope may not be due to ventricular tachyarrhythmia.

Methods And Results: Forty-six patients with type 1 Brugada ECG (all males, 51 +/- 13 years, 29 spontaneous, 17 Ic-drug induced), 20 healthy control subjects (all males, 35 +/- 11 years), and 15 patients with suspected neurally mediated syncope (NMS; 9 males, 54 +/- 22 years) underwent the head-up tilt (HUT) test. During the HUT test, 12-lead ECGs were recorded in all patients, and the heart rate variability was investigated in some patients.

Pulmonary valve replacement in adult patients with a severely dilated right ventricle and refractory arrhythmias after repair of tetralogy of fallot.

Background: Refractory arrhythmias caused by right ventricular (RV) volume overload resulting from pulmonary regurgitation are the main concern in adult patients after repair of tetralogy of Fallot (TOF). Early pulmonary valve replacement (PVR) may prevent irreversible RV dysfunction and refractory arrhythmias, so the present study evaluated the PVR outcomes in adult patients with a severely dilated RV (d-RV) and refractory arrhythmias after TOF repair.

Methods And Results: Three TOF patients with a d-RV and tachyarrhythmias underwent PVR between the ages of 28 and 38 years.

QRS prolongation is associated with high defibrillation thresholds during cardioverter-defibrillator implantations in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

Background: Although high defibrillation threshold (DFT) is a major and unavoidable clinical problem after implantation of an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD), little is known about the cause and management of a high DFT in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). The purpose of this study was to assess the predictors of a high DFT in patients with HCM.

Methods And Results: Twenty-three patients with non-dilated HCM who underwent ICD implantation were included.

Mitral isthmus pathology of re-entrant ventricular tachycardia in a patient with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy.

A 68-year-old woman with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy suffered from drug-resistant monomorphic ventricular tachycardia (VT). Electrophysiological study revealed a re-entrant VT circuit located just beneath the inferior mitral valve annulus. The VT was considered to be related to the mitral valve isthmus and was abolished by radiofrequency ablation.

Noninvasive characterization of intra-atrial reentrant tachyarrhythmias after surgical repair of congenital heart diseases.

Background: Intra-atrial reentrant tachyarrhythmia (IART) after surgical repair for congenital heart diseases (CHD) has not been noninvasively characterized.

Methods And Results: The 28 patients after surgery for CHD and 14 patients without surgery were investigated by 87-lead body surface mapping (BSM), 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG), 20-lead signal averaged ECG (SAECG) and endocardial electroanatomical mapping (CARTO) during clockwise (CW: n=9) or counterclockwise (CCW: n=5) incisional atrial tachycardia (Incision-AT), CCW (n=23) or CW (n=4) cavotricuspid isthmus-dependent atrial flutter (CTI-AFL), and double-loop reentry (n=4). On the BSM, the isopotential map pattern and its locus of the minimum potential could differentiate the reentrant circuits, and the activation map revealed the reentrant circuits, which were highly coincident with those obtained from CARTO.

Seasonal and circadian distributions of ventricular fibrillation in patients with Brugada syndrome.

Background: It is well-known that the incidence of ventricular tachyarrhythmias is the highest in winter and during the daytime in patients with structural heart disease. However, little is known about the seasonal and circadian distributions of ventricular fibrillation (VF) in patients with Brugada syndrome.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate seasonal and circadian distributions of VF in patients with Brugada syndrome.

Electrophysiologic study-guided amiodarone for sustained ventricular tachyarrhythmias associated with structural heart diseases.

Background: Although an electrophysiologic study (EPS) and Holter-monitoring are often helpful in evaluating the efficacy of antiarrhythmic drugs in patients with ventricular tachyarrhythmias (ventricular tachycardia/fibrillation (VT/VF)), the efficacy of EPS- or Holter-guided oral amiodarone therapy in Japanese patients is still unclear.

Methods And Results: EPS was performed 1 month after starting amiodarone, and Holter-monitoring was recorded before and 1 month after amiodarone in 188 patients with sustained VT/VF because of structural heart diseases. In spite of the judgment of EPS (n=89) or Holter (n=75), all patients continued amiodarone.

Extremely late pacemaker-infective endocarditis due to Stenotrophomonas maltophilia.

This case report describes a patient with an intravascular infection of a pacemaker system with Stenotrophomonas maltophilia, which occurred 17 years after the implantation. The patient was treated with appropriate antibiotics and debridement of the infectious tissue in the pocket, and the entire pacemaker system was removed by open heart surgery. She was discharged from our center after a 6-week course of antibiotics and implantation of a new pacemaker.

Comparison of long-term follow-up of electrocardiographic features in Brugada syndrome between the SCN5A-positive probands and the SCN5A-negative probands.

To investigate changes of electrocardiographic parameters with aging and their relation to the presence of SCN5A mutation in probands with Brugada syndrome (BS), we measured several electrocardiographic parameters prospectively during long-term follow-up (10 +/- 5 years) in 8 BS probands with SCN5A mutation (SCN5A-positive group, all men; age 46 +/- 10 years) and 36 BS probands without SCN5A mutation (SCN5A-negative group, all men; age 46 +/- 13 years). Throughout the follow-up period, depolarization parameters, such as P-wave (lead II), QRS (leads II, V(2), V(5)), S-wave durations (leads II, V(5)), and PQ interval (leads II) were all significantly longer and S-wave amplitude (II, V(5)) was significantly deeper in the SCN5A-positive group than in the SCN5A-negative group. The SCN5A-positive group showed a significantly longer corrected QT interval (lead V(2)) and higher ST amplitude (lead V(2)) than those in the SCN5A-negative group.

Implications of 2:1 atrioventricular block during typical atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia.

Objective: The effects of 2:1 AV block (AVB) on AV nodal reentrant tachycardia (AVNRT) remain to be elucidated. This study was performed to localize the site of 2:1 AVB and elucidate the effects of 2:1 AVB on typical AVNRT.

Methods: The His bundle (HB) electrograms during typical AVNRT with 2:1 AV block were reviewed in 24 patients.

Participation of a concealed atriohisian tract in the reentrant circuit of the slow-fast type of atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia.

Background: The retrograde fast pathway in typical atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia (AVNRT) exhibits marked variation in its electrophysiologic properties.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to characterize the retrograde fast pathway and localize the lower turnaround site of the reentrant circuit in typical AVNRT.

Methods: Seventy-four patients with typical AVNRT were divided into two groups according to the response of the retrograde fast pathway to intravenous administration of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) during ventricular pacing: ATP-S [n = 47 (63.

Acute and chronic management in patients with Brugada syndrome associated with electrical storm of ventricular fibrillation.

Background: Some patients with Brugada syndrome experience an electrical storm of ventricular fibrillation (VF).

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical, laboratory, electrocardiographic, and electrophysiologic characteristics, acute and subsequent chronic treatment, and follow-up data of patients with Brugada syndrome associated with electrical storm of VF.

Methods: Sixty-seven patients with Brugada syndrome (65 men and 2 women, age 46 +/- 14 years) were divided into three groups: 7 patients with a history of electrical storm of VF (group I), 39 symptomatic patients with documented VF and/or syncope (group II), and 21 asymptomatic patients (group III).

Sex hormone and gender difference--role of testosterone on male predominance in Brugada syndrome.

Introduction: The clinical phenotype is 8 to 10 times more prevalent in males than in females in patients with Brugada syndrome. Brugada syndrome has been reported to be thinner than asymptomatic normal controls. We tested the hypothesis that higher testosterone level associated with lower visceral fat may relate to Brugada phenotype and male predominance.