Obesity and heart failure: epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical manifestations, and management.

Obesity is a risk factor for heart failure (HF) in both men and women. The mortality risk of overweight and class I and II obese adults with HF is lower than that of normal weight or underweight adults with HF of comparable severity, a phenomenon referred to as the obesity paradox. Severe obesity produces hemodynamic alterations that predispose to changes in cardiac morphology and ventricular function, which may lead to the development of HF.

Assessing cardiovascular disease in the dialysis patient.

Cardiac causes account for nearly half of all deaths in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Coronary artery disease (CAD) is present in 38% - 40% of patients starting dialysis. Both traditional and chronic kidney disease-related cardiovascular risk factors contribute to this high prevalence rate.

Echocardiography predicts adverse cardiac remodelling in heart failure.

Congestive heart failure remains a primary cause of cardiovascular-related events. Heart failure patients face two health care challenges. First, they are uncertain about their prognosis and second, they have an unpredictable clinical course with recurrent exacerbations of heart failure.

Esmolol in acute ischemic syndromes.

Background: beta-Blockers have been shown to reduce both morbidity and mortality rates in patients with acute coronary syndromes. However, because of potential side effects, their use is limited in patients who might benefit the most from such therapy. It was thought that the use of an ultra-short-acting intravenous beta-blocker might produce similar results with fewer complications in those patients with relative contraindications to beta-blocker therapy.