Aortocoronary saphenous vein graft rupture during diagnostic angiography.

Coronary saphenous vein graft (SVG) rupture during diagnostic angiography is a very rare but known complication of the procedure. It has typically been reported to occur at the site of pseudoaneurysms or secondary to an interventional procedure involving the graft. We present a case of SVG mid-body rupture during diagnostic angiography that occurred without evidence of pseudoaneurysmal changes.

Cardiovascular disease in women.

Cardiovascular disease remains the leading cause of mortality in women despite advances in treatment strategies. Challenges currently exist when making the diagnosis of coronary artery disease. Equitable treatment of women once the disease has been identified is a further conundrum.

Utilization of Electrocardiographic P-wave Duration for AV Interval Optimization in Dual-Chamber Pacemakers.

Background: Empiric programming of the atrio-ventricular (AV) delay is commonly performed during pacemaker implantation. Transmitral flow assessment by Doppler echocardiography can be used to find the optimal AV delay by Ritter's method, but this cannot easily be performed during pacemaker implantation. We sought to determine a non-invasive surrogate for this assessment.

Left atrial Lasso catheter thrombus aspiration.

Sheath- and catheter-associated thrombi have become increasingly identified with the use of intracardiac echocardiography during left-sided ablation procedures. Despite adequate anticoagulation, these thrombi are found in ∼10% of cases. Management of these thrombi includes withdrawal of the sheath and catheter when the thrombi are felt to be firmly attached.

Oral calcium supplements do not affect the progression of aortic valve calcification or coronary artery calcification.

Background: The use of oral calcium supplementation among the elderly for prevention and treatment of osteoporosis and osteopenia is increasing. The incidence of aortic valve disease and coronary artery disease also is increasing. No study thus far has been done to demonstrate whether this affects the progression of calcification in both the valves and vasculature.

Nontraditional implantable cardioverter defibrillator placement in adult patients with limited venous access: a case series.

Background: Conventional transvenous approaches for implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) lead placement are not possible in some patients with limited venous access or severe tricuspid valve dysfunction.

Methods: We retrospectively identified six patients who underwent ICD placement or revision requiring nontraditional alternative surgical lead placement at our institution between November 2006 and August 2008. The baseline and operative patient characteristic data were accumulated and reviewed.