Review and Analysis of Publication Trends over Three Decades in Three High Impact Medicine Journals.

Context: Over the past three decades, industry sponsored research expanded in the United States. Financial incentives can lead to potential conflicts of interest (COI) resulting in underreporting of negative study results.

Objective: We hypothesized that over the three decades, there would be an increase in: a) reporting of conflict of interest and source of funding; b) percentage of randomized control trials c) number of patients per study and d) industry funding.

Risks and complications of coronary angiography: a comprehensive review.

Coronary angiography and heart catheterization are invaluable tests for the detection and quantification of coronary artery disease, identification of valvular and other structural abnormalities, and measurement of hemodynamic parameters. The risks and complications associated with these procedures relate to the patient's concomitant conditions and to the skill and judgment of the operator. In this review, we examine in detail the major complications associated with invasive cardiac procedures and provide the reader with a comprehensive bibliography for advanced reading.

Utility of brain natriuretic peptide as a predictor of atrial fibrillation after cardiac operations.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) occurs frequently after coronary bypass grafting and valve operations. Brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) has been shown to predict recurrence of AF in congestive heart failure. It is a potential biomarker for preoperative risk stratification for development of AF in at-risk patients.

Enhancing the diagnostic performance of troponins in the acute care setting.

Background: Current guidelines define cardiac troponin I (TnI) as an indicator of necrosis when the concentration exceeds the 99% upper limit of a healthy reference population, a reference value near the assay's lowest detectable level. We assessed the utility of a modified TnI cutoff point derived from a population at low risk for coronary artery disease (CAD) and evaluated its utility in determining acute myocardial infarction (MI).

Methods: A modified TnI cutoff point was derived by the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve from 737 consecutive patients who underwent serial TnI measurements for exclusion of MI.

Use of nesiritide in Ebstein's anomaly.

A rare case of a 77-year-old man with congestive heart failure due to a previously diagnosed condition of Ebstein's anomaly is presented. Unique to the present case is the treatment of New York Heart Association class IV congestive heart failure associated with Ebstein's anomaly with nesiritide.

Fiber size, type, and myosin heavy chain content in rhesus hindlimb muscles after 2 weeks at 2 G.

Background: Fiber atrophy and an increase in the percentage of fast fibers have been observed in Rhesus leg muscles after spaceflight.

Hypothesis: Hypergravity will result in muscle fiber hypertrophy and an increase in the percentage of slow fibers.

Methods: Open muscle biopsies were obtained from Rhesus soleus, medial gastrocnemius (MG), and tibialis anterior (TA) muscles before and after 14 d of centrifugation (2 G) and in time-matched controls.