Novel Technique for Cardiac Monitor Implantation in Pediatrics.

Implantable cardiac monitors (ICM) allow for symptom-rhythm correlation. Current manufacturer recommendations call for implantation of ICMs diagonally in the left anterior chest. Complications such as skin tenting and device erosion have occurred using this technique in pediatric patients.

Characteristics and Hospital Activity of Elderly Patients Receiving Admission Avoidance Home Visits: A Population-Level Record Linkage Study.

As pressures on healthcare systems increase, due to an ageing population, hospital admission avoidance interventions have been emphasised. These interventions can be difficult to objectively evaluate due to non-randomised roll-out, requiring observational methods with carefully selected control groups. This study aims to identify the defining characteristics of elderly patients receiving admission avoidance home visits.

Characteristics and Outcomes of Heart Transplantation in DiGeorge Syndrome.

DiGeorge syndrome (DGS) is commonly associated with both congenital heart disease (CHD) and immunologic abnormalities. While CHD may prompt consideration for heart transplantation (HTx), little is known about HTx management or outcomes in this group. The aim of this study was to describe the spectrum of patients with DGS who undergo HTx and report post-HTx outcomes.

Relation of Right Atrial Volume, Systemic Venous Dimensions, and Flow Patterns to Right Atrial Pressure in Infants and Children.

Echocardiographic assessment of right atrial (RA) volume, inferior vena cava (IVC) diameter, and hepatic vein flow velocity independently correlate with the RA pressure by direct catheter measurement in adults. We prospectively collected invasive RA pressure measurements and echocardiographic data in infants and young children with the goal of developing a predictive model to noninvasively determine normal RA pressure. All subjects had a central venous catheter through which RA pressure could be transduced.

Variation in the transcription of laboratory data in an intensive care unit.

Manual transcription of numerical data is prone to error. We quantified the transcription error rate for blood results recorded in a critical care setting by comparing the handwritten and printed laboratory results in 100 consecutive patients in the intensive care unit, Glasgow Royal Infirmary. Nine hundred and fifty-four sets of results with 4664 individual values were analysed.