Percutaneous left atrial appendage occlusion: impact on left atrial deformation indices.

Background: Percutaneous left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) is an accepted alternative to thromboprophylaxis in patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) who are: (i) intolerant to oral anticoagulation (OAC) (e.g. life-threatening haemorrhage), (ii) non-adherent to OAC, or (iii) at a high bleeding risk with OAC.

Diagnostic performance of dobutamine stress echocardiography: A South African experience.

Dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) is a well-established modality for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease, but there are no reported diagnostic data in southern Africa. Objectives. To compare the safety, sensitivity and specificity of a South African (SA) DSE programme with larger, international series.

Renal denervation prevents subclinical atrial fibrillation in patients with hypertensive heart disease: Randomized, sham-controlled trial.

Background: Catheter-based renal denervation (RD), in addition to pulmonary vein isolation (PVI), reduces atrial fibrillation (AF) recurrence in hypertensive patients. Whether RD, without additional PVI, can prevent subclinical atrial fibrillation (SAF) in patients with hypertensive heart disease (HHD) is unknown.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to assess the efficacy of RD in preventing SAF in patients with HHD.

Percutaneous left atrial appendage occlusion: A South African experience.

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with all-cause mortality, heart failure and non-fatal stroke, and thromboprophylaxis is traditionally provided with oral anticoagulants (OACs). Percutaneous left atrial appendage occlusion (LAAO) with a dedicated device is an alternative approach to thromboprophylaxis in patients with AF who are: (i) intolerant to OACs (e.g.

Randomized, double-blind, dose-ranging study of otamixaban, a novel, parenteral, short-acting direct factor Xa inhibitor, in percutaneous coronary intervention: the SEPIA-PCI trial.

Background: The optimal anticoagulant regimen for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) remains to be determined. Otamixaban, a selective and direct inhibitor of factor Xa, was investigated in patients undergoing nonurgent percutaneous coronary intervention.

Methods And Results: In this double-blind, double-dummy, parallel-group, dose-ranging trial, 947 patients were randomly assigned to either 1 of 5 weight-adjusted otamixaban regimens or weight-adjusted unfractionated heparin (UFH) before percutaneous coronary intervention.

Endovascular aortic aneurysm repair by a multidisciplinary team: lessons learned and six-year clinical update.

Background: Endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) (using an Federal Drug Association-approved AneuRx device) compared to conventional surgical repair of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) previously rendered favourable outcomes regarding post-operative pain, avoidance of laparotomy, and rapid rehabilitation and hospital discharge in high-risk patients, including octagenarians.

Objectives: To assess the safety, reduction in aneurysm-related deaths, and interim survival data up to 72 months after AAA exclusion by endoluminal endografts (EVAR).

Design: We carried out an open, controlled, prospective, multidisciplinary EVAR study for the period 1998 to 2003 (six years).

Carotid stenosis and carotid plaque analysis relevant to carotid endarterectomy and stent-assisted angioplasty.

The primary objective of this cadaveric study was to review the morphological variations of the anatomy of the human carotid artery bifurcation relevant to carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and carotid artery stent-supported angioplasty (CSSA). We quantify carotid bifurcation plaque morphology. Results showed that the angle of deviation at the origin of the internal carotid artery (ICA), in relation to the common carotid artery (CCA), measured a mean of 21.

EVAR: critical applied aortic morphology relevant to type-II endoleaks following device enhancement in patients with abdominal aortic aneurysms.

Endovascular repair (EVAR) of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) is an established alternative option to conventional surgery for AAA, provided optimal anatomical morphology of the aneurysm sac, neck and outflow exists. In most documented series of EVAR, type-II endoleak occurrence is a universal procedural drawback. This is referred to as the Achilles heel of EVAR.