Publications by authors named "Simona-Ruxanda Dragan"

Background: Over the years, troponins have aced the para-clinical tests for confirming the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction. However, the rise in their levels is entirely time-dependent, which can cause a delay in the initiation of treatment protocols. Heart fatty acid binding protein (H-FABP) can serve comparatively as a better biological marker for overcoming this flaw of troponins, as it is quickly released into the bloodstream once the myocardial injury occurs due to decreased blood supply.

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Article Synopsis
  • The COVID-19 pandemic has led to significant health issues and financial losses, with certain comorbidities, like diabetes and obesity, increasing the risk of severe illness and higher mortality rates.
  • A study conducted on 143 non-diabetic patients who recovered from COVID-19 found that 30.7% developed long COVID-19 syndrome, and 75% of those patients were diagnosed with diabetes within a year.
  • The research highlighted a notable correlation between long COVID and the development of insulin resistance, particularly among patients with a higher BMI, suggesting a major risk for altered metabolic health post-infection.
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Given the widespread occurrence of insulin resistance, a key factor in metabolic syndrome and a distinct condition altogether, there is a clear need for effective, surrogate markers. The triglyceride-to-high-density lipoprotein (TG/HDL) ratio stands out as a viable option, indicative of changes in lipid metabolism associated with insulin resistance, offering a cost-effective and straightforward alternative to traditional, more complex biomarkers. This review, in line with PRISMA guidelines, assesses the TG/HDL ratio's potential as an indirect indicator of insulin resistance.

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BACKGROUND The importance of introducing digital technology as an alternative to classical cardiac rehabilitation has been discussed in several reviews. The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to analyze the effectiveness of digital technology use in cardiac rehabilitation to determine whether digital methods like use of smartphones, compared to traditional rehabilitation methods, can improve the overall quality of life and exercise capacity of cardiac patients. MATERIAL AND METHODS PubMed, EMBASE, and ScienceDirect were systematically searched in a randomized manner, resulting in 11 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) that met all the inclusion criteria.

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Background: The clinical presentation of SARS-CoV-2 varies from patient to patient. The most common findings noted were respiratory tract infections, of different severity grades. In some cases, multi-organ damage was noted.

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Background: Cardioembolic stroke (CES), generally known as the most severe subtype of ischemic stroke, is related to many factors, including diabetes mellitus (DM), hypertension (HTN), smoking, hyperlipidemia and atrial fibrillation (AF). Genetic mutations of the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene and have been recently associated with ischemic stroke. The purpose of this study was to analyze the prevalence of gene polymorphisms correlated with cardiovascular risk factors in a selected population of patients with CES due to non-valvular AF (NVAF).

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