Accession Site Does Not Influence the Risk of Stroke after Diagnostic Coronary Angiography or Intervention: Results from a Large Prospective Registry.

Introduction: Periprocedural stroke represents a rare but serious complication of cardiac catheterization. Pooled data from randomized trials evaluating the risk of stroke following cardiac catheterization via transradial versus transfemoral access showed no difference. On the other hand, a significant difference in stroke rates favoring transradial access was found in a recent meta-analysis of observational studies.

Heart failure is the strongest predictor of acute kidney injury in patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention for ST-elevation myocardial infarction.

Background: ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) patients treated by primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) are at higher risk of acute kidney injury (AKI) than patients undergoing PCI in stable clinical conditions. This fact suggests that mechanisms other than contrast nephrotoxicity are involved.

Aim: To evaluate the incidence, risk factors, and consequences of AKI in patients undergoing primary PCI for STEMI in current daily practice.

Forces and currents in carbon nanostructures: are we imaging atoms?

First-principles calculations show that the rich variety of image patterns found in carbon nanostructures with the atomic force and scanning tunneling microscopes can be rationalized in terms of the chemical reactivity of the tip and the distance range explored in the experiments. For weakly reactive tips, the Pauli repulsion dominates the atomic contrast and force maxima are expected on low electronic density positions as the hollow site. With reactive tips, the interaction is strong enough to change locally the hybridization of the carbon atoms, making it possible to observe atomic resolution in both the attractive and the repulsive regime although with inverted contrast.

Theoretical study of electronic and transport properties of PPy-Pt(111) and PPy-C(111):H interfaces.

We present a first-principles study of promising hybrid organic-inorganic interface systems consisting of a polypyrrole (PPy) chain sandwiched between metallic Pt(111) or hydrogen-terminated diamond C(111):H electrodes. We combine ab initio density-functional-theory total energy calculations, Green's function approach and the complex band-structure method in order to determine electronic and transport properties of those organic-semiconductor/metal (semiconductor) interfaces. We analyze one- and multi-bond nanocontact formation including structural modification (H desorption) as well as PPy length dependence.

Prevention of contrast-induced acute kidney injury by theophylline in elderly patients with chronic kidney disease.

Although the optimal strategy for preventing contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) has not yet been established, the current strategy focuses on adequate periprocedural hydration, the use of a low amount of low or iso-osmolar contrast medium, and the application of adjunctive therapies, including hemofiltration, hemodialysis and drugs. Previous trials and meta-analyses concerning the use of the adenosine antagonist theophylline have revealed contradictory results. We sought to evaluate the effect of theophylline in CI-AKI prevention in well-hydrated elderly patients with chronic kidney disease.