Background: The prevalence and prognosis of premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) among individuals without structural heart disease are uncertain. Standard transthoracic echocardiography is a common method in evaluation of underlying cardiovascular disease and is recommended as a diagnostic method in PVC patients. However, it is unclear whether comprehensive echocardiographic examination can identify pathological findings in PVC patients with a normal standard echocardiogram.
Method: We included forty consecutive patients with a high PVC burden (>10,000 PVCs/day) and normal findings at a standard echocardiogram and exercise test. All subjects were investigated by a comprehensive echocardiographic examination using parameters usually not included in a routine work-up. We compared the results with 22 age and sex-matched controls.
Results: In six additional parameters-global longitudinal strain, right ventricular strain, septal-lateral delay, ventricular-arterial coupling, integrated backscatter and left atrial activation time-a statistically significant difference was shown between PVC patients and controls. Among these parameters, global longitudinal strain had a high reliability between operators.
Conclusions: Despite normal findings at standard echocardiography, the PVC group showed signs of impaired heart function when more comprehensive echocardiography parameters were used.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ijcha.2022.101124 | DOI Listing |
Herzschrittmacherther Elektrophysiol
January 2025
Hannover Heart Rhythm Center, Department of Cardiology & Angiology, Hannover Medical School, Carl-Neuberg Str. 1, 30625, Hannover, Germany.
Background: The QRS axis of the electrocardiogram (ECG) is often considered in clinical practice, but its determination is frequently limited to a rough estimation, such as "normal", with left or right deviation, and superior or inferior in the case of premature ventricular complexes (PVCs). However, a more exact determination of the QRS axis may be warranted in certain scenarios, such as to determine the origin of PVCs more precisely, and is attainable by visual estimation using the hexaxial reference system.
Objectives: The aim of this study was to determine how well such an estimation of the QRS axis would correlate with the axis calculated by formulas.
Br J Nurs
January 2025
Audit and Surveillance Specialist Nurse, Infection Prevention and Control, Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust.
Background: Incidence of peripheral venous cannula (PVC) bacteraemia have been rising in a trust in the south-west of England, with a 267% increase noted over the 2022/23 financial year compared with the previous year.
Aim: To use a multimodal approach to reduce the incidence of PVC bacteraemia and improve patient safety.
Methods: The initiative consisted of an educational poster highlighting the severity of infection associated with PVCs alongside key prevention messages rooted in Trust policy.
BMJ Open
January 2025
School of Nursing & Midwifery, University of Galway, Galway, Ireland.
Introduction: The peripheral vascular catheter (PVC) is the most common intravenous medical device used in hospitals, given it is crucial for the delivery of intravenous therapies. Despite its widespread use, PVC complications such as occlusion, infiltration, extravasation, phlebitis, thrombophlebitis, catheter-related thrombosis and catheter-related bloodstream infection significantly affect patient safety, leading to increased morbidity and healthcare costs. One approach to maintain PVC patency and therefore device longevity is to flush the PVC.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFVasc Med
January 2025
Oncology Department, Hospital Arnau de Vilanova, Valencia, Spain.
Background: It is not yet known whether lipedema is a progressive chronic disease or not. The aim of this paper is to describe the long-term changes in the volume of the lower limbs.
Methods: The primary endpoint of this prospective cohort study of patients with lipedema was the percentage of volume change (PVC) during follow up.
J Interv Card Electrophysiol
January 2025
Divison of Arrhythmia, Cardiology and Vascular Department, St. David's Medical Center, Austin, TX, USA.
Background: The relationship between premature ventricular contractions (PVC) and right ventricular (RV) function is not widely known. Left ventricular (LV) dysfunction due to PVC is known as PVC-induced cardiomyopathy (PIC) and suppressing the PVC substrate would improve LV function. The effect of PVC ablation on changes in RV function in patients with subtle RV subclinical dysfunction remains unknown.
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