Aortic Valve-in-Valve Procedures: Challenges and Future Directions.

Aortic valve-in-valve (ViV) procedures are increasingly performed for the treatment of surgical bioprosthetic valve failure in patients at intermediate to high surgical risk. Although ViV procedures offer indisputable benefits in terms of procedural time, in-hospital length of stay, and avoidance of surgical complications, they also present unique challenges. Growing awareness of the technical difficulties and potential threats associated with ViV procedures mandates careful preprocedural planning.

Management of temporary mechanical circulatory support devices in cath-lab and cardiac intensive care unit.

Different temporary mechanical circulatory support (tMCS) devices are available and can be used to maintain end-organ perfusion while reducing cardiac work and myocardial oxygen demand. tMCS can provide support to the right ventricle, left ventricle, or both, and its use can be considered in emergency situations such as cardiogenic shock or in elective procedures such as high-risk percutaneous coronary intervention to prevent haemodynamic deterioration. Invasive and, most importantly, non-invasive haemodynamic parameters should be taken into account when choosing the type of tMCS device and its initiation and weaning timing, determining the need for a device upgrade, and screening for complications.

Sex differences in patients presenting with acute coronary syndrome: a state-of-the-art review.

Cardiovascular conditions in the spectrum of acute coronary syndromes are characterized by sex differences with regard to pathophysiology, risk factors, clinical presentation, invasive and pharmacologic treatment, and outcomes. This review delves into these differences, including specific subsets like myocardial infarction with non-obstructed coronary arteries or Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection, and alternative diagnoses like Takotsubo cardiomyopathy or myocarditis. Moreover, practical considerations are enclosed, on how a sex-specific approach should be integrated in clinical practice: in fact, personal history should focus on female-specific risk factors, and hormonal status and hormonal therapy should be assessed.

Comprehensive diagnostic workup in patients with suspected heart failure and preserved ejection fraction.

Diagnosis of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) can be challenging and it could require different tests, some of which are affected by limited availability. Nowadays, considering that new therapies are available for HFpEF and related conditions, a prompt and correct diagnosis is relevant. However, the diagnostic role of biomarker level, imaging tools, score-based algorithms and invasive evaluation, should be based on the strengths and weaknesses of each test.

Use of Taurolidine in a Patient With a Cardiac Implantable Electronic Device Protrusion.

We report the successful salvage of cardiac implantable electronic device pulse generator protrusion sealed by the surrounding skin in a frail patient presenting 5 months after the last surgical revision. ().

Can the size of the contact area body-ground influence the presence of acute pulmonary emphysema in cases of incomplete hanging?

In a recently published study, we showed that acute pulmonary emphysema (APE) was present in cases of death by incomplete hanging and absent in cases of complete hanging. This result suggested a possible role of the hanging position on the respiratory distress of these victims. To further investigate this hypothesis, in the present study, we compared cases of incomplete hanging with a small contact area between body and ground (group A) to cases of incomplete hanging with a large contact area (group B).

Prognostic risk factors for loss of patency after femoropopliteal bailout stenting with dual-component stent: results from the TIGRIS Italian Multicenter Registry.

Purpose: To identify the risk factors associated with patency loss after bailout stenting with third-generation hybrid heparin-bonded nitinol stent of the femoropopliteal segment.

Methods: Prospective, multicenter, single-arm registry including 156 patients (50 females, mean age 72 ± 11 years) subjected, from February 2017 to December 2018, to provisional stenting with Gore Tigris vascular stent of the distal superficial femoral artery, with or without involvement of the popliteal artery, in 9 different centers. The 194 lesions, with Rutherford score ≥ 3, were stented in case of recoil, dissection or residual stenosis not responding to percutaneous trans-luminal angioplasty (PTA).

Validation of the Acoustic Voice Quality Index (AVQI) Version 03.01 in Italian.

Objective: The aim of the present study is to validate the Acoustic Voice Quality Index version 03.01 in the Italian language (AVQIv3-IT).

Methods: A total of 150 native Italian speakers with normal voices (n = 50) and with various voice disorders (n = 100) were enrolled.

Hypertensive emergencies and urgencies in emergency departments: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objectives: The prevalence of hypertensive emergencies and urgencies and of acute hypertension-mediated organ damage (aHMOD) in emergency departments is unknown. Moreover, the predictive value of symptoms, blood pressure (BP) levels and cardiovascular risk factors to suspect the presence of aHMOD is still unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of hypertensive emergencies and hypertensive urgencies in emergency departments and of the relative frequency of subtypes of aHMOD, as well as to assess the clinical variables associated with aHMOD.

Echocardiography in Pandemic: Front-Line Perspective, Expanding Role of Ultrasound, and Ethics of Resource Allocation.

The grave clinical context of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic must be understood. Italy is immersed in the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of the world will soon follow.

A unique case of traumatic pulmonary food embolism.

We report a unique case of post-traumatic pulmonary food embolism, due to a lethal blunt force trauma occurred in a traffic accident. The subject was a 37-year old man, victim of a road traffic accident while he was riding his motorbike. A forensic autopsy, followed by histological examination, was ordered in order to find out the cause of death and to assess the compatibility of the lesions with the dinamic of the accident.

Embo-EVAR: A Technique to Prevent Type II Endoleak? A Single-Center Experience.

Background: Intraprocedural aneurysm sac embolization (embo-EVAR) during endovascular abdominal aneurysm repair (EVAR) using coils and fibrin glue is a technique for preventing type II endoleak (EII). Our aim is to evaluate feasibility, safety and clinical outcome of this promising approach.

Materials And Methods: A retrospective clinical case analysis of 72 patients who underwent EVAR during the period 2011-2014.

Adult advanced chronic lymphocytic leukemia: computational analysis of whole-body CT documents a bone structure alteration.

Purpose: To assess the presence of alteration of bone structure and bone marrow metabolism in adult patients who were suspected of having advanced chronic lymphocytic leukemia (ACLL) by using a computational prognostic model that was based on computational analysis of positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) images.

Materials And Methods: In this retrospective study, all patients signed written informed consent as a requisite to undergo PET/CT examination. However, due to its observational nature, approval from the ethical committee was not deemed necessary.

Treatment of juxtarenal aortic aneurysm with the Multilayer stent.

Purpose: To report the use of a new type of uncovered stent to treat aortic aneurysms.

Case Report: Under compassionate use, an 81-year-old man with multiple comorbidities and an expanding 63-mm juxtarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm was treated with a 28×100-mm Multilayer flow-modulating stent. Immediately, the blood flow velocity inside the aneurysm sac appeared reduced on fluoroscopy.

A large outbreak of Opisthorchis felineus in Italy suggests that opisthorchiasis develops as a febrile eosinophilic syndrome with cholestasis rather than a hepatitis-like syndrome.

We describe the greatest Italian human acute opisthorchiasis outbreak acquired from eating raw tenches. Out of 52 people with suspected opisthorchiasis, 45 resulted in being infected. The most frequent symptoms and laboratory findings were fever, abdominal pain and eosinophilia.

Report of a case of epithelioid hemangioendothelioma of the anterior mediastinum metastatic to pleura.

We present a case of epithelioid hemangioendothelioma metastatic to pleura, in a 69-year-old woman with chest pain. This distinctive vascular neoplasm can arise in various organs, most commonly in middle-aged women. It is characterized by slow growth, and, microscopically, by epithelioid tumor cells in appearance.