RESUMO
COVID19 altered and impacted medical and surgical practice around the world. Standard of care and routine procedures are disrupted. Majors shift in personnel, and ad hoc new team as well as delocalization and working with new infrastructures are further challenges to be dealt with. This review of three very unusual scenarios illustrates pitfalls and dangers harbored in the re-shaped landscape of COVID19 exemplifying the narrow path bridging from the medical and surgical comfort zone to uncharted territory and eventually leading to collateral damage.
Le Covid-19 a profondément modifié et sévèrement impacté les pratiques médicales et chirurgicales à long terme. Les standards de prise en charge et les procédures de routine sont altérés, voire perturbés. Des mutations majeures au niveau du personnel et des équipes de même que la délocalisation ou le travail avec de nouvelles infrastructures sont autant de défis à relever, encore aujourd'hui. Trois scénarios inhabituels illustrent les pièges et les dangers qui se cachent dans le paysage marqué par le Covid-19. Ces exemples démontrent la marge étroite entre la zone de confort médicale et chirurgicale classique et l'appréhension d'une situation inhabituelle qui risque d'entraîner des dommages collatéraux pour les patients.
Assuntos
COVID-19 , Procedimentos Cirúrgicos Cardíacos , HumanosRESUMO
BACKGROUND: Loeffler endocarditis is a rare restrictive cardiomyopathy, characterized by hypereosinophilia and fibrous thickening of the endocardium causing progressive onset of heart failure and appearance of thrombi on the walls of the heart chambers. CASE SUMMARY: A 72-year-old man known for hypertension and dyslipidaemia consults for progressive dyspnoea up to New York Heart Association (NYHA) Classes 2-3 over 3 weeks. The biological balance sheet shows a high eosinophil level and an echocardiography shows a mild echodensity fixed to the left apex. After exclusion of a secondary cause of hypereosinophilia, diagnosis of endomyocardial fibrosis in the context of a hypereosinophilic syndrome (HES) is therefore retained. The patient's clinical presentation with cardiac involvement leads us to start a treatment with corticosteroids. The patient is then regularly followed every 6 months with an initially stable course without complications. Two years later, he develops progressive signs of heart failure. Transthoracic echocardiography shows a left ventricular (LV) dilatation with a normal ejection fraction, but decreased volume due to a large echodense mass in the apex, and moderate aortic regurgitation caused by myocardial infiltration. In view of this rapid evolution, resection of the LV mass with concomitant aortic valve replacement is performed. Pathology confirms eosinophilic infiltration. The clinical course is very good with a patient who remains stable with dyspnoea NYHA Classes 1-2, and echocardiography at 1 year shows a normalization of LV filling pressure. DISCUSSION: HES represents a heterogeneous group of disorders characterized by overproduction of eosinophils. One of the major causes of mortality is associated cardiac involvement. Endocardial fibrosis and mural thrombosis are frequent cardiac findings. Echocardiography plays a crucial role in initial diagnosis of endomyocardial fibrosis, and for regular follow-up in order to adapt medical treatment and monitor haemodynamic evolution of the restrictive physiology and of valvular damage caused by the disease's evolution. This case also shows that surgery can normalize filling pressure and allow a clear improvement on the clinical condition even at the terminal fibrotic state.
RESUMO
Spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) is an important cause of acute coronary syndrome, myocardial infarction and sudden cardiac death, among young patient with little/no traditional cardiovascular risk factors. Historically SCAD was considered as a rare pathology, associated primarily with pregnancy and the peripartum period. In recent years, SCAD diagnosis improved thanks to data derived from large registries, thanks to the increased use of diagnostic coronary angiography and the availability of intracoronary imaging. To date there are no randomized trials dedicated to SCAD. However, thanks to global efforts to build national SCAD registries, knowledge of SCAD has tremendously increased during the last years, demonstrating that SCAD is a distinct pathophysiological entity, and presents key differences in management and outcomes compared to ACS of atherosclerotic aetiology.
La dissection coronaire spontanée est une cause importante de syndrome coronarien aigu, d'infarctus du myocarde et de mort subite, chez des patients jeunes, présentant peu ou pas de facteurs de risque cardiovasculaire traditionnels. Historiquement elle était considérée comme une pathologie rare, survenant essentiellement en association avec la grossesse et le peripartum. Il n'existe à l'heure actuelle pas d'études randomisées concernant la dissection coronaire spontanée. Toutefois, grâce à un effort international visant à établir de larges registres nationaux répertoriant les patients atteints de dissection coronaire spontanée, les connaissances concernant cette pathologie ont largement évolué au cours des dernières années, permettant de mettre en évidence que la dissection coronaire spontanée constitue une entité physiopathologique distincte, et que son traitement et son évolution clinique sont distincts du syndrome coronarien aigu d'origine athérosclérotique.
Assuntos
Anomalias dos Vasos Coronários , Doenças Vasculares , Angiografia Coronária , Anomalias dos Vasos Coronários/diagnóstico , Anomalias dos Vasos Coronários/terapia , Feminino , Humanos , Gravidez , Fatores de Risco , Doenças Vasculares/diagnóstico , Doenças Vasculares/terapiaRESUMO
BACKGROUND: Infective endocarditis with paravalvular abscess can be complicated by atrioventricular block (AVB), but junctional ectopic tachycardia (JET) has as yet never been described. CASE SUMMARY: A 68-year-old male recently admitted with Staphylococcal aureus endocarditis of his aortic valve bioprosthesis, presented with a regular tachycardia at 240 b.p.m. with a pre-existent right bundle branch block pattern. Haemodynamic collapse necessitated electrical cardioversion, following which high-grade AVB was observed. Multiple recurrences of the same tachycardia required repeated electrical cardioversions and emergent electrophysiological study, which indicated JET. The tachycardia was unresponsive to overdrive pacing, adenosine and intravenous amiodarone, and external cardioversions. Radiofrequency catheter ablation of the atrioventricular node was performed emergently with interruption of the tachycardia. A temporary external pacemaker was implanted via a jugular route. The tachycardia recurred after 48 h at a slower rate, and the patient underwent redo ablation. Transoesophageal echocardiography revealed a pseudoaneurysm of the right sinus of Valsalva probably corresponding to an evacuated abscess. A permanent pacemaker was implanted after active infection had been ruled out. At 3 months of follow-up, the patient had complete AVB, without arrhythmia recurrence. DISCUSSION: This is the first case report of JET complicating a paravalvular abscess of the aortic valve with concomitant AVB. Junctional ectopic tachycardia is very rare arrhythmia which is usually seen in children as a congenital arrhythmia or following surgical correction of paediatric heart disease. The differential diagnosis is discussed in detail in the article.
RESUMO
Idiopathic venous thromboembolic disease may be the first manifestation of a cancer yet undiagnosed. Early detection of neoplasia may allow a timely management and a reduction of mortality. However, the nature and extent of screening for hidden cancer is still debated. The purpose of this article is to review the usefulness of occult cancer screening in patients with idiopathic venous thromboembolism.
La maladie thromboembolique veineuse idiopathique peut être la première manifestation d'un cancer non encore diagnostiqué. La découverte précoce d'une néoplasie pourrait permettre une prise en charge plus rapide, et ainsi en réduire potentiellement la mortalité. Cependant, à l'heure actuelle, la nature et l'exhaustivité du dépistage à la recherche d'un cancer occulte chez ce groupe de patients restent encore débattues. L'objectif de cet article est de faire le point sur l'utilité du dépistage de cancer occulte en cas de maladie thromboembolique veineuse idiopathique.