Pericardial Calcification: An Uncommon Case with Intraventricular Extension.

An 80-year-old man presented to the cardiology outpatient clinic due to shortness of breath. His past medical history included alcohol intake, hypertension, inferior wall myocardial infarction (five years ago), an ischemic stroke, and permanent atrial fibrillation (diagnosed three years before the current examination). A physical exam revealed a decreased intensity of S1 and S2, irregular rate and rhythm, and no murmurs nor friction rub. X-rays, Computed Tomography, and echocardiography exhibited pericardial calcification, involving mostly the inferior wall and protruding into the left ventricle. A diagnosis of constrictive pericarditis due to pericardial calcification was established and considered idiopathic. Even when it may be related to ischemic heart disease, post-infarction pericarditis could explain how the calcification extended to adjacent territory perfused by the circumflex coronary artery. Combined imaging studies were crucial not only for identifying calcium deposits in the pericardium but also in assessing a patient inherently prone to co-existing and exacerbating conditions. Even though pericardiectomy allows for removal of the clinical manifestations of congestive pericarditis in the most symptomatic patients with pericardial calcification, among patients like ours, with tolerable symptoms, cardiologists should discuss the therapeutic options considering the patient's choices, potentially including a rehabilitation plan as part of non-pharmacological management.

Cardiac MRI evaluation of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy: left ventricular outflow tract/aortic valve diameter ratio predicts severity of LVOT obstruction.

PURPOSE: To evaluate if left ventricular outflow tract/aortic valve (LVOT/AO) diameter ratio measured by cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging is an accurate marker for LVOT obstruction in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) compared to Doppler echocardiography. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In all, 92 patients with HCM were divided into three groups based on their resting echocardiographic LVOT pressure gradient (PG): <30 mmHg at rest (nonobstructive, n = 31), <30 mmHg at rest, >30 mmHg after provocation (latent, n = 29), and >30 mmHg at rest (obstructive, n = 32). The end-systolic dimension of the LVOT on 3-chamber steady-state free precession (SSFP) CMR was divided by the end diastolic aortic valve diameter to calculate the LVOT/AO diameter ratio. RESULTS: There were significant differences in the LVOT/AO diameter ratio among the three subgroups (nonobstructive 0.60 ± 0.13, latent 0.41 ± 0.16, obstructive 0.24 ± 0.09, P < 0.001). There was a strong linear inverse correlation between the LVOT/AO diameter ratio and the log of the LVOT pressure gradient (r = -0.84, P < 0.001). For detection of a resting gradient >30 mmHg, the LVOT/AO diameter ratio the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was 0.91 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.85-0.97). For detection of a resting and/or provoked gradient >30 mmHg, the LVOT/AO diameter ratio area under the ROC curve was 0.90 (95% CI 0.84-0.96). CONCLUSION: The LVOT/AO diameter ratio is an accurate, reproducible, noninvasive, and easy to use CMR marker to assess LVOT pressure gradients in patients with HCM.

[Infective endocarditis. 5-years experience in a third-level reference center in Yucatan, Mexico]. / Endocarditis infecciosa. Experiencia de 5 años en un tercer nivel de referencia en Yucatán México.

BACKGROUND: Infective endocarditis is a disease with high morbidity and mortality. The clinical characteristics differ among populations. Therefore it is important to know the characteristics of the disease in our region. METHODS: This is an observational study that included all patients diagnosed with infective endocarditis from 1 January 2009 until 31 December 2014. The data are showed as frequencies and percentages altogether with medians with interquartile range. RESULTS: 10 cases were included. The median age was 34 years (IQR 26-41). Several risk factors were identified and included: previous valvular heart disease, patients with chronic kidney disease who have had a vascular access and previous history of immunological disease. The native mitral valve was the most affected. The size of vegetations had a median length of 14 mm (IQR 9.3-16). Streptococcus alpha hemolytic was the most common organism. In-hospital mortality rate was 10 %. CONCLUSIONS: The behavior of the disease is similar to other national series. We identify risk factors that could be related to the type of morbidities in the region.

Introducción: la endocarditis infecciosa es una enfermedad con elevada morbilidad y mortalidad. La expresión clínica es variable en diferentes poblaciones, por lo que es imperativo conocer las características de la enfermedad en nuestra región. Métodos: estudio observacional que incluyo la totalidad de los pacientes diagnosticados con endocarditis bacteriana entre el 1 de enero de 2009 hasta el 31 de diciembre de 2014. Los datos se presentan como frecuencias con porcentajes y medianas con rango intercuartílico, según sea el caso. Resultados: se incluyen 10 casos. La mediana de edad fue 34 años (RIC 26-41). Los factores de riesgo identificados fueron: enfermedad valvular previa, enfermedad renal crónica con acceso vascular y enfermedad inmunológica. La válvula mitral nativa fue la más afectada. La mediana de longitud de las vegetaciones fue de 14 mm (RIC 9.3-16). El estreptococo alfa hemolítico fue el microorganismo más común. La tasa de mortalidad intrahospitalaria fue del 10 %. Conclusiones: el comportamiento de la enfermedad es similar a otras series nacionales. Identificamos factores de riesgo que pueden circunscribirse a las morbilidades en la región.

PET/CT assessment of symptomatic individuals with obstructive and nonobstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

UNLABELLED: Patients with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) exhibit elevated left ventricular outflow tract gradients (LVOTGs) and appear to have a worse prognosis than those with nonobstructive HCM. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether patients with obstruction, compared with nonobstructive HCM, demonstrate significant differences in PET parameters of microvascular function. METHODS: PET was performed in 33 symptomatic HCM patients at rest and during dipyridamole stress (peak) for the assessment of regional myocardial perfusion (rMP), left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), myocardial blood flow (MBF), and myocardial flow reserve (MFR). Myocardial wall thickness and LVOTG were measured with an echocardiogram. Patients were divided into the following 3 groups: nonobstructive (LVOTG < 30 mm Hg at rest and after provocation test with amyl nitrite), obstructive (LVOTG ≥ 30 mm Hg at rest and with provocation), and latent HCM (LVOTG < 30 at rest but ≥ 30 mm Hg with provocation). RESULTS: Eleven patients were classified as nonobstructive (group 1), 12 as obstructive (group 2), and 10 as latent HCM (group 3). Except for age (42 ± 18 y for group 1, 58 ± 7 y for group 2, and 58 ± 12 y for group 3; P = 0.01), all 3 groups had similar baseline characteristics, including maximal wall thickness (2.3 ± 0.5 cm for group 1, 2.2 ± 0.4 cm for group 2, and 2.1 ± 0.7 cm for group 3; P = 0.7). During peak flow, most patients in groups 1 and 2, but fewer in group 3, exhibited rMP defects (73% for group 1, 100% for group 2, and 40% for group 3; P = 0.007) and a drop in LVEF (73% for group 1, 92% for group 2, and 50% for group 3; P = 0.09). Peak MBF (1.58 ± 0.49 mL/min/g for group 1, 1.72 ± 0.46 mL/min/g for group 2, and 1.97 ± 0.32 mL/min/g for group 3; P = 0.14) and MFR (1.62 ± 0.57 for group 1, 1.90 ± 0.31 for group 2, and 2.27 ± 0.51 for group 3; P = 0.01) were lower in the nonobstructive and higher in the latent HCM group. LVOTGs demonstrated no significant correlation with any flow dynamics. In a multivariate regression analysis, maximal wall thickness was the only significant predictor for reduced peak MBF (ß = -0.45, P = 0.003) and MFR (ß = -0.63, P = 0.0001). CONCLUSION: Maximal wall thickness was identified as the strongest predictor of impaired dipyridamole-induced hyperemia and flow reserve in our study, whereas outflow tract obstruction was not an independent determinant.