The Left Atrial Septal Pouch as a Possible Risk Factor for Stroke.

BACKGROUND: The left atrial septal pouch (LASP) is formed by the caudal fusion of the area of overlap of the septum primum and the septum secundum, leaving an opening toward the left atrium. The association between LASP and stroke has not been validated by the previous studies. METHODS: The prevalence of the LASP was determined in 223 ischemic stroke patients and 223 control subjects with other cardiac pathologies, in a monocentric retrospective case-control study design. Stroke subtypes were defined according to the modified TOAST criteria. RESULTS: The mean age was 66 ± 15, 54% males, with a high prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors. The prevalence of the LASP was 81 (18%), irrespective of age or pathology. The number of LASP was similar in the stroke and control groups (18% vs. 19%, P = 0.7), as well as in the cryptogenic stroke subgroup (16%, P = 0.6). LASP was not associated with ischemic stroke on univariate (OR = 1.095; 95% CI = 0.676-1.772; P = 0.7) and multivariate logistic regression analysis (OR = 1.004; 95%CI = 0.574-1.758, P = 0.98). There was no statistical association between LASP and cryptogenic stroke on univariate (OR = 1.26; 95%CI = 0.526-3.016; P = 0.6) or multivariate analysis (OR = 0.705; 95%CI = 0.193-2.577, P = 0.6). The association of LASP to AF, left ventricular dysfunction, and thrombophilia did not lead to a higher incidence of stroke (OR = 0.99; 95%CI = 0.37-2.66; P = 0.99). CONCLUSION: Our study did not show any association between LASP and ischemic stroke. A septal pouch was present in 18% of the population. Other associated risk factors need to be considered to incriminate the septal pouch as the etiology of a stroke.

Atypical presentation of tuberculous constrictive pericarditis: case report and review of the literature.

An 18-year-old Romanian man with no known history of cardiac disease was admitted to the hospital for the management of right heart failure and bilateral pleural effusions. Further investigations revealed mediastinal lymph nodes and a constrictive cardiac haemodynamic pattern. Lymph node biopsy demonstrated a purulent liquid from which cultures were positive for Mycobacterium tuberculosis. The patient improved rapidly with conservative medical management involving antituberculous therapy and diuretics. Tuberculous constrictive pericarditis is rare in Western countries but may still present in migrant populations. As shown in this case, the possibility of atypical and reversible presentations with neither calcifications nor thickening of the pericardium must not be forgotten.

Characteristics of patients with atrial fibrillation prescribed edoxaban in Belgium and The Netherlands: insights from the ETNA-AF-Europe study.

BACKGROUND: Studies on the use of non-vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants in unselected patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) show that clinical characteristics and dosing practices differ per region, but lack data on edoxaban. METHODS: With data from Edoxaban Treatment in routiNe clinical prActice for patients with AF in Europe (ETNA-AF-Europe), a large prospective observational study, we compared clinical characteristics (including the dose reduction criteria for edoxaban: creatinine clearance 15-50 mL/min, weight ≤60 kg, and/or use of strong p-glycoprotein inhibitors) of patients from Belgium and the Netherlands (BeNe) with those from other European countries (OEC). RESULTS: Of all 13,639 patients in ETNA-AF-Europe, 2579 were from BeNe. BeNe patients were younger than OEC patients (mean age: 72.3 vs 73.9 years), and had lower CHA2DS2-VASc (mean: 2.8 vs 3.2) and HAS-BLED scores (mean: 2.4 vs 2.6). Patients from BeNe less often had hypertension (61.6% vs 80.4%), and/or diabetes mellitus (17.3% vs 23.1%) than patients from OEC. Moreover, relatively fewer patients in BeNe were prescribed the reduced dose of 30 mg edoxaban (14.8%) than in OEC (25.4%). Overall, edoxaban was dosed according to label in 83.1% of patients. Yet, 30 mg edoxaban was prescribed in the absence of any dose reduction criteria in 36.9% of 30 mg users (5.5% of all patients) in BeNe compared with 35.5% (9.0% of all patients) in OEC. CONCLUSION: There were several notable differences between BeNe and OEC regarding clinical characteristics and dosing practices in patients prescribed edoxaban, which are relevant for the local implementation of dose evaluation and optimisation. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT02944019; Date of registration: October 24, 2016.

An unusual right atrial mass: case report and review of the literature.

An 80-year-old woman presented with dyspnoea. Laboratory test results and ECG were normal but echocardiography revealed a right atrial round mobile mass measuring about 20 mm. CT scan and cardiac MRI showed a mass appending on the right atrial free wall above the tricuspid annulus, enhanced by contrast, without any thoracic or abdominal extension, and confirmed the diagnosis of a tumour. After surgical treatment, the pathological examination revealed a cardiac papillary fibroelastoma. This small primary cardiac benign neoplasm usually occurs on cardiac valves, but can also appear, as described here, in a non-valvular localization. The diagnosis is, up to now, usually made by echocardiography, but CT and MR imaging could lead to a better description and analysis of this underestimated tumour.

Fulminant hepatic necrosis resulting from heart failure.

A 60-year-old man without any history of cardiac disease was admitted for fulminant hepatic failure (FHF) with coma which revealed severe dilated cardiomyopathy. The patient improved with an adapted medical treatment and was finally discharged from the hospital. Congestive heart failure is a rare cause of FHF, but an important differential diagnosis because it has a specific and potentially efficient treatment.

Efficacy of therapeutic hypothermia after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest due to ventricular fibrillation.

AIM OF THE STUDY: We investigated implementation and efficacy of mild therapeutic hypothermia in the treatment of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest due to ventricular fibrillation. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Two periods were compared, an historical one (36 patients) between 2000 and 2002 where therapeutic hypothermia was never used, and a recent period (32 patients) between 2003 and 2005 where therapeutic hypothermia (32-34 degrees C) was implemented prospectively in our unit. Cooling was obtained by simply using wet cloths and ice packs. Survival in the two groups and factors associated with survival were analysed, together with the neurological prognosis in discharged patients. RESULTS: Survival was significantly higher in the hypothermia group (56% versus 36%), whereas no significant difference was observed in severity between the two periods. Only age, time from return to spontaneous circulation <20min, and therapeutic hypothermia were independently associated with survival. Therapeutic hypothermia was well tolerated and was associated with a significant improvement in neurological outcome. Whereas only 23% of patients actually reached the target temperature in 2003, 100% did in 2005. CONCLUSION: Therapeutic hypothermia is efficient in significantly improving survival and neurological outcome of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest with ventricular fibrillation. By using a simple method, it can be implemented easily and quickly, without side effects.

The mitral annular displacement by two-dimensional speckle tracking: a new tool in evaluating the left atrial function.

BACKGROUND: The methods used to characterize the volume change and the deformation of the left atrium are highly dependent on technical factors and difficult to use in a clinical environment. The aim of this study was to demonstrate that mitral annular displacement by speckle tracking can be an alternative method to studying the longitudinal left atrial function. METHODS: Ninety study participants (54% men), with a mean age of 53(±15) years, underwent a complete echocardiographic examination, comprising two-dimensional, three-dimensional and tissue Doppler imaging (TDI). They were divided into normal individuals (35) and patients having an abnormal echocardiography (55). RESULTS: There was a very strong correlation between three-dimensional volumetric function and mitral annular displacement, both for the reservoir (r = 0.78; P < 0.0001) and contractile (r = 0.76; P < 0.0001) functions. The correlation with the longitudinal strain displayed an r = 0.87, P > 0.0001 for the reservoir and r = 0.81, P < 0.0001 for the contractile function. The systolic speed in pulsed TDI and the systolic displacement had an r = 0.83, P < 0.0001. Mitral annular displacement was a very good discriminator for normal versus abnormal participants [area under the curve (AUC) for reservoir = 0.872 and for contractile = 0.843; P < 0.0001], performing less well than three-dimensional (AUC reservoir = 0.892 and contractile = 0.915; P < 0.0001) or deformation (AUC = 0.921 and 0.903 respectively; P < 0.0001), but better than pulsed TDI (AUC = 0.807; P < 0.0001). The percentage error was ±15% for interobserver and ±12% for intraobserver variability. The time taken for displacement analysis was 9 ±â€Š3 s for an experienced cardiologist and 12 ±â€Š4 s for a beginner. CONCLUSION: Mitral annular displacement by speckle tracking is a reliable and fast method to evaluate left atrial function. Given the strength of the correlations with strain parameters, it could be used as a surrogate measure of the deformation of left atrium.

Aortic stiffness aging is influenced by past profound immunodeficiency in HIV-infected individuals: results from the EVAS-HIV (EValuation of Aortic Stiffness in HIV-infected individuals).

OBJECTIVE: We compared aortic stiffness between HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected individuals and examined the determinants of vascular aging during HIV infection. METHODS: Aortic stiffness using carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cf-PWV) was evaluated cross-sectionally between HIV-infected individuals and uninfected controls frequency-matched for age and sex, and longitudinally in a subgroup of HIV-infected individuals. Determinants of elevated cf-PWV levels were assessed using logistic regression. Changes in cf-PWV levels during follow-up (mixed-effect linear regression) and risk factors for achieving cf-PWV below (Group 1) or above the median (Group 2) at last follow-up visit were evaluated only in HIV-infected individuals. RESULTS: A total of 133 HIV-infected and 135 HIV-uninfected individuals (mean age: 47.7 ±â€Š8.9 years, 91% men) were enrolled. Median cf-PWV at baseline was similar between HIV-infected individuals and controls [7.5 m/s (interquartile range = 6.7-8.4) vs. 7.5 m/s (interquartile range = 6.6-8.4), respectively; P = 0.64]. In multivariable analysis, only mean arterial pressure showed significant association with elevated cf-PWV in the overall population (P = 0.036). In HIV-infected individuals, elevated cf-PWV was associated with current smoking (P = 0.042), and nadir CD4 T-cell count less than 200 cells/µl (P = 0.048). Ninety-one HIV-infected individuals were followed for a mean 7.6 ±â€Š2.0 years. cf-PWV progression was associated with age (P = 0.018), mean arterial pressure (P = 0.020), and nadir CD4 T-cell count (P = 0.005). Patients from Group 2 had higher baseline waist circumference, pulse pressure, and nadir CD4 T-cell count less than 200 cells/µl. CONCLUSION: We observed no difference in aortic stiffness between HIV-infected and controls. Moreover, aortic stiffness aging was independently associated with past severe immunodeficiency, along with other traditional risk factors. Our results call for early antiretroviral initiation.