Functional tests in patients with ischemic heart disease.

Lately, easier and shorter tests have been used in the functional evaluation of cardiac patients. Among these, walking speed (WS) and Timed Up and Go (TUG) tests are associated with all-cause mortality, mainly cardiovascular and the rate of re-hospitalization, especially in the elderly population. We prospectively analyzed a group of 38 patients admitted to the Cardiology Clinic from Elias Hospital, Romania, with chronic coronary syndrome (CCS) (n=22) and STEMI (n=16). We assessed the patients immediately after admission and before discharge with G-WALK between the 1st and 30th of September 2019. Our study group had a mean age of 62.7±12.1 years. Patients with a low WS were older (69.90±12.84 vs. 59.90±10.32 years, p=0.02) and had a lower serum hemoglobin (12.38±1.20 vs. 13.72±2.07 g/dl, p=0.02). The WS significantly improved during hospitalization (p=0.03) after optimal treatment. The TUG test performed at the time of admission had a longer duration in patients with heart failure (14.05 vs. 10.80 sec, p=0.02) and was influenced by patients' age (r=0.567, p=0.02), serum creatinine (r=0.409, p=0.03) and dilation of right heart chambers (r=0.399, p=0.03). WS and TUG tests can be used in patients with CCS and STEMI, and are mainly influenced by age, thus having a greater value among the elderly.

The Impact of Bariatric Surgery on Diabetes and Other Cardiovascular Risk Factors.

Introduction: Nowadays, obesity is a major worldwide health problem due to its serious consequences and toits increasing prevalence. Bariatric surgery has demonstrated a sustained weight loss and an efficient long-term control of the co-morbidities associated with obesity. The objective of our study was to compare cardiovascular risk factors before and after bariatric surgery. Material and Method: We have retrospectively studied 59 consecutive patients scheduled for bariatric surgery (gastric sleeve) in Ponderas Academic Hospital between January and March 2016, excluding the ones that didn't commit to respect the follow-up terms. The preoperative, 6 and 12 postoperative months blood tests and anthropometric measurements were comparatively analyzed. Results: BMI, waist circumference and total body weight decreased by 38%, 31%, and 41%; Glycemia, triglycerides and LDL cholesterol decreased by 16%, 37% and 9% respectively; HDL cholesterol increased by 18%. The decline was statistically significant for all variables (P 0.001) except for LDL cholesterol. The need for antihypertensive treatment was reduced by 60% and for lipid lowering treatment diminished by 21%. In diabetic patients glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) decreased by 28% and the necessity for antidiabetic medical treatment dropped by 69%. Conclusions: Weight loss obtained by bariatric surgery in this study, improved the metabolic syndrome in all its components, obesity, hyperglycemia/type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia, thus reducing the cardiovascular risk.