[A case of hepatocellular carcinoma combined with liver abscess].

Hepatocellular calcinoma (HCC) is the fifth most common cancer and the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. It is important to diagnose HCC exactly before management is attempted. But, the clinical presentations and radiologic findings of liver abscess, HCC, and metastatic tumor to the liver may be quite similar, and procedures such as serum tumor marker assay, computerized tomography, and ultrasonography of the liver cannot make a specific diagnosis. We report a case of HCC successfully diagnosed by surgery which was misconceived as liver abscess and not improved by medical treatment.

Prognosis and Predictors of Mortality in Patients Suffering Myocardial Infarction With Non-Obstructive Coronary Arteries.

Background Myocardial infarction with nonobstructive coronary arteries ( MINOCA ) is a heterogeneous disease entity. Its prognosis and predictor of mortality remain unclear. This study aimed to compare the prognosis between MINOCA and myocardial infarction with obstructive coronary artery disease and identify factors related to all-cause death in MINOCA using a nation-wide, multicenter, and prospective registry. Methods and Results Among 13 104 consecutive patients enrolled, patients without previous history of significant coronary artery disease who underwent coronary angiography were selected. The primary outcome was 2-year all-cause death. Secondary outcomes were cardiac death, noncardiac death, reinfarction, and repeat revascularization. Patients with MINOCA (n=396) and myocardial infarction with obstructive coronary artery disease (n=10 871) showed similar incidence of all-cause death (9.1% versus 8.8%; hazard ratio [ HR ], 1.04; 95% CI, 0.74-1.45; P=0.83). Risks of cardiac death, noncardiac death, and reinfarction were not significantly different between the 2 groups ( HR , 0.82; 95% CI , 0.53-1.28; P=0.38; HR , 1.55; 95% CI , 0.93-2.56; P=0.09; HR , 1.23; 95% CI , 0.65-2.31; P=0.38, respectively). MINOCA patients had lower incidence of repeat revascularization (1.3% versus 7.2%; HR , 0.17; 95% CI , 0.07-0.41; P<0.001). Results were consistent after multivariable regression and propensity-score matching. In a multivariate model, several significant predictors of all-cause death of MINOCA were found, including the nonuse of renin-angiotensin system blockers ( HR , 2.63; 95% CI , 1.08-6.25; P=0.033) and statins ( HR , 2.17; 95% CI , 1.04-4.54; P=0.039). Conclusions Patients with MINOCA and those with myocardial infarction with obstructive coronary artery disease had comparable clinical outcomes. Use of renin-angiotensin system blockers and statins was associated with lower mortality in patients with MINOCA .

Serum gamma-glutamyl transferase is a predictor of mortality in patients with acute myocardial infarction.

Gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) is involved in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and has been associated with adverse cardiovascular outcomes in patients with ischemic heart disease. However, the association between GGT and long-term mortality has not been studied in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI).A total of 2239 AMI patients for whom serum GGT values were available and who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) were enrolled in the COREA-AMI (CardiOvascular Risk and idEntificAtion of potential high-risk population in Korean patients with AMI) registry. Patients with acute liver injury were excluded. Patients were classified into 2 groups according to normal (n = 1983) or elevated (n = 256) levels of serum GGT. The primary clinical outcome was all-cause mortality. The secondary outcome was cardiac death and recurrent non-fatal myocardial infarction (MI).The median follow-up period was 3.7 years, and both groups had similar characteristics. Patients with elevated GGT had significantly higher all-cause mortality compared to patients with normal GGT (21.9% vs. 14.4%, P = .001). The multivariate Cox proportional hazards model showed that elevated serum GGT level was independently correlated with mortality (hazard ratio 2.12[1.44-3.11]; P < .001). Although elevated serum GGT was independently associated with long-term mortality after 30 days after PCI, there was no association within 30 days after PCI. Elevated GGT was also associated with death of cardiac causes with statistical significance. In the subgroup analysis, stronger associations were observed in the young and female patients and in patients who had ST-segment elevation MI and preserved left ventricular ejection fraction at the first echocardiography after the indexed PCI.Elevated serum GGT is an independent predictor of long-term mortality in AMI patients.

A case of anorexia nervosa complicated with strongly suspected stress-induced cardiomyopathy and mural thrombus.

Stress-induced cardiomyopathy is a unique reversible cardiovascular disease precipitated by acute emotional or physical stress. It is associated with a high prevalence of chronic anxiety disorder that precedes the onset of cardiomyopathy, as well as comorbid cardiovascular risk factors that are similar to the ST segment elevation of myocardial infarction. A thirty-five-year-old woman suffering from anorexia nervosa visited our hospital complaining of severe general weakness. She was diagnosed with stress-induced cardiomyopathy and mural thrombus using a transthoracic echocardiogram. Therefore, she was given anticoagulation therapy and nutrition with immediate psychiatric interventions. After two weeks of treatment, the follow-up echocardiogram indicated a significant improvement of the left ventricular dysfunction and mural thrombus.

Incidentally detected situs ambiguous in adults.

Situs ambiguous is rare congenital anomaly in adults. In 2 adult patients who admitted for different cardiac problems, situs ambiguous with polysplenia was detected. A 42-year-old male admitted for radio frequent catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation, and he had left-sided inferior vena cava (IVC), hepatic segment of IVC interruption with hemiazygos continuation, multiple spleens and intestinal malrotation. And in a 52-year-old female case who was hospitalized due to infective endocarditis after implanting pacemaker for sick sinus syndrome, multiple spleens, left-sided stomach, bilateral liver with midline gallbladder, and left-sided IVC were found. Those findings were consistent with situs ambiguous with polysplenia, but their features were distinctive.

A Patient With Dysphagia due to an Aortic Aneurysm.

Dysphagia aortica is difficulty in swallowing caused by extrinsic compression of the esophagus due to an ectatic, tortuous, or aneurysmatic atherosclerotic thoracic aorta. This condition is very uncommon, and it is usually associated with old age, women with short stature, hypertension, and kyphosis. We report herein a case involving a patient with dysphagia who had an aortic aneurysm.