[Infective prosthetic endocarditis following percutaneous edge-to-edge mitral valve repair - A Case-report of a successfully medically-treated Staphylococcus epidermidis endocarditis and a literature review]. / Endocardite infectieuse sur prothèse après implantation de Mitra-Clip ­ Cas d'un succès du traitement médical sur une endocardite à Staphylococcus epidermidis et revue de littérature.

During the last decade there has been a craze for the percutaneous edge-to-edge mitral valve repair technique with the Mitra-Clip device. This is an alternative treatment to mitral valve surgery for severe mitral regurgitation. In France, this device is aimed at poor candidates for mitral valve surgery. It involves intra-cardiac prosthetic material, which exposes them to the risk of bacterial endocarditis. The consequences of this infective disease can be dramatic, especially for these old patients who suffer from multiple comorbidities. It appears to be a rare but relatively unknown and potentially underestimated complication. The relative data remain scarce and consist of rare case-reports. We report an original case of a Methicilline-sensitive Staphylococcus epidermidis mitral endocarditis following the implantation of clips two months earlier. The patient was then successfully treated with antibiotics. Since the first Mitra-Clip implantation in 2003, only 19 cases of endocarditis have previously been reported. This article proposes a review of theses case-reports and a collection of their relevant clinical, echocardiographic and microbiological characteristics, the delivered therapies and their outcomes. These data contribute to a humble discussion around the main stakes of the disease, which are the prevention, the diagnosis, the involved bacteria's type, the prognosis and the treatments with a focus on the question of the recourse to surgical management.

[Surgical treatment of infective endocarditis: Surgical indications, complications, intrahospital and long-term mortality]. / Endocardites infectieuses opérées : indications chirurgicales, complications, mortalité intrahospitalière et à long terme.

BACKGROUND: In addition to medical treatment, half of the patients with infective endocarditis (IE) receive surgical treatment. Despite clear recommendations on the indications and the operating delays, the decision remains difficult and must take into consideration several factors. METHODS: A retrospective study was performed at Foch Hospital. All patients operated for IE between 2005 and 2018 were included. Patient characteristics, indications and operating delays, as well as intrahospital mortality, were noted. Patient follow-up was provided by phone calls. RESULTS: Fifty-two patients were operated on for IE between 2005 and 2018. The most frequent surgical indications were the presence of a massive symptomatic regurgitation, an uncontrolled infection and large vegetations with embolism. The average operative delay was 13.2 days with 56.5% of patients operated within the first 10 days. The most common postoperative complications were acute kidney injury (AKI) in 57.7% of cases, with 9.6% of dialysis, shock in 50% of cases, rhythm disorders in 40.4% of cases, infectious complications in 19.2% of cases, conductive disorders in 25% of cases, of which 17.3% require a definitive pacemaker implementation. The intrahospital mortality was 7.7% and the average length of hospital stay was 35 days. Survival at one year and 5 years was 95% and 85%, respectively. CONCLUSION: The indications and the operating delays were conformed to international recommendations. Intrahospital and long-term mortality rate was low.

[Ischemic stroke related to spontaneous]. / Accident vasculaire cérébral ischémique en rapport avec hématome coronaire spontané.

Cardiovascular disease in women is a particularly complex pathology especially in the youngest population. The clinical presentation of acute coronary syndromes is sometimes misleading and does not necessarily point to the potential presence of cardiac disease given the frequent absence of cardiovascular risks. Such complexity results in delayed diagnosis, which worsens the outcome of myocardial infarction and generates complications related to the absence of coronary revascularization. We report the case of a patient who suffered an (undiagnosed) apical myocardial infarction that went undetected and was complicated by a voluminous intraventricular thrombus with embolus migration in the cerebral circulation resulting in an ischemic accident. The combination of these two pathologies make their therapeutic management particularly difficult. As widely reported in the literature, the outcome of myocardial infarction in women is poorer than in their male counterparts for a number of reasons. We can assume that in the youngest patients, another physiopathological mechanism is often involved, namely, the occurrence of hematoma and spontaneous coronary dissection. Diagnosis is often difficult even with coronary angiography diagnosis. As shown in the case reported here, initial examination results, if not thoroughly analyzed, may be erroneously interpreted as normal. It is also likely that the presence of hematoma or coronary wall dissection without any plaque rupture may negatively influence the outcome owing to the implementation of inappropriate treatments. In conclusion, in patients presenting with an ischemic cerebral accident, meticulous cardiac examination must be performed even in young women with no cardiovascular risk factors given that the occurrence of hematoma or coronary dissection may contribute to the formation of mural thrombi in the setting of myocardial infarction. Cardiac MRI seems to be particularly effective in the diagnosis of myocardial infarction complicated by the presence of intracavitary thrombi.

[A case report of Williams and Beuren syndrome with associated aggravation of in situ distal pulmonary vascular obstruction due to thrombotic disease]. / Une observation de syndrome de Williams et Beuren avec aggravation de l'obstruction vasculaire pulmonaire distale par maladie thrombotique in situ associée.

We report a case of Williams and Beuren syndrome in which the obstruction of the pulmonary vascular bed, linked with peripheral stenoses of the pulmonary arteries, associated here with an interventricular communication, was aggravated due to the coexistence of in situ thrombotic disease, leading to a progressive hypoxaemia, requiring long-term anticoagulant treatment, and compromising the long-term prognosis. This case report puts into question the so-called favourable prognosis of pulmonary arterial branch stenoses in this malformation syndrome.

[Very late drug-eluting stent thrombosis by stent fracture]. / Thrombose coronaire très tardive par fracture du stent actif. Cas clinique et revue de la littérature.

The superiority of drug-eluting stents in reducing the risk of in-stent restenosis compared to bare-metal stents is no longer challenged. Nevertheless, the drug-eluting stents may carry long-term risk of late and very late stent thrombosis. The promoting factors of this complication are usually divided into three chapters depending on the patient, the procedure and the stent. Indeed, the literature has reported several parameters related to the stent itself, such as its length, the malapposition, its diameter, but also more rarely the occurrence of stent fracture. We present the case of a patient admitted for myocardial infarction after a very late thrombosis of Cypher drug-eluting stent four years after its implantation and related to stent fracture.

[Women and acute coronary syndrome with ST elevation: Excess mortality related to longer delays and spontaneous coronary dissection]. / Syndromes coronariens aigus avec sus-ST chez la femme: une surmortalité liée aux délais de prise en charge et dissection coronaire spontanée.

The outcome of patients with ST elevation acute coronary syndrome (ACS) has been increasingly improving in the general population over the past few decades. However, detailed analysis of the results show that the reduction in mortality rates is higher in males compared to their female counterparts. The excess mortality rate observed in women, though sometimes questioned, has been widely reported in the literature. The higher mortality rate observed in women with ST elevation ACS can be explained by the presence of aggravating clinical factors such as older age, a higher percentage of diabetics, and a higher frequency of cardiogenic shock. Other factors pertaining to patient management seem to negatively impact the outcome. These factors include a lower use of reperfusion strategies, longer time to treatment mainly as a result of diagnostic uncertainty with respect to a disease, which is believed to affect principally the male gender. The doubts that female patients themselves and their families have about the nature of their symptoms are also present in the medical environment but cease to exist in the catheterization laboratory. This is illustrated in the first clinical case that we present here. Coronary reperfusion is the cornerstone of the therapeutic management of MI. In this context, bleeding complications associated with the implemented treatments can also result in an increased mortality rate in this more vulnerable population. When all the factors likely to influence the prognosis are taken into account, excess mortality seems to persist in women, especially in younger patients. As described in the second clinical case, a distinct physio-pathological factor, more frequent in women, could account for this higher mortality rate. Indeed, spontaneous coronary dissection and intramural hematoma are not always easy to diagnose and may not be adequately managed by reperfusion treatments. In addition, these coronary reperfusion strategies are probably not adapted to this type of ACS. It is, therefore, very important to identify them by angiography coupled with intra-coronary imaging examination when necessary and to carry out further research to adjust our PCI techniques to this pathology.

Traumatic aortic ruptures diagnosed by transesophageal echocardiography.

The aim of this study was to determine the diagnostic efficiency of transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) in isthmic aortic ruptures and to describe the echocardiographic Doppler anomalies. TEE was performed prospectively for 18 months in 33 patients with serious polytraumas requiring intensive care. The average age was 40.75 years (range, 17 to 78 years). Single or biplanar TEE was used. In three patients with aortic transection, echocardiography showed an intimal flap thicker than that of dissections. The flaps were torn and retracted on the free edge. It was difficult to distinguish the periaortic hematoma. Doppler imaging showed turbulent flows in several places around the aorta. These flows were especially visible at the beginning of the intimal flap. They were visible on M-mode color imaging during systole and diastole. During diastole, a large color flow was observed in the middle of the aortic lumen. It was turbulent in some places and mimicked the systolic filling of the aorta. These flows create the characteristic "to and fro sign" spectrum of Doppler imaging, usually seen in peripheral false arterial aneurysms. TEE findings were confirmed in two cases by surgery and in one case by aortography. TEE seems to be an effective means of detecting isthmic rupture, with the diagnosis resting on the data obtained from echocardiography and Doppler imaging. A suspected isthmic disruption should be assessed by an emergency TEE and aortography used only for uncertain or complex cases.

Tears in bioprosthetic heart valve leaflets without calcific degeneration.

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE STUDY: The mechanism of structural failure of bioprosthetic valves is still not clearly understood. This study was undertaken to assess pure leaflet tear as a mode of failure in porcine and pericardial bioprostheses. METHODS: Of 246 bioprosthetic valves (109 porcine, 137 pericardial) implanted between 1975 and 1991, 101 had to be explanted and served as the study population. RESULTS: The reasons for valve failure were calcific degeneration in 73, pure tear in 12, and endocarditis in 10. Six other patients had a perivalvar leak. The mean age at operation was 32 years. Freedom from degeneration at 10 years was 45 +/- 7% and from pure tear it was 92 +/- 2%. The hazard functions were strikingly different, as that for degeneration showed a progressive increase while that for pure tear peaked at six years post-implant. The mean age of the patients with pure tear was 41 years and for degeneration it was 24 years (p = 0.00001). The reasons for the difference in hazard function are discussed. The characteristic clinical features of pure tear allow clinical diagnosis in the majority of patients. CONCLUSION: Pure tear is the result of uneven tissue loading with tearing occurring at sites of maximal stress. The four possible mechanisms in pericardial valves are (a) intense stress concentration at the top of the stent post (commissure); (b) compression stress below the top of the post; (c) abrasion stress in tissue mounted outside the frame; and (d) increased bending stresses on leaflet opening. In stent-mounted porcine valves, pure tear is related to incorrect mounting or to increased bending stresses.

[Heart and brain: are the risk factors the same? Are the results of primary and secondary trials comparable?]. / Coeur et cerveau: le poids des facteurs de resque est-il le même? Les résultats des études de prévention primaire et secondaire sont-ils comparables?

The aim of this study was to identify the similitudes and the differences in the epidemiology and prevention of myocardial infarction and cerebrovascular accidents by analysis of trials of primary and secondary prevention of myocardial infarction and cerebrovascular accidents. The principal risk factors common to both pathologies are hypertension, smoking and increased LDL-cholesterol. However, the statistical significance with respect to causality differs from one pathology to the other. Similarly, the impact of preventive measures is not the same: the treatment of hypertension is more important in the prevention of cerebrovascular accidents than myocardial infarction; the situation is the other way around with respect to the treatment of hypercholesterolaemia. Of the therapeutic interventions, aspirin is effective in all stages of coronary artery disease but does not prevent cerebrovascular accidents in patients without documented atherosclerosis. Thrombolysis carries a much higher benefit/risk ratio in the treatment of myocardial infarction than in that of cerebral infarction. The so-called cardioprotective drugs, such as the betablockers and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors, have only been used to any extent in the secondary prevention of myocardial infarction. These differences reflect the fact that cerebrovascular accident covers a range of diseases much more diverse than does myocardial infarction, and also that the brain is much more exposed to haemorrhage whereas cardiac haematoma is highly unusual. Finally, cerebral atherosclerosis is a later event than coronary atherosclerosis and this has epidemiological implications which are difficult to assess. In conclusion, the prevention of myocardial infarction and of cerebrovascular accidents may proceed theoretically by a common pathway but in practice, it is very different.

[A platypnea-orthodeoxia syndrome]. / Un syndrome platypnée-orthodéoxie.

We report the case of a 68 years old patient with platypnea orthodeoxia syndrome who has been clinically suspected on cutaneous saturation position's variation. It has been confirmed by transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography (TEE). TEE showed the size of patent foramen ovale (PFO), visualised the right to left shunt. A right heart angiography confirmed echocardiographic data and allowed successful closure by a Cardioseal percutaneous transcatheter button device implantation. Symptom's disappearance and a TEE control after 2 months confirmed the success of the procedure.

[Therapeutic strategy of the management of acute heart failure]. / Stratégie thérapeutique de la prise en charge de l'insuffisance cardiaque aiguë.

Acute cardiac failure should be approached clinically and paraclinically as an emergency and precipitation is not always what is required. Consequently, strict clinical and paraclinical strategy leads to decisive action to improve the prognosis. The authors describe the principles of management of acute cardiac failure. The different stages which are carried out simultaneously in clinical practice are discussed: physiopathological basis, clinical and paraclinical investigations, symptomatic and aetiological treatment. The description and indications of circulatory assistance are considered. This constitutes a major therapeutic advance of the last decade and has changed the treatment of the most severe clinical forms of acute cardiac failure.

[Spontaneous regression of a false aneurysm of the ascending aorta following surgery for dissection]. / Régression spontanée d'un faux anévrisme de l'aorte ascendante consécutif à une chirurgie pour dissection.

We report the case of a 50-year-old man admitted to hospital for a type A aortic dissection. After conventional surgical repair, he was asymptomatic and underwent computed tomography imaging at 15 days, 3 and 6 months. The first CT scan showed a small perigraft circulating false aneurysm which totally disappeared on the last exam. This case emphasizes the potential role of CT scan in the follow-up of patient after aortic surgery and the likely favorable outcome of some false aneurysm.

[Access of torsades de pointes in Legionnaires' disease: an uncommon adverse effect of erythromycin]. / Accès de torsades de pointes au cours d'une maladie des légionnaires:un accident exceptionnel de l'érythromycine.

We report the case of a 77-year-old man with legionnaires's disease who, immediately after an intravenous infusion of one gram of erythromycin presented with wave burst arrhythmia with widening of the QT space. The blood level of erythromycin at the time of this adverse reaction was the same as the peak observed in young subjects after intravenous administration of this drug. Fourteen similar cases were found in the literature. In vitro and in vivo studies have shown that erythromycin may exert on the cardiac muscle fibres an electrophysiological effect similar to that of class I antiarrhythmic agents.

[Stress cardiac MRI in management of ischemic heart disease]. / La place de l'IRM cardiaque de stress dans la prise en charge de la cardiopathie ischémique.

Stress magnetic cardiac resonance imaging (MRI) development is in progress. Many cardiac imaging technics already known are completed by this safe radiation free exam with a short time acquisition (30minutes) and a good diagnostic performance in particular for patients with three vessels coronary artery diseases. Best indication concerns symptomatic patients unable to exercise with intermediate or high pretest probability. Pharmacological heart stress can be induced with vasodilatators or dobutamine to identify the presence and extent of myocardial ischemia, with high precision to guide coronary vessels revascularization. MRI gives many other interesting informations like heart anatomy, left ventricular function. Myocardial viability can be assessed with study of late gadolinium enhancement or analysis of contractile reserve with low dose of dobutamine.

[Platypnea-orthodeoxia revealed by recurrent syncope episodes]. / Platypnée-orthodéoxie révélée par des syncopes à répétition.

Platypnea-orthodeoxia is a rare clinical condition which must be examined as a differential diagnosis for any bout of faintness occurring during standing or dyspnea that is exacerbated by standing. This syndrome is often associated with a patent foramen ovale. Its physiopathology is not univocal and the association of many anatomical criteria seems to be mandatory. Contrast echocardiography confirms diagnosis and closure of the patent foramen ovale during interventional catheterization and is currently the therapeutic method of choice. After closure of the foramen ovale, clinical improvement is spectacular and durable.

The added value of real-time three-dimensional echocardiography in the diagnosis of supravalvar mitral ring: case report and review of the literature.

Supravalvular mitral stenosis is a rare condition characterized by an abnormal ridge, with one or two orifices, covering and obstructing the mitral valve. Preoperative identification of the supravalvular ring is the target for obtaining good surgical results. Two-dimensional echocardiogram and transesophageal echocardiography both failed in reaching this objective. In this case, we showed that three-dimensional echocardiogram is a new technique that provides additional and more accurate echocardiographic characterization of congenital supravalvular mitral stenosis.