Percutaneous mitral commissurotomy in women with asymptomatic severe mitral stenosis before pregnancy.

OBJECTIVES: Performing percutaneous mitral commissurotomy (PMC) in the women with asymptomatic severe mitral stenosis (MS) who plan a pregnancy is recommended. However the data regarding this recommendation is limited in the literature. We aimed to investigate maternal and fetal outcomes of women with asymptomatic severe MS who underwent PMC before a planned pregnancy. METHODS: We retrospectively analysed the procedural, pregnancy related, and fetal outcomes of 33 consecutive women with severe asymptomatic MS, age 27.97 ± 2.86 years, who underwent PMC before a planned pregnancy between 2014 and 2019. The control group comprised of 66 pregnant women, age 29.09 ± 3.00 years, without a cardiac disease. RESULTS: The PMC procedure was successful in all patients and no major complication occurred. There were no deaths, pulmonary oedema, heart failure, atrial fibrillation, and thromboembolism during pregnancy. Maternal arrhythmia (p < .001), deterioration in NYHA class (p = .08), and use of cardiovascular medication (p < .001) was significantly higher in the study group. Maternal hospitalisation (p = .435), preeclampsia (p = 1), abortus (p = 1), fetal death (p = 1), and preterm delivery (p = .746) was similar between groups. Birth weight was significantly lower in the PMC group 2890 g (229) vs 3120 g (255) <0.001, however small for gestational age newborns were similar between groups (p = .12). CONCLUSIONS: PMC is safe in asymptomatic women with severe MS planning a future pregnancy. In selected patients with favourable valve anatomy PMC may improve maternal and fetal outcomes.

Characteristics and transcatheter closure of patent ductus arteriosus in patients living at moderate to high altitude in Eastern Anatolia.

OBJECTIVE: The incidence of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is greater among patients living at high altitude. In this po-pulation, the ductal diameter is often larger and pulmonary hypertension is more frequent. The aim of this study was to evaluate the hemodynamic and morphological features of PDA and transcatheter closure procedures performed with various devices in a group of patients living at high altitude in Turkey. METHODS: The data of 327 patients who lived at an altitude of at least 1600 m above sea level and who had undergone cardiac catheterization for isolated PDA between May 2010 and July 2018 were retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: The mean age was 7.33±7.67 years, and 62.4% of the patients were female. The mean ductal diameter was 3.74±2.14 mm. Pulmonary hypertension was present in 57.8%. Transcatheter closure was performed in 322 patients, with a 97.3% success rate. The Amplatzer duct occluder I (ADO I) was used most often, as well as off-label use of the Amplatzer vascular plug II (AVP) and the Amplatzer muscular ventricular septal defect occluder (AMVSDO). Pulmonary artery pressure decreased immediately in the vast majority after percutaneous closure. Transient left ventricular systolic dysfunction after ductal closure was seen only rarely. Follow-up was uneventful. CONCLUSION: Transcatheter PDA closure can be performed with high success rate in highlanders. Off-label devices may be required for these procedures. Pulmonary hypertension is frequent but regresses after ductal closure. Transient left ventricular dysfunction after transcatheter closure is rarely seen in these patients and resolves without any medication.

Heart rate recovery after exercise and its relation with neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio in patients with cardiac syndrome X.

OBJECTIVES: The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) are measures of systemic inflammation. Heart rate recovery (HRR) after exercise is influenced by autonomic function. The aim of this study was to ascertain whether HRR and the Duke Treadmill Score (DTS) values are related to NLR and PLR in patients with cardiac syndrome X (CSX). METHODS: A total of 350 participants were enrolled in the study. Complete blood counts and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP) were obtained. All participants underwent an exercise test. HRR and DTS were calculated after exercise. Abnormal HRR was defined as 12 beats/min or less. RESULTS: CSX and coronary artery disease (CAD) groups had higher NLR, PLR, and hsCRP, and lower HRR and DTS values than the control group (for all, P<0.05). In both CSX and CAD groups, HRR was positively correlated with DTS (r=0.468, P<0.001 and r=0.491, P<0.001, respectively) and negatively correlated with NLR (r=-0.519, P<0.001 and r=-0.612, P<0.001, respectively), PLR (r=-0.422, P<0.001 and r=-0.438, P<0.001, respectively), and hsCRP (r=-0.553, P<0.001 and r=-0.521, P<0.001, respectively). NLR and hsCRP were important two predictors of the presence of lower HRR in both CSX [NLR: odds ratio (OR), 0.395; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.168-0.925; P=0.032 and hsCRP: OR, 0.748; 95% CI, 0.591-0.945; P=0.015], and CAD groups (NLR: OR, 0.115; 95% CI, 0.026-0.501; P=0.004 and hsCRP: OR, 0.637; 95% CI, 0.455-0.892; P=0.009). CONCLUSION: CSX patients have higher NLR and PLR and slower HRR and lower DTS, similar to CAD patients, suggesting that CSX patients may be at a higher risk for developing cardiovascular events in the future. NLR may predict autonomic imbalance assessed by HRR in CSX.

[Percutaneous closure of secundum atrial septal defects in pediatric and adult patients: short- and mid-term follow-up results]. / Eriskin ve çocuklardaki sekundum tip atriyal septal defektlerin perkütan yaklasim ile kapatilmasi: Kisa-orta dönem izlem sonuçlarimiz.

OBJECTIVES: We aimed to evaluate the short- and mid-term results of patients with atrial septal defect (ASD) who were treated with percutaneous closure. STUDY DESIGN: Seventy-nine patients with secundum ASD (54 female and 25 male; mean age 26.2±17.2; range 3 to 71] years) were included in this study. Patients were evaluated by transthoracic (TTE) and/or transesophageal echocardiography (TEE). Amplatzer septal occluder (ASO) was used in all patients. In 76 patients, the procedure was performed under local anesthesia with TTE, while in the other 3 patients, it was performed with general anesthesia with TEE. Patients were followed up at the 1st, 3rd, 6th and 12th months and annually thereafter. Mean follow-up time was 13.6±6.6 months. RESULTS: Mean diameter of ASDs was 18.2±7.5 mm and 20.7±8.04 mm during balloon dilatation, and mean diameter of implanted devices was 22.7±8.5 mm. Procedural time was 40.2±12.6 minutes and fluoroscopy time was 10.9±4.1 minutes. The procedure was successfully performed in all patients (100%). One patient with cardiac tamponade died seven days after cardiac surgery. In two patients, the implanted devices embolized to the pulmonary circulation. Residual flow was found in three patients immediately after the procedure, without residual shunts one month after closure. Mild pericardial effusion in one patient and significant residual shunt due to device malposition in another were discovered during the follow-up at 1 and 6 months, respectively, after the procedure. CONCLUSION: Our findings showed that percutaneous closure of ASDs is successful in most patients with a low complication rate, and demonstrated that residual shunts do not develop in the majority of patients in the short- and mid-term.

[Percutaneous closure of patent ductus arteriosus: short term results]. / Duktus arteriyozus açikliginin perkütan yolla kapatilmasi: Kisa dönem sonuçlarimiz.

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate short term results of percutaneous patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) closure in a cohort of pediatric and adult patients following closure with the Amplatzer Ductal Occluder (ADO-1 and ADO-2) and Amplatzer Septal Occluder (ASO) devices. STUDY DESIGN: A total of 48 patients (17 male and 31 female; range 3 to 39 years) were included in this study. All patients were evaluated with transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) before intervention. Percutaneous closure was performed under fluoroscopy through anterograde or retrograde route. Aortagraphy was performed to measure and classify the ductus arteriosus. Residual shunt through ductus was controlled by aortography at the tenth minute and by TTE 24 hours and three months after the procedure. RESULTS: The released device was ADO-1 in 25 patients (51.2%), ADO-2 in 22 patients (45.8%), and ASO in one patient. Mean follow-up was 13.2 months. In 97.9% of patients, the occluder was placed into the ductus without any complication. In one patient, the device embolized to the left pulmonary artery during implantation. Aortography performed ten minutes after the procedure showed complete closure in 38 patients without residual defect. TTE revealed trace amounts of residual shunt within the device in two patients, flow around the device in two patients 24 hours after implantation, and residual shunt in only one patient three month after intervention. CONCLUSION: Transcatheter closure of PDA with ADO-1 and ADO-2 devices has low morbidity and mortality with high rates of success in selected patients.

The relation between the color M-mode propagation velocity of the descending aorta and coronary and carotid atherosclerosis and flow-mediated dilatation.

BACKGROUND: To improve clinical outcomes, noninvasive imaging modalities have been proposed to measure and monitor atherosclerosis. Common carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) and brachial artery flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) have correlated with coronary atherosclerosis. Recently, the color M-mode-derived propagation velocity of descending thoracic aorta (AVP) was shown to be associated with coronary artery disease (CAD). METHODS: CIMT, FMD, and AVP were measured in 92 patients with CAD and 70 patients having normal coronary arteries (NCA) detected by coronary angiography. Patients with acute myocardial infarction, renal failure or hepatic failure, aneurysm of aorta, severe valvular heart disease, left ventricular ejection fraction <40%, atrial fibrillation, frequent premature beats, left bundle branch block, and inadequate echocardiographic image quality were excluded. RESULTS: Compared to patients with normal coronary arteries, patients having CAD had significantly lower AVP (29.9 +/- 8.1 vs. 47.5 +/- 16.8 cm/sec, P < 0.001) and FMD (5.3 +/- 1.9 vs. 11.4 +/- 5.8%, P < 0.001) and higher CIMT (0.94 +/- 0.05 vs. 0.83 +/- 0.14 mm, P < 0.001) measurements. There were significant correlations between AVP and CIMT (r =-0.691, P < 0.001), AVP and FMD (r = 0.514, P < 0.001) and FMD and CIMT (r =-0.530, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The transthoracic echocardiographic determination of the color M-mode propagation velocity of the descending aorta is a simple practical method and correlates well with the presence of carotid and coronary atherosclerosis and brachial endothelial function.

Noninvasive assessment of atherosclerosis in patients with isolated hypertension.

BACKGROUND: Endothelial dysfunction is considered the first stage in the development of atherosclerosis. Brachial artery flow-mediated dilatation (FMD) has been used to assess endothelial dysfunction. An impaired FMD response may reflect a vascular phenotype prone to atherosclerosis. The thickness of the common carotid intima-media (CIMT) as measured by ultrasound represents a marker of structural atherosclerosis. Recently, it has been shown that color M-mode propagation velocity measured along the origin of descending thoracic aorta (AVP) may reflect atherosclerosis. In this study, the effects of isolated hypertension on these atherosclerosis markers are investigated. METHODS: Fifty patients with newly diagnosed hypertension and forty healthy people were enrolled. Patients were evaluated with transthoracic echocardiography. Diastolic functions were evaluated by transmitral filling parameters of deceleration time (DT), E/A ratio, and isovolumetric relaxation time (IVRT). Carotid intima-media thickness, FMD, and AVP were measured. RESULTS: Age, gender, and BMI of both groups were similar. Compared to control group CIMT, DT and IVRT values were significantly higher, and FMD and AVP values were significantly lower in hypertensive patients. There were significant correlations between AVP and CIMT (r =-0.699, P < 0.001), AVP and FMD (r = 0.400, P < 0.001), and FMD and CIMT (r =-0.600, P < 0.001). Carotid intima-media thickness, AVP, and FMD were significantly correlated with systolic and diastolic blood pressures and DT and IVRT. CONCLUSIONS: In patients with isolated hypertension, AVP and FMD decrease and CIMT increases. In addition, CIMT is inversely correlated with AVP and FMD, and AVP is directly correlated with FMD.

[Successful lysis of a mobile left ventricular thrombus by slow infusion of low-dose tissue plasminogen activator]. / Sol ventriküldeki hareketli trombüsün düsük doz ve yavas infüzyonla verilen doku plazminojen aktivatörüyle basariyla çözülmesi.

There is no consensus on the management of intracardiac mural thrombi. A 59-year-old man underwent echocardiographic examination for right leg pain and pulse deficits in the right lower extremity, which showed severe left ventricular systolic dysfunction and a bell-shaped protruding mobile thrombus in the left ventricular apex. Due to high risk of surgery, 50 mg recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator (rt-PA) was slowly infused over eight hours. Serial echocardiographic examinations showed a progressive decrease in the size of the thrombus within the first hours of rt-PA infusion, resulting in complete lysis after 24 hours. Low-dose and slow-infusion thrombolytic therapy may be an alternative therapy for left ventricular thrombi when surgery is not feasible.

Regional functions of the left ventricle in patients with coronary slow flow and the effects of nebivolol.

BACKGROUND: Microvascular and endothelial dysfunction have been implicated for coronary slow flow (CSF). Nebivolol, besides its beta-receptor blocking activity, causes an endothelium-dependent vasodilatation through increased nitric oxide release. METHODS: This study included 27 patients with CSF and 27 subjects with normal coronary arteries. Segmental functions of the left ventricle (LV) were assessed using myocardial tissue Doppler velocities before and 3 months after treatment with nebivolol 5 mg/day. RESULTS: Compared with the control group, mitral deceleration time (DT) was significantly longer, and E/A ratio, systolic velocity of lateral mitral annulus (S(m)) and regional myocardial peak systolic and early diastolic velocities (V( s), V(d)) were significantly lower in patients with CSF. The reason for coronary angiography was typical angina in 21 (77.8%) and positive treadmill test in six (22.2%) CSF patients. There were significant correlations between presence of CSF in left anterior descending artery (LAD) with S( m) (r =-0.404, p =0.002) and V(s) in anterior (r =-0.531, p < 0.001 ) and lateral (r =-0.495, p < 0.001 ) segments and between presence of CSF in RCA and V(s) in posterior segments (r =-0.501, p < 0.001). Treatment with nebivolol significantly decreased blood pressures (128.5+/-12.5/82.5+/-8.8 to 119.8+/- 12.6/76.4+/- 7.4 mmHg, p < 0.001), DT (252.3+/-53.6 to 222.0+/-41.0 ms, p < 0.001 ) and IVRT (115.7+/-19.9 to 103.3+/-17.0 ms, p <0.001), and increased exercise capacity (8.7+/-1.3 to 10.4+/-0.9 METs, p < 0.001), E/A ratio (0.87+/-0.26 to 1.08+/-0.23, p <0.001) and myocardial velocities (p < 0.001). All the patients were free of angina after treatment. Patients with CSF had impaired diastolic and regional LV functions. CONCLUSIONS: Nebivolol may therefore be useful in improving angina, exercise capacity and LV functions in patients with CSF.

The effects of nebivolol on P wave duration and dispersion in patients with coronary slow flow.

OBJECTIVE: Coronary slow flow (CSF) is characterized by delayed opacification of coronary arteries in the absence epicardial occlusive disease. P wave duration and dispersion have been reported to be longer in patients with CSF. Nebivolol, besides its selective beta1-blocking activity, causes an endothelium dependent vasodilatation through nitric oxide release. In this study, we searched for the association between left ventricular diastolic functions and atrial conduction dispersion, the effects of nebivolol on P wave duration and dispersion in patients with CSF. METHODS: This prospective case-controlled study included 30 patients having CSF and 30 subjects having normal coronary arteries in coronary angiography. The patients were evaluated with 12-leads electrocardiography and echocardiography before and three months after treatment with nebivolol. The difference between maximum and minimum P wave durations was defined as P-wave dispersion (PWD). Early diastolic flow (E), atrial contraction wave (A) and E deceleration time (DT) and isovolumetric relaxation time (IVRT) were measured. Unpaired and paired t-tests, Chi-square test, Mann-Whitney's U-test and Pearson correlation analysis were used in statistical analysis. RESULTS: Compared to control group maximum P wave duration (Pmax) (104.3+/-12.2 vs. 93.4+/-9.8 msec, p<0.001) and PWD (35.0+/-8.6 vs. 24.8+/-5.4 msec, p<0.001), DT (245.4+/-54.9 vs. 198.0+/-41.7 msec, p<0.001) and IVRT (112.9+/-20.8 vs. 89.5+/-18.2 msec, p<0.001) were significantly longer and E/A ratio (0.89+/-0.27 vs. 1.27+/-0.27, p<0.001) was lower in patients with CSF as compared with control subjects. There were no significant correlations of Pmax and PWD with clinical and echocardiographic variables. Systolic and diastolic blood pressures (130.5+/-15.5 mmHg to 117.8+/-12.3 mmHg and 84.5+/-9.8 mmHg to 75.0+/-6.2 mmHg, p<0.001), Pmax (to 98.7+/-11.7 msec, p=0.038), PWD (to 21.3+/-5.1 msec, p<0.001) and DT (to 217.3+/-41.4 msec, p<0.001) and IVRT (to 101.2+/-17.4 msec, p<0.001) significantly decreased and E/A ratio (to 1.1+/-0.23, p<0.001) significantly increased after treatment with nebivolol. Correlation analysis revealed that the change in PWD was not significantly correlated with any of the clinical and echocardiographic variables including decrease in blood pressures. CONCLUSION: Coronary slow flow is associated with prolonged P wave duration and dispersion and impaired diastolic filling. Nebivolol may be helpful in restoration of these findings. P wave duration and dispersion may not be associated with left ventricular function parameters in patients with CSF.