Delayed Diagnosis of Cardiac Amyloidosis Secondary to Multiple Myeloma.

Cardiac amyloidosis is a rare condition with only 2,500 new cases reported yearly in the United States of America (USA). The prognosis of cardiac amyloidosis is particularly grim. The median survival is 6 months from onset of congestive heart failure (CHF) symptoms. CHF is a common presentation as the second leading cause of hospitalization in the senile population in the USA. We report a case of an 83-year-old man who presented with the classic symptoms of CHF including bilateral lower extremity edema, shortness of breath, and weight gain. Upon further workup, an echocardiogram revealed strain patterns suggestive of cardiac amyloidosis and bone marrow biopsy confirmed the diagnosis of multiple myeloma. Unfortunately, despite starting treatment with steroids and chemotherapy, the patient succumbed to his condition in a matter of weeks. We report this case to highlight that cardiac amyloidosis secondary to multiple myeloma can present in the form of new onset, quickly deteriorating CHF long before any classic multiple myeloma symptoms manifest.

Chronic Kidney Disease in Patients Undergoing Cardiac Device Placement: Results of a Retrospective Study.

BACKGROUND: Cardiovascular issues (especially arrhythmia and sudden cardiac death) are one of the most common causes of mortality in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). To minimize cardiac mortality, these patients frequently require various cardiac devices, such as pacemakers, loop recorders, and defibrillators which can compromise their vascular access. In this study, we aim to determine the prevalence of CKD in patients undergoing cardiac device placement and their progression of CKD. METHODS: Institutional review board approval was obtained for this study. A total of 688 patients undergoing cardiac device placement were included in this study over a 3-year period at Jersey Shore University Medical Center. Demographic characteristics, comorbidities, base-line renal functions during the procedure, types of cardiac devices, sites of vascular access and follow-up renal function when available were assessed retrospectively. Patients were categorized into CKD stages 1 - 5 based on the National Kidney Foundation-Kidney Disease Outcomes Quality Initiative (NKF-KDOQI) guidelines. The patients who were already on hemodialysis were excluded in this study. RESULTS: The average age of the patient were 73.9 years with male predominance (60%). A total of 227 patients (33%) had estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) < 60 mL/min consistent with the evidence of advanced-stage CKD (stages 3 - 5) at the time of cardiac device placement. The most common types of device placements were new insertion/replacement of atrial and ventricular leads (39.5%), loop recorder implantation (21.1%) and generator changes on an already implanted device (11%). Only 4% (28/688) had a leadless cardiac device placement. The most common access sites were subclavian (47.1%), axillary (32.3%) and femoral (12.2%). CONCLUSIONS: The present study demonstrated that nearly one-third of the patient undergoing cardiac device placement had an advanced degree of renal failure. Because CKD is a progressive disease, many of these patients might require renal replacement therapy in the future. Transvenous devices is not a good choice in this group of patients as they will ultimately require an arteriovenous fistula. Subcutaneous leadless cardiac device insertion might be a better option in patients with advanced CKD.