Platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio is a predictor of in-hospital mortality patients with acute coronary syndrome.

OBJECTIVE: Platelets and inflammatory cells are vital elements of acute coronary syndromes (ACS). Recent studies have shown that the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) is associated with several malignancies; however, there are not enough data in cardiovascular diseases. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore the association between PLR and in-hospital mortality in patients with ACS. METHODS: We retrospectively collected patients with ACS undergoing coronary angiography. Total and differential leukocyte counts were measured by an automated hematology analyzer. RESULTS: This study is single-centered and observational. In total, 587 patients with a mean age of 61.8±13.1 years (68.4% male) were enrolled in the study. Patients were divided into 3 tertiles based on PLR levels. In-hospital mortality was significantly higher among patients in the upper PLR tertile when compared with the middle and lower PLR tertile groups [29 (14.8%) vs. 17 (8.7%) and 2 (1.0%); p<0.001]. In the multiple logistic regression analysis, a high level of PLR was an independent predictor of in-hospital mortality, together with age, total leukocyte count, and creatinine. Using a cutoff point of 142, the PLR predicted in-hospital mortality with a sensitivity of 69% and specificity of 63%. CONCLUSION: Different from other inflammatory markers and assays, PLR is an inexpensive and readily available biomarker that may be useful for cardiac risk stratification in patients with ACS.

Prognostic role of incidental pleural effusion diagnosed during echocardiographic evaluation.

BACKGROUND: The purpose of this study was to determine the long-term prognostic implications of incidental pleural effusion (PE) detected during echocardiographic examination and its relationship with concomitant diseases. HYPOTHESIS: The study hypothesis is to test whether incidental pleural PE detected during echocardiographic examination be used as a prognostic marker. METHODS: The study was performed by evaluating patient records (N = 251) in whom PE was incidentally detected during echocardiographic examination in a tertiary hospital between 1999 and 2012. The patients were classified into 4 major groups according to the concomitant primary disease: malignancy, and cardiovascular, renal, and pulmonary diseases. The total survival time was obtained from hospital records for patients who died during the hospital stay and social security institution records for patients with out-of-hospital death. RESULTS: One-year and 5-year life expectancies of PE cases concomitant with different disorders were as follows; heart failure (n = 151), 81% and 70%; malignancies (n = 45), 53% and 44%; pulmonary diseases (n = 37), 89% and 78%; renal diseases (n = 18), 100% and 83%; respectively. PE associated with heart failure, renal disease, and pulmonary disease had similar (P > 0.05 for all) and favorable outcomes compared to PE associated with malignancies (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The prognosis of incidental PE was the worst in patients with concomitant malignancies; however, PE associated with nonmalignant diseases including heart failure, pulmonary disease, and renal disease have similar and favorable outcomes.

Mean platelet volume seems to be a valuable marker in patients with systemic sclerosis.

The predictors for the development of cardiovascular diseases and peripheral arterial diseases in patients with systemic sclerosis (SSc) were not clearly established, and there is no specific study conducted to investigate the mean platelet volume (MPV) levels in SSc patients. Therefore, this study evaluates the MPV levels in SSc and possible relationship between SSc, its clinical features and activity/severity scores, and MPV. In total, 76 SSc patients (67 women and 9 men, mean age 50.44 ± 13.21 years) diagnosed according to the classification criteria of the American College of Rheumatology and 45 healthy volunteers were enrolled into study. Data relating to anamnesis, physical examination, MPV, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein levels, electrocardiography, echocardiography, high-resolution computerized tomography findings, complaints, and treatment processes were recorded into the database. Of the total cases, 17 had (22.3 %) cardiac involvement, 45 had gastrointestinal involvement (59.2 %), 47 had (61.8 %) lung involvement, 31 (32 %) had finger flexion deformity, and 27 (35.5 %) had digital ulcers at the fingertips. The mean MPV levels of SSc patients were significantly higher than those of the control group (p = 0.008). The mean MPV levels of SSc patients with cardiac involvement, digital ulcers, and gangrene presence were significantly high, and lower in Ilomedin-receiving patients than in the Ilomedin naives (p < 0.05). A negative relationship was discovered between the mean MPV levels, Valentini score, and Disease Severity Index of the patients with systemic sclerosis (p = 0.006, r = -0.310; p = 0.047, r = -0.229). MPV levels were significantly elevated in SSc patients and they were negatively correlated with disease activity scores. Increased MPV levels would be a predictive marker in the diagnosis of macrovascular and microvascular disease involvement in SSc patients.

Increased echocardiographic epicardial fat thickness is related to impaired diurnal blood pressure profiles.

OBJECTIVE: Epicardial fat has been proposed as a new cardiometabolic risk factor. Although epicardial fat thickness (EFT) is associated with hypertension, the relationship between diurnal blood pressure profiles and EFT is still unknown. The purpose of this study is to investigate the association between the echocardiographic EFT and diurnal blood pressure profiles in hypertensive patients. METHODS: After the ambulatory blood pressures of 123 patients were monitored, they were divided into three groups according to the clinical diagnoses: 41 patients (33.3%) were in the normotensive group, 40 patients (32.5%) were in the dipper hypertensive group and 42 patients (34.1%) were in the non-dipper hypertensive group. All participants underwent transthoracic echocardiography and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring to measure the EFT and blood pressure responses. RESULTS: The mean EFT measurements of the dipper group were significantly higher than the normotensive group (6.5 ± 0.6 vs 5.8 ± 0.6; p < 0.0001). On the other hand, the mean EFTs of the non-dipper group were also significantly higher than the dipper group (7.4 ± 0.7 vs 6.5 ± 0.6, p < 0.0001). An EFT of ≥ 7 mm predicted the non-dipper profile in hypertensive patients with 74% sensitivity and 71% specificity (receiving operator characteristic area under the curve: 0.826, 95% CI 0.738-0.913; p < 0.0001). EFT was associated with both dipper (OR 8.9, 95% CI 3.03-26.3; p < 0.0001) and non-dipper blood pressure profiles (OR 12.3, 95% CI 1.75-86.31; p < 0.0001), and this relationship was also independent from all the risk factors. CONCLUSION: Echocardiographic EFT assessment is independently associated with impaired diurnal blood pressure profiles in the hypertensive individuals. Thus, the echocardiographic assessment of the EFT may be helpful in cardiometabolic risk stratification and therapeutic interventions.

Mean platelet volume in functional and thrombotic prosthetic mitral valve.

The mean platelet volume (MPV) values reflect platelet size and are accepted as marker of platelet activation. We sought to test the hypothesis that platelet activation occurs independently from presence or absence of thrombus in prosthetic mitral valve. A total of 168 patients were included in the study. Study participants were divided in three groups: group 1 (n = 62) - patients with normal prosthetic mitral valve; group 2 (n = 37) - patients with prosthetic mitral valve thrombosis; and group 3 (n = 69) - healthy individuals. MPV values were significantly higher in normal and thrombotic prosthetic mitral valve patients than in healthy individuals (P = 0.008 and P = 0.01, respectively). MPV values were not different between normal prosthetic mitral valve and thrombotic prosthetic mitral valve. This is the first study indicating that increased MPV is present in normal and thrombotic prosthetic mitral valve, implying that platelet reactivity occurs in prosthetic mitral valve irrespective of development of thrombus formation.

Mean platelet volume in predicting short- and long-term morbidity and mortality in patients with or without ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction.

Mean platelet volume (MPV) is a marker of platelet activation. An increased MPV is associated with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and long-term mortality. The aim of this study was to compare MPV in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and non-ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI). Also, we investigated the value of MPV on in-hospital mortality and long-term prognosis of patients with STEMI and NSTEMI. We studied 429 patients with AMI (70.4% male, 61.9 ± 12.4 years; 279 patients with STEMI, 150 patients with NSTEMI). MPV and platelet count were similar in both groups. Elevated MPV increased the risk of death by 3.1-fold (p < 0.001) in STEMI group during the hospitalization. However, increased MPV was not associated with in-hospital mortality in NSTEMI group. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of MPV was 0.868 (95% CI, 0.830-0.907) for predicting two-year mortality. A cut-off point of 11.1 fL showed a sensitivity of 81% and a specifity of 77% for prediction of two-year mortality. Kaplan-Meier survival curve showed two-year mortality rate of 12.5% in patients with MPV >11.1 fL versus 9.9% in patients with MPV <11.1 fL (p < 0.001). Cox regression analysis showed MPV to be an independent predictor of two-year mortality (Hazard ratio 1.7; 95% CI 1.5-1.9; p < 0.001). An increased MPV is an independent predictor of in-hospital mortality in patients with STEMI. However, elevated levels of MPV did not predict in hospital mortality in NSTEMI group. The increase in MPV values was independently correlated with two-year mortality in all study patients.

Deep inguinal infection after percutaneous coronary intervention.

A 62-year-old female underwent percutaneous coronary stent implantation of the left anterior descending artery without any complications except for a small haematoma in the right inguinal region where femoral artery puncture was performed. Forty days after discharge, she presented to the emergency department with a deep ulcerative wound in the femoral artery puncture site. The wound-site culture revealed methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus. After appropriate antibiotic treatment and wound care, the deep inguinal infection healed with proper epithelisation and without any complications. This case underscores the importance of prevention and management of access site haematoma during percutaneous procedures.

Double right coronary artery: report of two cases and review of the literature.

Double right coronary artery (RCA) is a very rare coronary anomaly. So far, the number of reported cases of double RCA is not so much. Nevertheless, there have been several reports of double RCA in the literature, particularly in the last decade. We aimed to report two cases with double RCA and review the literature in this issue. In brackets, we searched the words - double right coronary artery - in medline (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov) and limit the search into the title. According to the results, so far double RCA have been reported 18 times and in 20 cases. Here in this case report and minireview we discussed the characteristics of the previous 20 and the present 2 cases with double RCA. The age of diagnosis of double RCA was in the fifth decade on average. Of the 22 cases reported, 19 were male. 14 of them originated from single ostia whereas 8 from separate ostia. 7 of 22 cases were complicated with atherosclerosis and 4 had associated anomalies. In conclusion, although controversy exists about definition of double RCA and generally considered as a benign entity, it might be atherosclerotic and can cause acute coronary syndromes including myocardial infarction and be associated with other anomalies. It is predominantly seen in males and might origin from either single or separate ostia. Although coronary angiography is the most widely used diagnostic modality, multidetector computed tomography might also be helpful.

Fatal giant aortic thrombus presenting with pulmonary edema in a patient with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Thrombus formation in a morphologically normal a aorta is a very rare event. A 50-year-old man with a history of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, presented to the emergency department with pulmonary edema. Transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography revealed a highly mobile, pedunculated floating thrombus in the descending thoracic aorta 3-4 cm distal to the origin of the left subclavian artery. The original lumen of the aorta was almost obliterated by the thrombus. The aortic wall was free of any atheroma. Thrombolytic treatment was administered, but 3 hours after starting streptokinase, he developed sudden and severe low-back pain accompanied by loss of lower-extremity pulses which were patent on admission. Cardiopulmonary arrest developed within an hour and the patient died despite resuscitation. The potential causes of aortic thrombus, the clinical spectrum that the patients may present, diagnostic methods, and therapeutic options are discussed.

Uncomplicated diabetes mellitus is equivalent for coronary artery disease: new support from novel angiographic myocardial perfusion-myocardial blush.

BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is accepted as coronary heart disease equivalent even in the presence of normal coronary artery on coronary angiography. We aimed to evaluate microvascular circulation with novel angiographic perfusion indexes "myocardial blush grade" (MBG) and "myocardial filling time" (MFT) in patients with uncomplicated DM. METHODS: Among 4563 angiographic studies performed between November 2001 and May 2004, 70 subjects with DM who were normotensive, non-smokers and with normal lipid profiles were recruited into the study. Patients were divided into 2 groups according to angiographic results. DM-1: diabetic normotensive and normolipidemic subjects with normal coronary angiography (n: 30) and DM-2: diabetic subjects with lesions in the left anterior descending artery (LAD) less than 50% (n: 40). Non-diabetic, normotensive and normolipidemic 60 subjects were assigned as the control group. Control group was also divided into 2 groups according to angiographic results Control-1: subjects with normal coronary angiography (n: 30) and ; Control-2: subjects with lesions in the left anterior descending artery (LAD) less than 50% (n: 30). MBG was defined between 0 and 3 according to myocardial dyeing density and wash-out speed with 0 as the least and 3 as the most. MFT was calculated by conversion of the frame count, from the beginning of myocardial blushing till the time with the highest amount of contrast, to milliseconds. RESULTS: MFT was longer in the group DM-2 when compared with other groups (p<0.0001). MFT was similar in Control-2 and DM-1. MFT was shorter in Control-1 when compared with DM-1 and DM-2 (p<0.0001). MBG was lower in DM-2 when compared with Control-1 and Control-2 (p=0.001). However MBG was similar in DM-1 when compared with Control-1 and Control-2. CONCLUSIONS: Microvascular function is worse in subjects with both diabetes and coronary artery disease than in non-diabetic subjects with coronary artery disease. The most impressive result of our study is diabetic patients with normal coronary angiography have similar MBG and MFT results with non-diabetic coronary artery disease patients. DM causes microvascular dysfunction even one has normal coronary angiography and this put them in the same risk group with non-diabetic coronary artery patients.

Fibrinolytic treatment in left ventricular mobile thrombi with low ejection fraction: results and follow-up of seven cases.

BACKGROUND: Left ventricular mobile thrombi carry high risk of embolism and need early treatment in which the appropriate treatment is still controversial. Because most patients with mobile thrombi have low ejection fraction and also accompanying heart failure symptoms, decision of surgical treatment is not always easy and thus effective medical treatment is crucial. METHOD: In this paper we present, treatment and follow-up of seven patients with mobile thrombi who underwent fibrinolytic treatment between 2002 and 2006. RESULTS: In four cases, mobile thrombi disappeared completely while echocardiographically regressed to lower size with decreased mobility in the other three patients. On 6th month follow-up, complete lysis of the thrombi in six patients was observed with warfarin treatment. No major complications were seen in the patients. CONCLUSION: In case of mobile left ventricular thrombi with concomitant low ejection fraction and heart failure fibrinolytic treatment might be a therapeutic option.

A case of misdiagnosed interrupted aortic arch as primary hypertension for almost two decades.

Hypertension is an increasingly important medical and public health issue. Appropriate diagnosis and treatment of hypertension is very important in both reducing the morbidity, mortality, and cost related to it. Interrupted aortic arch (IAA) is an uncommon and usually lethal congenital malformation. It is very rarely encountered in adult patients who generally present with nonspecific symptoms and hypertension. Substantial collateral circulation must be present to maintain blood flow to tissues below the aortic interruption and thus to enable survival. A 40-year-old man presented with general malaise, frequent headaches, weakness in his legs, and hypertension. He had suffered from effort intolerance since childhood. Physical examination revealed upper limb hypertension. Lower-limb pulses were not palpable. Transthoracic echocardiography, aortography, and gadolinium contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography revealed complete interruption of the aortic arch just distal to the origin of the left subclavian artery. The present case describes an unusual case of IAA, in which the diagnosis was delayed until the age of 40 years. A complete physical examination would have ensured the correct diagnosis was made much earlier. As our case implies, physical examination maintains its pivotal role in the diagnosis of some forms of secondary hypertension, although various high-tech diagnostic tools are needed for confirmation.

High serum levels of adiponectin improve coronary collateral development in patients with coronary artery disease.

Adiponectin is a novel polypeptide that modulates endothelial function. Association between high serum adiponectin level and stimulation of new blood vessel formation have been reported in two experimental studies, however, data in humans are lacking. We sought to determine relationship between serum adiponectin and collateral vessel development in patients with coronary artery disease. We included 89 patients with stable angina pectoris and angiographically documented total occlusion in one of the major coronary arteries. Coronary collateral circulation was graded according to Rentrop scoring method in which collateralisation was graded between 0 and 3 from the poorest to the best. Adiponectin was determined by the ELISA method. High serum adiponectin level were significantly associated with increased new collateralisation (p = 0.001). With the increase of body mass index and waist circumference, the collateral development decreased (p = 0.001, p = 0.002; respectively). Presence of the diabetes mellitus (DM) was more frequent in those with poor collateral group than in those with good collateral group. DM was associated with poor collateral development (p = 0.002). In multiple stepwise logistic regression analysis, low level of serum adiponectin (p = 0.0001), waist circumference (p = 0.001), and presence of DM (p = 0.003) were found to be significant independent predictors of poor collateral formation. In conclusion, we have shown for the first time that elevated levels of serum adiponectin are associated with coronary collateral development in patients with coronary artery disease and additionally, the present study confirms many of the metabolic associations reported previously with adiponectin.

Pistachio intake increases high density lipoprotein levels and inhibits low-density lipoprotein oxidation in rats.

There is increasing evidence that nuts have protective effects against coronary artery disease by improving lipid profile and inhibiting lipid oxidation. However, data about pistachio nuts are limited, and to our knowledge, there is no study investigating the effects of pistachio intake on lipid oxidation and serum antioxidant levels. This study, therefore, sought to determine the effects of pistachio intake on serum lipids and determine whether consumption of pistachio would alter serum antioxidant levels. Rats were randomly divided into three groups (n=12 for each): control group fed basic diet for 10 weeks and treated groups fed basic diet plus pistachio which constituted 20% and 40% of daily caloric intake, respectively. Consumption of pistachio as 20% of daily caloric intake increased high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels and decreased total cholesterol (TC)/HDL ratio, compared with those not taking pistachio. However, TC, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol and triglyceride levels were unaffected by pistachio consumption. Consumption of pistachio as 20% of daily caloric intake increased serum paraoxonase activity by 35% and arylesterase activity by 60%, which are known to inhibit LDL cholesterol oxidation, compared with the control group. However, increased antioxidant activity was blunted when pistachio intake was increased to 40% of daily caloric intake. In conclusion, the present results show that consumption of pistachio as 20% of daily caloric intake leads to significant improvement in HDL and TC/HDL ratio and inhibits LDL cholesterol oxidation. These results suggest that pistachio may be beneficial for both prevention and treatment of coronary artery disease.

Increased homocysteine in heart failure: a result of renal impairment?

BACKGROUND: Hyperhomocysteinemia may constitute a risk factor for patients with severe heart failure. This study examines the relationship between plasma homocysteine concentration and left ventricular ejection fraction with renal function in heart failure patients free of coronary artery disease. METHODS: Left ventricular ejection fraction was documented in 62 patients with advanced heart failure who had no proven significant coronary artery stenosis. Glomerular filtration rate was measured using the Cockroft-Gault equation. RESULTS: Elevated homocysteine levels (>or=15 micromol/L) were detected in 22 patients. Low glomerular filtration rate was observed in patients who had normal serum creatinine concentration. Homocysteine was strongly correlated with age, duration of disease, left ventricular ejection fraction, serum creatinine, and glomerular filtration rate. Statistically significant trends were observed across respective homocysteine quartiles. However, by multivariate regression, the strongest predictor of homocysteine was the glomerular filtration rate. CONCLUSIONS: Impaired renal function leads to a diminished clearance rate, which can be a prominent pathophysiological mechanism in the elevation of homocysteine concentration in heart failure.

Uncomplicated metabolic syndrome is associated with prolonged electrocardiographic QTc interval and QTc dispersion.

AIM: Metabolic syndrome is associated with increased risk of mortality and morbidity. The present study evaluates the repolarization abnormalities in patients with uncomplicated metabolic syndrome measuring corrected QT interval (QTc) and corrected QT dispersion (QTd) on electrocardiogram. METHODS: The study involved 83 subjects. A total of 50 individuals met criteria of metabolic syndrome (Group A: 11 men, 39 women, mean body mass index (BMI) 36.7 kg/m2, mean waist circumference 117.3 cm). And 33 participants were healthy normal volunteers (Group B: 9 men, 24 women, mean BMI 21.3 kg/m2, mean waist circumference 76.2 cm). The two groups were matched for age and sex. Metabolic syndrome was diagnosed according to the Adult Treatment Panel III criteria. The QTc intervals and QTd were measured. RESULTS: Patients with uncomplicated metabolic syndrome had significantly higher values of QTc-min, QTc-max, and QTd than control group (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: Patients with uncomplicated metabolic syndrome have a greater dispersion of ventricular repolarization time and increased QTc-min and QTc-max.

Progress of untreated massive cardiac echinococcosis--echocardiographic follow-up.

A 56-year-old man was admitted with chest pain and dyspnea. Echocardiographic evaluation revealed a giant cystic cardiac mass with multiple loculations at interventricular septum extended to inferoposterior region protruding inside the cavity. The patient refused surgical therapy. His complaints persisted without significant changes after 5 months. Second echocardiographic evaluation revealed conjugation of previous multiple cyst to gigantic intramyocardial cyst and minimal pericardial effusion. We intend to illustrate herein an unusual echocardiographic appearance and progress of an untreated massive "cardiac echinococcosis." If cardiac hydatid cyst is left untreated it may transform to large cavity with a high risk of rupture.