Relation of minor cardiac troponin I elevation to late cardiac events after uncomplicated elective successful percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty for angina pectoris.

There is little information about the relation between mild cardiac troponin I (cTn-I) increase after coronary interventions and late outcome. We therefore focused on the long-term outcome and the clinical, morphologic, and procedural correlates of elevation of cTn-I compared with cardiac troponin T, creatine kinase (CK), CK-MB activity and mass, and myoglobin in 105 patients with successful elective percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) for stable or unstable angina. Patients with myocardial infarction and those with unstable angina who had a detectable increase in serum markers before PTCA were excluded. Markers were measured before and after the procedure and for 2 days. Patients were followed up to record recurrent angina, myocardial infarction, cardiac death, repeat PTCA, or elective coronary artery bypass graft surgery. Procedure success was achieved in all cases. Elevation in cTn-I (> or =0.1 microg/L) was observed in 23 of 105 patients (22%) (median peak: 0.25 microg/L); 18% had cardiac troponin T (cTn-T) release (> or = 0.1 microg/L, median peak 0.21); 11.4% CK-MB mass (> or =5 microg/L), and 7.6% myoglobin (> or =90 microg/L) release. Five and 2 patients had elevated CK and CK-MB activity, respectively. Fourteen of 18 patients with cTn-T elevation had a corresponding elevation in cTn-I (kappa 0.68; p = 0.001). Patients positive for cTn-I had more unstable angina (p = 0.042) and heparin before PTCA (p = 0.046), and had longest total time (p = 0.004) and single inflation (p = 0.01). By multivariate logistic regression, predictors of postprocedure cTnI elevation were maximum time of each inflation (odds ratio 9.2; p = 0.0012), type B lesions (odds ratio 6.6; p = 0.013), unstable angina (p = 0.041), and age > or =60 years (p = 0.032). Clinical follow-up was available in 103 patients (98%) (mean 19+/-10 months). Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that cTn-I elevation was not an important correlate of cardiac events (p = 0.34, by log-rank analysis). The incidence of recurrent angina, myocardial infarction, cardiac death, and repeat revascularization after 12 months was not different in patients positive or negative for cTn-I. We conclude that cTn-I elevation after successful PTCA is not associated with significantly worse late clinical outcome. Levels of cTn-I allow a much higher diagnostic accuracy in detecting minor myocardial injury after PTCA compared with other markers, but there is no association with periprocedural myocardial cell injury and late outcome when cTn-I and other markers are considered.

Release kinetics of serum cardiac troponin I in ischemic myocardial injury.

OBJECTIVES: The study was undertaken to evaluate the release kinetics of cardiac troponin I (cTn-I) in ischemic myocardial injury. DESIGN AND METHODS: The reference range for cTn-I was established by determination of cTn-I in sera and plasma obtained from 622 healthy volunteers (Group 1). cTn-I was compared to: (a) Creatine kinase (CK) MB mass and myoglobin in 12 patients with severe skeletal muscle damage (Group 2); (b) CK-MB activity in 48 patients with myocardial infarction (MI) receiving intravenous thrombolysis (Group 3) (in this group, an additional 43 patients with MI were analyzed separately to characterize cTn-I patterns in thrombolyzed and nonthrombolyzed populations): and in 44 patients with unstable angina (Group 4). RESULTS: In Groups 1 and 2, no positive results (> or = 0.1 microgram/L) were obtained. In Group 3, the time-courses of cTn-I were mostly monophasic in form. A pathologic increase occurred earlier in cTn-I than in CK-MB activity (p = 0.0002); the period with increased cTn-I was longer (p = 0.001), the overall sensitivity of cTn-I (93.9%) was higher than that of CK-MB activity (p = 0.00001). cTn-I was more sensitive at admission (p = 0.0004). In additional patients, the cTn-I peak occurred and cTn-I disappeared significantly later in nonthrombolyzed than in the thrombolyzed group. In Group 4, positive tests results were detected in 45% of patients for cTn-I, 16% for CK-MB activity, and 32% for CK-MB mass. CONCLUSIONS: The cTn-I assay appears to be ideally suited for the detection of ischemic myocardial injury in complex clinical situations because of its high specificity; cTn-I indicates myocardial tissue damage in patients with unstable angina and is superior to CK-MB activity and mass in this respect.

[Carotid artery thrombosis and myocardial infarction in nephrotic syndrome]. / Thrombose carotidienne et infarctus du myocarde au cours d'un syndrome néphrotique.

The authors report the case of a 18 year old man with a chronic corticosteroid-refractory nephrotic syndrome complicated by carotid artery thrombosis and myocardial infarction. Thromboembolism is one of the most serious complications of the nephrotic syndrome. Serious clotting factor disturbances are observed: changes in platelet function (hyperaggregability) increased plasma zymogens and cofactors, increased plasma fibrinogen, abnormalities of the fibrinolytic system and acquired deficiencies of coagulation inhibitors. The respective role of each of these abnormalities have not been clearly established, but it is likely that increased platelet aggregation and antithrombin III deficiency are important factors in producing a hypercoagulable state in the nephrotic syndrome. Hyperlipidemia is also a characteristic feature of the nephrotic syndrome: these is a wide spectrum of lipoprotein patterns with increased low density lipoproteins (LDL) or very low density lipoproteins (VLDL) or both; contradictory results have been reported with respect to the high density lipoproteins (HDL): decreased, normal or even increased plasma levels have been observed. In addition, changes in the distribution and composition of LDL and VLDL subclasses have been detected. Most of these changes have an atherogenic potential but controversy still surrounds the question of the prevalence of ischaemic heart disease in the nephrotic syndrome; it is unlikely that nephrotic syndromes of short duration have any influence on the incidence of coronary events, but patients with chronic heavy protein urea and long-term exposure to abnormalities of haemostasis and lipid profiles appear to have a significant risk of developing cardiovascular disease and may require long-term anticoagulant therapy.

[Evaluation of the size of thrombolysed myocardial infarction by serum myosin determination]. / Evaluation de la taille de l'infarctus du myocarde thrombolysé par le dosage de la myosine sérique.

The prognosis of myocardial infarction is very dependent on the size of the infarct. The measurement of the infarct size after thrombolysis remains difficult despite the large number of methods available, all of which have drawbacks. This parameter is however essential to assess prognosis and the efficacy of thrombolytic therapy. Serum beta heavy chain myosin determination is a recently introduced method of evaluating infarct size; there are relatively few published studies, especially concerning post-thrombolytic patients. A prospective study was undertaken in 40 patients (37 men and 3 women: average age 55.6 years) with a primary myocardial infarction treated by thrombolysis. Myosin levels (peak and area under curve of 5 samples in 10 days) were compared with other methods of assessing infarct size: electrocardiogram (number of leads with Q waves, ST segment analysis), cardiac enzymes (peak and release integrals of CK abd LDH), contrast ventriculography (segmental asynergy score, ejection fraction), coronary angiography and resting MIBI myocardial scintigraphy. The peak and integral of myosin release correlated well with the other methods (p < 0.01): a correlation was particularly apparent between the integral of myosin release and MIBI scintigraphy scores (r = 0.77, p < 0.001). Complex myosin release kinetics were observed significantly more often in patients with large infarcts (p < 0.01) or in those with occlusion of the artery responsible for infarction at coronary angiography on the 6th day (p = 0.001). In conclusion, with 5 blood samples over a 10 day period, it is possible to estimate the infarct size after thrombolysis in everyday cardiological practice: this method could help identify high risk subjects (complex kinetics of myosin release and high peak myosin levels) and also could be used to assess efficacy of thrombolytic therapy in large scale trials.

[Doppler color echocardiography in the diagnosis of 4 septal perforations complicating anterior myocardial infarction]. / Apport de l'échocardiographie-doppler couleur dans le diagnostic de quatre perforations septales compliquant un infarctus antérieur du myocarde.

The 4 cases reported here are meant to illustrate the value of colour doppler-echocardiography in the diagnosis of ventricular septal rupture consecutive to an anterior myocardial infarction. With this method, the examination begins with colour doppler ultrasound superimposed on two-dimensional echocardiographic images and is completed by pulsed and continuous wave doppler velocimetry. In all 4 patients an abnormal colour doppler flow was visualized from the outset; it started in the left ventricule and crossed the ventricular septum to enter the right ventricule, thus confirming the diagnosis and locating the septal defect. This abnormal flow was easy to recognize. On the apical "4 cavity" projection it followed a semi-circular anti-clockwise course which occurred at each cardiac cycle. The flow was red at first in presystole at the apex of the left ventricule; it became blue in pre- and middle-systole while traversing the septum, then mosaic-like in middle- or end-systole around the septal defect on the right ventricular side, and finally blue again in pre-diastole within the right ventricle. The blue trans-septal flow persisted at least up to pre-diastole. The diagnosis of septal rupture was confirmed at surgery in 3 cases and at right heart catheterization in 1 case. Colour doppler-echocardiography is a simple, efficient and rapid method, superior to contrast echocardiography or pulsed doppler alone, for direct real-time visualization of the shunt. It makes the septal defect easy to locate, and it avoids invasive exploratory manoeuvres in cases where surgery is contra-indicated and/or when coronary angiography is not mandatory.

[Lipomatous hypertrophy of the interatrial septum. Apropos of 3 cases and review of the literature]. / Hypertrophie lipomateuse du septum interauriculaire. A propos de 3 cas et revue de la littérature.

Lipomatous hypertrophy of the interatrial septum is characterised by an accumulation of fatty tissue in the interatrial septum. The authors report three cases, one presenting with sinus tachycardia and the other two being chance findings. Echocardiography associated with cardiac computerised tomography or magnetic resonance imaging usually confirms the diagnosis. In half the cases, supraventricular arrhythmias and suggestive P wave abnormalities are observed on the electrocardiogram. The diagnostic value of transoesophageal echocardiography is emphasised; it demonstrates the massive forms which may obstruct flow from the superior vena cava into the right atrium. The authors observe a discrepancy between the prevalence of this condition in autopsy series (about 1%) and the small number of cases described at echocardiography, suggesting that the diagnosis is probably missed.

[Arteriovenous fistula caused by spontaneous rupture of an aortic or iliac aneurysm in the iliocaval venous system. Apropos of 2 cases]. / Fistule artério-veineuse par rupture spontanée d'un anévrysme aortique ou iliaque dans l'axe veineux ilio-cave. A propos de 2 observations.

The authors report two cases of arteriovenous fistula due to spontaneous rupture of an aortic or iliac aneurysm into the iliocaval venous axis. This is a rare complication of atheromatous aneurysm (less than 4% of ruptured aneurysms), often difficult to diagnose as the clinical presentation may be obscure. Although aortography is the reference diagnostic investigation, color Doppler ultrasonography enabled visualisation of the arteriovenous communication and provided an accurate diagnosis in one recent case. Treatment of these aortocaval fistulae is always surgical. The prognosis and immediate operative mortality depend mainly on the presence of an associated retroperitoneal rupture.

[Traumatic tricuspid insufficiency. Apropos of 2 cases]. / Insuffisance tricuspide traumatique. A propos de 2 observations.

The authors report two cases of tricuspid regurgitation by a ruptured anterior papillary muscle secondary to non-penetrating thoracic trauma. In the presence of suggestive clinical and electrocardiographic abnormalities (systolic murmur, right heart failure, right bundle branch block), echocardiography confirmed the tricuspid regurgitation, showed its mechanism and excluded any other intracardiac lesions. Tricuspid annuloplasty was performed in both cases because of the persistence of failure or degradation of the patient's clinical condition. Peroperative echocardiography was used to judge the quality of the surgical repair in both cases. Traumatic tricuspid regurgitation is a rare condition and the diagnosis is often delayed. Echocardiography is the investigation of choice and guides treatment which is essentially valvular repair in symptomatic patients.

[Prognostic significance of early raised cardiac troponine I in unstable angina. Contribution to the identification of a high-risk sub-group]. / Signification pronostique de l'élévation précoce de la troponine I cardiaque chez les patients en angor instable. Contribution à l'identification d'un sous-groupe à haut-risque.

The authors compared the clinical and angiographic characteristics of 44 patients with unstable angina according to cardiac Troponine I concentrations (TnIc) during early blood sampling and then tried to determine a threshold value to predic the occurrence of cardiac events during the hospital period and after 12 months. Tnlc, creatinine-kinase (CK), CK-MB activity and CK-MB mass were sampled over 48 hours. Forty-five per cent of patients had TnIc > or = 0.1 microgram/L; CK-MB activity and CK-MB mass were detected in 16 and 32% of patients. Age, gender, classification and recurrence of angina, previous cardiac history, risk factors, coronary angiographic appearances were comparable in patients with and without raised TnIc. No major cardiac events occurred during the hospital period in either group. The number of angioplasties and coronary bypass procedures was also comparable. At one year, the incidence of myocardial infarction (N = 4) and death (N = 5) was significantly different in patients with raised Tnlc (33% versus 0% in patients without increased TnIc). However, betablocker therapy was less prescribed in the group with the poorest outcomes and left ventricular dysfunction was also significantly more common in this group. Early elevation of Tnlc could contribute to the identification of a high risk subgroup of patients with unstable angina.

[Risks of the anti-arrhythmia treatment in the elderly]. / Risques du traitement anti-arythmique chez le sujet âgé.

The amount of drugs taken by elderly patients over 70 years old increases with the increase of the average age in western countries; this drug consumption, statistically higher than that of the whole population, concerns mainly cardio-vascular drugs; anti-arrhythmics occupy a large place, the therapeutic indications differing only slightly from those of the young subject. The report on the observations enables us to draw the attention on the increasing predisposition, in these age groups, to side effects which are often serious, calling into question the vital prognosis. Modifications in the pharmacokinetics and the pharmacodynamics, associated with a frequent polymedication and a risk of error in the drug absorption are factors to be taken into account when prescribing anti-arrhythmic drugs to elderly patients.

[Post-radiation coronary diseases. Presentation of 7 cases and review of the literature]. / Les coronaropathies post-radiques. Présentation de 7 cas et revue de la littérature.

Coronary lesions are one of the complications of mediastinal radiotherapy; they are more uncommon, at least in their clinical expression, than the involvement of the pericardium, but they are interesting by their gravity and occurrence in young patients (35 years old, in an average). We are reporting 7 cases in addition to the 53 already recorded in the literature. The neoplasm which led to the radiation treatment is, in 85 p. cent of the cases Hodgkin's disease and in 10 per cent of the cases a breast cancer. The time of occurrence of the clinical signs is of 5 years, in an average. The revealing symptom is an initial necrosis or an angor, most often unstable (45 p. cent of the cases, for each of them), more exceptionnally it is a sudden death or a pericarditis. The coronary risk factors have been determined in 37 patients; 45 p. cent had none. In half of the cases, the coronary involvement is monotruncular and frequently proximal (the anterior interventricular trunk is affected twice as often as the right coronary); in the other half, there is an equal distribution between bi-troncular and tri-truncular involvement. There are various pathological lesions: typical with isolated fibrosis of the intima and aventitia, pure atherosclerotic lesions or association of the two. The prognosis of these coronary lesions is severe (43 p. cent of deaths), but the patients who underwent revascularization procedures (by-pass or more seldom transluminal angioplasty) have in 80 p. cent of the cases a favorable evolution.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

[Acute poisoning by insecticides with anticholinesterase activity. Evaluation of the efficacy of a cholinesterase reactivator, pralidoxime]. / Intoxications aiguës par insecticides à action anticholinestérasique. Evaluation de l'efficacité d'un réactivateur des cholinestérases, le pralidoxime.

Pralidoxime is the most frequently used antidote in anticholinesterase insecticide poisoning, owing to its cholinesterase reactivating action. The efficiency of Pralidoxime has been retrospectively evaluated by comparing two groups of 31 patients, the first one treated by Pralidoxime in the most commonly used doses (1200mg/24H), the second one untreated. Age, sex and nature of poison were taken in consideration to make a matched distribution in both groups. The clinical and biological initial features were nearly the same in both groups; the other therapeutic measures were the same. There was no statistical difference between the both groups for evolutive criteria such as that mortality, duration of artificial ventilation, intubation, atropine administration, decrease in plasma cholinesterase. The results pleading against the use of Pralidoxime, at least at this dose, in anticholinesterase insecticide poisoning, warrant confirmation by prospective randomized studies. The efficiency of Pralidoxime warrants confirmation firstly in the course of poisonings by some clearly identified insecticides, to which pralidoxime is supposed to be the most effective, cater used in high doses, as recommended by some authors.

Chronic constrictive pericarditis induced by long-term bromocriptine therapy: report of two cases.

OBJECTIVE: To report two cases of chronic constrictive pericarditis that appear to be related to the intake of bromocriptine for Parkinson's disease. CASE SUMMARY: Two white men (aged 63 and 69 y) were treated with bromocriptine for four (40 mg/d) and two years (30 mg/d), respectively, with a cumulative dose intake of 58.4 and 21.9 g, respectively. The patients experienced dyspnea with bilateral lower-limb edema and pleural effusion, suggesting right cardiac dysfunction. Echocardiography, computed tomography, and cardiac catheterization results were compatible with a diagnosis of constrictive pericarditis, so pericardectomy was performed on both patients. The anatomic pathology examination showed a fibrous pericardium; cultures were sterile. In the first case, pleural effusion recurred seven months after the pericarditis; bromocriptine was suspected and treatment was discontinued. In the second case, just prior to the pericardectomy, an episode of mental confusion occurred and prompted the cessation of bromocriptine therapy. DISCUSSION: To the best of our knowledge, only one case of constrictive pericarditis induced by bromocriptine therapy has previously been described in the literature. CONCLUSIONS: Our cases call attention to a possible association between bromocriptine use in patients who have Parkinson's disease and constrictive pericarditis.

Evaluation of incidence, clinical significance, and prognostic value of circulating cardiac troponin I and T elevation in hemodynamically stable patients with suspected myocardial contusion after blunt chest trauma.

BACKGROUND: The frequency and prognostic influence of myocardial injury in patients with blunt chest trauma is controversial. We investigated the value of cardiac troponin I (cTn-I) and cardiac troponin T (cTn-T), highly specific markers of myocardial injury, to determine whether their measurement would improve the ability to detect myocardial contusion in stable patients with blunt chest trauma in comparison with conventional markers and whether they were associated with significantly worse late clinical outcome. METHODS AND RESULTS: Over an 18-month period, myocardial contusion was diagnosed in 26 of 94 patients (27.6%) with acute blunt chest trauma (motor vehicle crash; 81%), because of echocardiographic abnormalities (n = 12), electrocardiographic abnormalities (n = 29), or both. Patients with myocardial contusion had a significantly higher Injury Severity Score at the time of admission (p = 0.001) and a significantly longer hospital stay (p = 0.0008). All patients survived admission to hospital and were hemodynamically stable. None of the patients died or had severe in-hospital cardiac complications. The percentage of patients with elevated CK, (CK-MB/total CK) ratio, or CK-MB mass concentration was not significantly different between patients with or without myocardial contusion. However, there were significant differences between the two groups when we applied the commonly used threshold levels of CK-MB activity and myoglobin. The percentage of patients with elevated circulating cTn-I and cTn-T (> or = 0.1 microg/L) was significantly higher in patients with myocardial contusion (23% vs. 3%; p = 0.01 and 12% vs. 0%; p = 0.03, respectively). Complete changes in cTn-I and cTn-T correlated well (r = 0.91, p = 0.0001). Sensitivity, specificity, and negative and positive predictive values of cTn-I and cTn-T in predicting a myocardial contusion in blunt trauma patients were 23%, 97%, and 77%, 75%, and 12%, 100%, and 74%, 100%, respectively. Clinical follow-up was available in 83 patients (88%) (mean, 16 +/- 7.5 months). There were no deaths in either group directly attributed to cardiac complications. None of the patients had any long-term cardiac complications or myocardial failure related to blunt chest trauma. CONCLUSION: Although improved specificity of cTn-I and cTn-T compared with conventional markers, it should be emphasized that the main problem with cTn-I and cTn-T is low sensitivity as well as low predictive values in diagnosing myocardial contusion. cTn-I and cTn-T measurement is currently not an improved method in diagnosing blunt cardiac injury in hemodynamically stable patients. Moreover, there was no association of postmyocardial contusion cell injury and late outcome in these patients when cTn-I and cTn-T and other conventional markers were considered.