Cardiology Journal 2009, tom 16, nr 3

We present a case with the previously unreported finding of an a-dip in the M-mode tracing of the aortic valve. An a-dip is commonly seen in the M-mode tracing of the pulmonic valve motion, and represents near equalization of pulmonary artery and right ventricular end-diastolic pressures during atrial contraction...

The clinical use of implantable cardioverter defibrillators (ICDs) has increased rapidly since the results of several randomized trials confirmed the efficacy of ICDs in the secondary and primary prevention of sudden cardiac death [1]. The more complex devices are leading to a rapidly increasing workload for the follow-up of these patients in specialized centres...

One way of defining an individual’s heart effort is to calculate the maximum heart rate to be expected given their age, but the reinnervation seen in patients who have received heart transplants makes for different calculations from patients who have suffered heart failure....

Depression is the most common psychiatric disorder in coronary artery disease, and it can worsen cardiac outcomes. Also, cardiac disease predisposes patients to the development of depression. Assessment of depression is an important part of ongoing patient contacts...

The patient involved in the first fulguration was a 47 year-old man who had experienced a myocardial infarction ten years previously. This had been long forgotten until he experienced an abrupt syncope, followed quickly by a second episode. In light of these episodes, an electrophysiological exploration was performed in 1979 with the intention of highlighting a probable disorder of atrio-ventricular conduction. This disorder was presumed to be located below or inside the His bundle because the PR interval was not lenghtened. Apart from some extra-systoles, there were no disorders of intraventricular conduction resulting from the old myocardial infarction...

Heart failure continues to be a major public health problem with high morbidity and mortality rates, despite the advances in medical treatment. Advanced heart failure patients have severe persistent symptoms and a poor quality of life. Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT), an invasive therapy which involves synchronized pacing of both right and left ventricles, improves ventricular conduction delay and left ventricular performance...

The widespread use of primary coronary intervention (PCI) has significantly improved the prognosis of men presenting with acute coronary syndromes, but the cardiovascular event rate among women has either levelled off or increased. The purpose of the present prospective study was to compare the clinical outcome of women and men presenting with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary PCI with concomitant usage of GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors...