21,441 research outputs found
Prognostic impact of sleep disordered breathing and its treatment in heart failure: an observational study
1. Abstract
1.1. Aims:
Sleep disordered breathing (SDB) may contribute to disease progression in patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). The objective of this observational study was to evaluate whether SDB is a risk factor for mortality in CHF patients and whether this risk can be attenuated by treatment with positive airway pressure (PAP).
1.2. Methods and results:
We studied 296 CHF patients (median left ventricular ejection fraction 33%) who underwent in-lab polysomnography between January 2002 and December 2009. We compared (i) mortality between patients with severe SDB [apnoea–hypopnoea index (AHI) ≥ 22.5 h-1] vs. those without severe SDB (AHI < 22.5 h-1) and (ii) evaluated the impact of PAP treatment on mortality in those with severe SDB. After accounting for significant confounding factors (age,
NYHA class, cause of CHF, diabetes, and PAP treatment), patients with severe SDB (n = 176) had a 2.0-fold increased hazard ratio for death compared with those without severe SDB [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.1–3.5, P = 0.023]. In an adjusted on-treatment analysis of the group with severe SDB, mortality was significantly less in patients using PAP (18%) compared with those with untreated SDB (52%; hazard ratio 0.4, 95% CI 0.2–0.6, P = 0.001). Mortality in the PAP-treated group was lower compared with the untreated group at any time-point of the follow-up period.
1.3. Conclusion:
The presence of severe SDB in CHF patients constitutes a significantly increased risk for death, independent of established risk factors. In CHF patients with SDB, use of PAP therapy was associated with a decreased mortality rate at any time point of the follow-up, suggesting that PAP can be safely used in such patients
The orbital periods of subdwarf B binaries produced by the first stable Roche overflow channel
Long-orbital-period subdwarf B (sdB) stars with main-sequence companions are
believed to be the product of stable Roche Lobe overflow (RLOF), a scenario
challenged by recent observations. Here we represent the results of a
systematic study of the orbital-period distribution of sdB binaries in this
channel using detailed binary evolution calculations. We show that the observed
orbital-period distribution of long-period sdB binaries can be well explained
by this scenario. Furthermore, we find that, if the progenitors of the sdB
stars have initial masses below the helium flash mass, the sdB binaries
produced from stable RLOF follow a unique mass -- orbital period relation for a
given metallicity ; increasing the orbital period from to \,d corresponds to increasing the mass of the sdB star from to
for . We suggest that the longest sdB binaries
(with orbital period \,d) could be the result of atmospheric RLOF. The
mass -- orbital period relation can be tested observationally if the mass of
the sdB star can be determined precisely, e.g.\ from asteroseismology. Using
this relation, we revise the orbital period distribution of sdB binaries
produced by the first stable RLOF channel for the best fitting model of Han et
al (2003), and show that the orbital period has a peak around 830\,d.Comment: 8 pages, 2 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
An evolutionary study of the pulsating subdwarf B eclipsing binary PG1336-018 (NY Vir)
The formation of subdwarf B (sdB) stars is not well understood within the
current framework of stellar single and binary evolution. In this study, we
focus on the formation and evolution of the pulsating sdB star in the very
short-period eclipsing binary PG1336-018. We aim at refining the formation
scenario of this unique system, so that it can be confronted with observations.
We probe the stellar structure of the progenitors of sdB stars in short-period
binaries using detailed stellar evolution calculations. Applying this to
PG1336-018 we reconstruct the common-envelope phase during which the sdB star
was formed. The results are interpreted in terms of the standard
common-envelope formalism (the alpha-formalism) based on the energy equation,
and an alternative description (the gamma-formalism) using the angular momentum
equation. We find that if the common-envelope evolution is described by the
alpha-formalism, the sdB progenitor most likely experienced a helium flash. We
then expect the sdB mass to be between 0.39 and 0.48 Msun, and the sdB
progenitor initial mass to be below ~2 Msun. However, the results for the
gamma-formalism are less restrictive, and a broader sdB mass range (0.3 - 0.8
Msun) is possible in this case. Future seismic mass determination will give
strong constraints on the formation of PG1336-018 and, in particular, on the CE
phase.Comment: 9 pages, 7 figures, 2 tables, accepted for publication in A&
The orbits of subdwarf B + main-sequence binaries. I: The sdB+G0 system PG 1104+243
The predicted orbital period histogram of an sdB population is bimodal with a
peak at short ( 250 days) periods. Observationally, there
are many short-period sdB systems known, but only very few long-period sdB
binaries are identified. As these predictions are based on poorly understood
binary interaction processes, it is of prime importance to confront the
predictions to observational data. In this contribution we aim to determine the
absolute dimensions of the long-period sdB+MS binary system PG1104+243.
High-resolution spectroscopy time-series were obtained with HERMES at the
Mercator telescope at La Palma, and analyzed to obtain radial velocities of
both components. Photometry from the literature was used to construct the
spectral energy distribution (SED) of the binary. Atmosphere models were used
to fit this SED and determine the surface gravity and temperature of both
components. The gravitational redshift provided an independent confirmation of
the surface gravity of the sdB component. An orbital period of 753 +- 3 d and a
mass ratio of q = 0.637 +- 0.015 were found from the RV-curves. The sdB
component has an effective temperature of Teff = 33500 +- 1200 K and a surface
gravity of logg = 5.84 +- 0.08 dex, while the cool companion is found to be a
G-type star with Teff = 5930 +- 160 K and logg = 4.29 +- 0.05 dex. Assuming a
canonical mass of Msdb = 0.47 Msun, the MS component has a mass of 0.74 +- 0.07
Msun, and its Teff corresponds to what is expected for a terminal age
main-sequence star with sub-solar metalicity. PG1104+243 is the first
long-period sdB binary in which accurate physical parameters of both components
could be determined, and the first sdB binary in which the gravitational
redshift is measured. Furthermore, PG1104+243 is the first sdB+MS system that
shows consistent evidence for being formed through stable Roche-lobe overflow.Comment: Accepted by A&A on 05-10-201
The orbital period -- mass ratio relation of wide sdB+MS binaries and its application to the stability of RLOF
Wide binaries with hot subdwarf-B (sdB) primaries and main sequence
companions are thought to form only through stable Roche lobe overflow (RLOF)
of the sdB progenitor near the tip of the red giant branch (RGB). We present
the orbital parameters of eleven new long period composite sdB binaries based
on spectroscopic observations obtained with the UVES, FEROS and CHIRON
spectrographs. Using all wide sdB binaries with known orbital parameters, 23
systems, the observed period distribution is found to match very well with
theoretical predictions. A second result is the strong correlation between the
orbital period (P) and the mass ratio (q) in the observed wide sdB binaries. In
the P-q plane two distinct groups emerge, with the main group (18 systems)
showing a strong correlation of lower mass ratios at longer orbital periods.
The second group are systems that are thought to be formed from higher mass
progenitors. Based on theoretical models, a correlation between the initial
mass ratio at the start of RLOF and core mass of the sdB progenitor is found,
which defines a mass-ratio range at which RLOF is stable on the RGB.Comment: accepted for publication in MNRAS, 16 pages, 16 figure
Detection of Sleep Disordered Breathing in Patients Hospitalized with Congestive Heart Failure
OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the plethysmographic signal-derived oxygen desaturation index (ODI) as an inpatient screening strategy to identify sleep-disordered breathing (SDB) in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF).
BACKGROUND: SDB is highly prevalent among patients hospitalized with CHF but is widely underdiagnosed. We evaluated overnight photoplethysmography as a possible screening strategy for hospitalized patients with CHF.
METHODS: Consecutively admitted heart failure patients with high clinical suspicion of SDB and ODI ≥5 were offered outpatient polysomnography (PSG), which was completed within 4 weeks of discharge. PSG was considered positive if the apnea hypoxia index (AHI) was ≥5. A Bland-Altman plot was used to assess agreement between ODI and AHI. Receiver-operator characteristics were determined for ODI ≥5 and AHI ≥5.
RESULTS: A screening questionnaire identified 246 of 282 consecutive patients with positive symptoms for SDB. Of these patients, 105 patients were offered further evaluation and 86 had ODI ≥5 (mean ODI 17 ± 17). Among these 86 patients, 68 underwent outpatient PSG within 4 weeks of discharge. PSG showed that 64 (94%) had SDB, with a mean AHI of 28. Inpatient ODI correlated well with PSG-derived AHI. The area under the curve was 0.82 for AHI ≥5. The Bland-Altman plot revealed no major bias. Matthew\u27s correlation coefficient revealed that the optimal cut-off for ODI is 5.
CONCLUSIONS: Screening hospitalized patients with heart failure using targeted inpatient ODI identifies a cohort of patients with a high prevalence of SDB. Our screening strategy provides a potentially cost-effective method for early detection and treatment of SDB
Formation of hot subdwarf B stars with neutron star components
Binary population synthesis predicts the existence of subdwarf B stars (sdBs)
with neutron star (NS) or black hole (BH) companions. We systematically
investigate the formation of sdB+NS binaries from binary evolution and aim to
obtain some clues for a search for such systems. We started from a series of
MS+NS systems and determined the parameter spaces for producing sdB+NS binaries
from the stable Roche-lobe overflow (RLOF) channel and from the common envelope
(CE) ejection channel. Various NS accretion efficiencies and NS masses were
examined to investigate the effects they have. We show the characteristics of
the produced sdB+NS systems, such as the mass of components, orbital period,
the semi-amplitude of the radial velocity (K), and the spin of the NS
component. In the stable RLOF channel, the orbital period of sdB+NS binaries
produced in this way ranges from several days to more than 1000 days and moves
toward the short-period (~ hr) side with increasing initial MS mass. the sdB+NS
systems that result from CE ejection have very short orbital periods and then
high values of K (up to 800km s^-1). Such systems are born in very young
populations (younger than 0.3 Gyr) and are potential gravitational wave sources
that might be resolved by the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) in the
future. Gravitational wave radiation may again bring them into contact on a
timescale of only ~Myr. As a consequence, they are rare and hard to discover.
The pulsar signal is likely a feature of sdB+NS systems caused by stable RLOF,
and some NS components in sdB binaries may be millisecond pulsars.Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures, 4 tables. Accepted for publication in A&
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