Association between blood group antigens and rheumatic valve involvement and severity ın endemic areas

AbstractBackgroundRheumatic valve disease is an important public health problem in developing countries. We sought to evaluate the possible role of blood antigens as a risk factor for severe rheumatic valve disease.MethodsTwo hundred and fifty-four patients with severe rheumatic mitral and/or aortic valve disease with the surgical indication were enrolled to the study. Control group was composed of age and gender matched 2668 healthy volunteers.ResultsThere were 216 patients with aortic valve involvement and 249 patients with mitral valve involvement. One hundred and seventy-five patients had mitral stenosis, 96 patients had severe mitral regurgitation and 61 patients had severe aortic regurgitation. The distribution of blood groups among patients was as follows: Group A=42.9%, Group B=19.2%, Group AB=8.6%, and Group O=29.1%. The distribution of blood groups in the control group was Group A=40.8%, Group B=16.4%, Group AB=7.6%, and Group O=35.1%. There was no significant difference between blood groups of patients and controls (p=0.141).ConclusionBlood group does not seem to be a risk factor for rheumatic valve involvement or severity of the disease

Right ventricular involvement in anterior myocardial infarction: a tissue Doppler-derived strain and strain rate study

OBJECTIVE: Strain and strain rate imaging is currently the most popular echocardiographic technique that reveals subclinical myocardial damage. There are currently no available data on this imaging method with regard to assessing right ventricular involvement in anterior myocardial infarction. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate right ventricular regional functions using a derived strain and strain rate imaging tissue Doppler method in patients who were successfully treated for their first anterior myocardial infarction. METHODS: The patient group was composed of 44 patients who had experienced their first anterior myocardial infarction and had undergone successful percutaneous coronary intervention. Twenty patients were selected for the control group. The right ventricular myocardial samplings were performed in three regions: the basal, mid, and apical segments of the lateral wall. The individual myocardial velocity, strain, and strain rate values of each basal, mid, and apical segment were obtained. RESULTS: The right ventricular myocardial velocities of the patient group were significantly decreased with respect to all three velocities in the control group. The strain and strain rate values of the right mid and apical ventricular segments in the patient group were significantly lower than those of the control group (excluding the right ventricular basal strain and strain rate). In addition, changes in the right ventricular mean strain and strain rate values were significant. CONCLUSION: Right ventricular involvement following anterior myocardial infarction can be assessed using tissue Doppler based strain and strain rat

Total bilirubin and fasting plasma glucose levels are associated with coronary collateral development in elderly patients

Background and objective: We aimed to investigate biochemical factors affecting coronary collateral circulation development in an elderly population aged 75 years and over. Material and methods: The study group consisted of patients with a prior coronary angiography for stable coronary artery disease (CAD). Patients with total occlusion of at least one vessel were included in the study. Enrolled patients were divided into two groups, good collateral (GC; n = 73) and bad collateral (BC; n = 55), in accordance with the Cohen-Rentop’s classification system. Results: In comparison to the GC group, bilirubin levels were significantly lower (p < 0.001), and fasting plasma glucose (FPG) levels were significantly higher in the BC group (p = 0.026). Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) levels were significantly lower in the BC group when compared to the GC group (p = 0.002 and p < 0.001, respectively). Backward elimination stepwise logistic regression analysis identified bilirubin and FPG as variables that strongly predicted the presence of a well-developed coronary collateral circulation and a poorly developed coronary collateral circulation, respectively. Conclusion: Bilirubin and FPG were seemed as the most important factors affecting coronary collateral circulation development in patients with stable CAD who were older than 75 years

Serum Nuclear Factor Erythroid-2 Related Factor-2 (NRF2) as an Indicator of Oxidative Stress is Related to Coronary in-Stent Restenosis

Objective: In the treatment of coronary artery disease, stent implantation has become the standard treatment, but development of in-stent restenosis (ISR) limits the benefit of this treatment modality. Methods: Based on the connection between oxidative stress and thiol/disulphate and NRF2, it was intended to measure NRF2 and thiol/disulphate levels. Results: Coronary angiography images of 76 stable angina pectoris patients were evaluated. Of the 51 patients with a history drug eluting stent implantation, we determined 25 patients with ISR (Group 1) and 26 patients without ISR (Group 2). Twenty-five patients with normal coronary arteries were included in the study as control group (Group 3). NRF2 level was found to be significantly higher in patients who did not develop ISR (p=0.01). Total thiol was significantly higher in group 3 (738.76 micromole/L) compared to group 1 (626.11 micromole/L) and group 2 (630.27 micromole/L) (p=0.014). Native thiol was also significantly higher in group 3 (570.53 micromole/L) compared to group 1 (483.91 micromole/L) and group 2 (501 micromole/L) (p=0.006). Conclusion: We think that total and native thiol levels might be useful as an indicator of oxidative stress in early diagnosis of coronary artery disease, and the NRF2 level can be used in predicting patients who might develop coronary ISR

Typical pericarditis ECG findings after falling from height. The PR segment depression or ST segment elevation?

Acute pericarditis (AP) following blunt thoracic trauma is rare and difficult to diagnosis. A 43-year-old man with offered to the emergency department (ED) after falling from height before a week ago. The ECG performed in the ED was abnormal, ECG revealed PR segment depression in leads DII, DIII, aVF, and V3-6 and a preliminary diagnosis of acute inferolateral STEMI was presumed. Patients have evidence of systemic inflammation, including leukocytosis, elevated erythrocyte sedimentation rate. We are reporting a case of post-traumatic acute pericarditis presenting with PR-segment depression and normal cardiac enzymes mimicking acute STEMI. Keywords: ECG, Pericarditis, Traum

Right ventricular involvement in anterior myocardial infarction: a tissue Doppler-derived strain and strain rate study

OBJECTIVE: Strain and strain rate imaging is currently the most popular echocardiographic technique that reveals subclinical myocardial damage. There are currently no available data on this imaging method with regard to assessing right ventricular involvement in anterior myocardial infarction. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate right ventricular regional functions using a derived strain and strain rate imaging tissue Doppler method in patients who were successfully treated for their first anterior myocardial infarction. METHODS: The patient group was composed of 44 patients who had experienced their first anterior myocardial infarction and had undergone successful percutaneous coronary intervention. Twenty patients were selected for the control group. The right ventricular myocardial samplings were performed in three regions: the basal, mid, and apical segments of the lateral wall. The individual myocardial velocity, strain, and strain rate values of each basal, mid, and apical segment were obtained. RESULTS: The right ventricular myocardial velocities of the patient group were significantly decreased with respect to all three velocities in the control group. The strain and strain rate values of the right mid and apical ventricular segments in the patient group were significantly lower than those of the control group (excluding the right ventricular basal strain and strain rate). In addition, changes in the right ventricular mean strain and strain rate values were significant. CONCLUSION: Right ventricular involvement following anterior myocardial infarction can be assessed using tissue Doppler based strain and strain rat