Aerobic Capacity in Adults with Congenital Heart Disease: More than VO2peak, a Follow-Up Study

Adults; Aerobic capacity; Congenital heart diseaseAdultos; Capacidad aeróbica; Cardiopatía congénitaAdults; Capacitat aeròbica; Cardiopatia congènitaTo control the development of people with congenital heart disease (CHD), it is important to follow their aerobic capacity (AC), especially when they exercise. This research aimed to study the progress of AC during a follow-up of adults with CHD. This is a longitudinal study which involved 127 adults with a mean age of 33.8 (11.1) years (57.5% female; 75 moderate CHD and 52 complex CHD) who had undergone two cardiopulmonary exercise tests (CEPT) in at least one year between the first and the second test. The AC and exercise performance (EP) (duration of exercise time, velocity and percentage of grade) were assessed using a ramp protocol over a treadmill. In a mean of 4.5 (2.0) years of follow-up, there was a significant decrease in AC. The VO2peak at baseline was 27.8 (27.7) mL/kg/min (82.9% (20.3%) predicted) versus 26.6 (7.8) mL/kg/min (79.3% (20.8%) predicted) at the end of follow-up. This decline was independent of the body weight increase. There was no significant difference in HRpeak and EP among periods. These results suggest a sign of favorable evolution of adults with CHD. More research is needed to study different factors that could contribute to AC reduction.This research was funded by SUR of DEC Generalitat de Catalunya and European Union, PhD grant number 2020FI_B2_00128. The funder had no role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript

Health profile, cardiovascular risk prevention and physical exercise in adolescents Perfil de salut, prevenció del risc cardiovascular i exercici físic en adolescents

The objective of this paper was to ascertain health profile and cardiovascular risk prevention by means of the personal and family background and an electrocardiogram of adolescents in order to improve the indications for doing physical exercise in schools. A descriptive, observational study was performed with a cohort of pupils from state and private schools. Sample: 1391 adolescents (667 boys and 724 girls). Methodology: descriptive, observational study. Structured questionnaire about the family and personal background of physical exercise and risk factors and the performance of an electrocardiogram. Results. Physical exercise of between two and five hours a week was performed by 45% of the boys and 47% of the girls and for more than five hours by 39.7% and 23%, respectively. Symptoms: isolated palpitations (23.7% boys and 39.1% girls), dizziness and/or transient loss of consciousness without consequences (7.3% and 13.8%, respectively), some type of controlled cardiac pathology (4.2% boys and 2.1% girls). In the electrocardiograms, 59 presented unspecific repolarisation alterations and nine an incomplete right bundle branch block, with heart disease being ruled out in all of them. Risk factors detected: arterial hypertension (2.3%), hypercholesterolaemia (7.3%), diabetes (2.3%), pre-obese (7.6% boys and 6.5% girls), obesity (2.2% and 1.5%, respectively) and smokers of more than six cigarettes a day (1.2% boys and 2.2% girls). Conclusion. The information from the pupils about their personal and family background and cardiovascular history, the electrocardiogram and their level of physical activity makes it possible to carry out a health education programme that will help to improve eating habits, perform physical activity and eliminate bad and unhealthy habits

Guia per a l'abordatge de la insuficiència cardíaca

Insuficiència cardíaca; Tractament; RecomanacionsInsuficiencia cardíaca; Tratamiento; RecomendacionesHeart failure; Treatment; RecommendationsAquest document aporta una revisió acurada del coneixement científic actualment disponible sobre la insuficiència cardíaca, i el tradueix en recomanacions per a la pràctica diària. Pel seu contingut docent, la Guia constitueix també un valuós document per facilitar l’adquisició de competències clíniques que ha de caracteritzar el desenvolupament dels professionals de l’Institut Català de la Salut

Silver Oxalate: Mechanical Properties and Extreme Negative Mechanical Phenomena

9 pags., 7 figs., 1 tab.The crystal structure and mechanical properties of silver oxalate, Ag2C2O4, are determined using first-principles solid-state methods. The set of calculated mechanical properties include the bulk modulus and its pressure derivatives, the Young and shear moduli, the Poisson’s Ratio and the ductility, hardness, and anisotropy indices. Silver oxalate is a highly anisotropic brittle material possessing a small bulk modulus of 9.6 GPa. It displays the negative Poisson’s ratio (NPR) phenomenon, the value of the lowest NPR having a very large magnitude, −1.27. Besides, it exhibits the most extreme form of the negative linear compressibility (NLC) phenomenon found to date. Silver oxalate displays anisotropic NLC for external pressures in the range −0.1 to −2.4 GPa directed along the [010] crystallographic direction and isotropic NLC for isotropic pressures in the range −0.51 to 13.4 GPa. The lowest value of the negative compressibility, −831.9 ± 10 TPa−1, is found for an isotropic pressure of −0.16 GPa. The absolute value of the computed lowest NLC is extremely large, about three times larger than the absolute value of the lowest NLC found so far. The NLC pressure range is also very wide, its width being more than two times the largest range found to dateSupercomputer time by the CTI-CSIC center is greatly acknowledgedPeer reviewe

Tonic and reflex cardiovascular autonomic control in trained-female rats

The effects of exercise training on cardiovascular and autonomic functions were investigated in female rats. After an aerobic exercise training period (treadmill: 5 days/week for 8 weeks), conscious female Wistar (2 to 3 months) sedentary (S, N = 7) or trained rats (T, N = 7) were cannulated for direct arterial pressure (AP) recording in the non-ovulatory phases. Vagal (VT) and sympathetic tonus (ST) were evaluated by vagal (atropine) and sympathetic (propranolol) blockade. Baroreflex sensitivity was evaluated by the heart rate responses induced by AP changes. Cardiopulmonary reflex was measured by the bradycardic and hypotensive responses to serotonin. Resting bradycardia was observed in T (332 ± 7 bpm) compared with S animals (357 ± 10 bpm), whereas AP did not differ between groups. T animals exhibited depressed VT and ST (32 ± 7 and 15 ± 4 bpm) compared to S animals (55 ± 5 and 39 ± 10 bpm). The baroreflex and cardiopulmonary bradycardic responses were lower in T (-1.01 ± 0.27 bpm/mmHg and -17 ± 6 bpm) than in the S group (-1.47 ± 0.3 bpm/mmHg and -41 ± 9 bpm). Significant correlations were observed between VT and baroreflex (r = -0.72) and cardiopulmonary (r = -0.76) bradycardic responses. These data show that exercise training in healthy female rats induced resting bradycardia that was probably due to a reduced cardiac ST. Additionally, trained female rats presented attenuated bradycardic responses to baro- and cardiopulmonary receptor stimulation that were associated, at least in part, with exercise training-induced cardiac vagal reduction