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Reflex tachycardia, during a Valsalva maneuver, is a sign of normal LV filling.
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At this time, BNP seems to be a useful initial test that should not be repeated during short hospital stays.
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Mitral Doppler E/Ea correlates better with PCWP than BNP and is more specific for predicting PCWP > 15 mm Hg.
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The basic conclusion is that we should give the patient just what he or she needs and the devices we implant should be designed to fit the patient.
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The Q-wave/non-Q-wave distinction is useful clinically, and the primary determinant of the presence of Q-waves is the total size of the underlying infarction, rather than its transmural extent.
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Cryoablation offers an alternative approach to radiofrequency ablation.
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An abnormal stress MRS, indicative of myocardial ischemia in symptomatic women without CAD, predicts cardiovascular events, especially hospitalization for unstable angina.
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Autologous bone marrow stem cells injected into the infarct-related artery, after successful PCI, improves LVEF at 6 months, compared to controls.
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The diagnosis of infective endocarditis (IE) remains a challenge. Thus, these investigators from Basel, Switzerland hypothesized that a marker of systemic bacterial infection such as procalcitonin may help. In 67 consecutive patients with clinical suspicion of IE, a multidisciplinary team applied the Duke criteria to make the diagnosis of IE in 21 patients.
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Ernst and colleagues from St. George Hospital in Hamburg, Germany describe a new technique for positioning and manipulating ablation catheters during electrophysiologic studies. The system is a remote magnetic navigation system, which uses 2 permanent magnets to move a specially designed catheter.
