Even if asymptomatic, early elective aortic valve replacement should be considered for increasingly symptomatic patients with severe aortic valve stenosis because they have a poor prognosis with a high event rate and a risk of rapid functional deterioration, especially if the peak aortic jet velocity is above 5.5 m/sec.
In this prospective, multicenter, randomized trial, addition of a helium-oxygen gas mixture to non-invasive positive pressure ventilation in the treatment of COPD exacerbations did not decrease the need for intubation when compared to non-invasive positive pressure ventilation alone.
Abdominal pain in childhood is a common presentation to the emergency department (ED). While most cases are benign, they frequently create a diagnostic dilemma. The spectrum of disease varies widely from neonates to infants, children, and adolescents, and requires the clinician to rapidly differentiate between a benign medical diagnosis versus a potential surgical abdomen to minimize morbidity and mortality.
Cardiac surgery carries greater risk in older patients. Nonagenarians are a growing part of cardiology practice as our population ages. While age > 90 years has previously been considered a contraindication to cardiac surgery, more recently, surgeons have been operating on selected nonagenarians who have high functional status.