Selami Demirelli

Cardiac manifestations in Behcet's disease

Behcets disease (BD) is a chronic inflammatory disorder, with vasculitis underlying the pathophysiology of its multisystemic effects. Venous pathology and thrombotic complications are hallmarks of BD. However, it has been increasingly recognised that cardiac involvement and arterial complications are also important aspects of the course of the disease. Cardiac lesions include pericarditis, endocarditis, intracardiac thrombosis, myocardial infarction, endomyocardial fibrosis, and myocardial aneurysm. Treatment of cardiovascular involvement in BD is largely empirical, and is aimed towards suppressing the vasculitis. The most challenging aspect seems to be the treatment of arterial aneurysms and thromboses due to the associated risk of bleeding. When the prognosis of cardiac involvement in BD is not good, recovery can be achieved through oral anticoagulation, immunosuppressive therapy, and colchicine use. In this review, we summarise the cardiovascular involvement, different manifestations, and treatment of BD.

Sarcoidosis and the heart: A review of the literature.

Sarcoidosis is a chronic multisystem disorder without any defined etiology. Cardiac sarcoidosis (CS) is detected in 2-7% of patients with sarcoidosis and more than 20% of the cases of sarcoidosis are clinically silent. Cardiac involvement in systemic sarcoidosis (SS) and isolated cardiac sarcoidosis (iCS) are associated with arrhythmia and severe heart failure (HF) and have a poor prognosis. Early diagnosis of CS and prompt initiation of corticosteroid therapy with or without other immunosuppressants is crucial. Electrocardiography, Holter monitoring, and Doppler echocardiography with speckle tracking imaging can serve as the initial steps to diagnosis of CS. Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging and positron emission tomography (PET) are promising techniques for both diagnosis and follow-up of CS. This review discusses the main aspects of cardiac involvement in sarcoidosis.

The Impact of Trimetazidine Treatment on Left Ventricular Functions and Plasma Brain Natriuretic Peptide Levels in Patients with Non-ST Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention.

Background and Objectives The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of treatment with oral trimetazidine (TMZ) applied before and after percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) on short-term left ventricular functions and plasma brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) levels in patients with non-ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) undergoing PCI. Subjects and Methods The study included 45 patients who were undergoing PCI with the diagnosis of NSTEMI. The patients were randomized into two groups. The first group (n=22) of the patients hospitalized with the diagnosis of NSTEMI was given conventional therapy plus 60 mg TMZ just prior to PCI. Treatment with TMZ was continued for one month after the procedure. TMZ treatment was not given to the second group (n=23). Echocardiography images were recorded and plasma BNP levels were measured just prior to the PCI and on the 1st and 30th days after PCI. Results The myocardial performance index (MPI) was greater in the second group (p=0.02). In the comparison of BNP levels, they significantly decreased in both of the groups during the 30-day follow-up period (29.0±8 and 50.6±33, p<0.01 respectively). However, decreasing of BNP levels was higher in the group administered with TMZ. The decrease of left ventriclular end-diastolic volume was observed in all groups at 30 days after intervention, but was higher in the group administered with TMZ (p=0.01). Conclusion Trimetazidine treatment commencing prior to PCI and continued after PCI in patients with NSTEMI provides improvements in MPI, left ventricular end diastolic volume and a decrease in BNP levels.

Bilirubin Levels and Thrombus Burden in Patients With ST-Segment Elevation Myocardial Infarction

We investigated whether serum bilirubin level (a marker of heme oxygenase activity) is a predictor of thrombus burden in patients with acute myocardial infarction. Patients (n = 229; male 72.9%; mean age 63 ± 13.4 years) who were admitted with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) were enrolled. Patients were divided into 2 groups. Group 1 was defined as low thrombus burden and group 2 was defined as high thrombus burden. Patients with high thrombus burden had higher total bilirubin levels (14.4 [4.3-22.9] vs 7.7 [2.4-20.3] µmol/L, P ≤ .001), (0.84 [0.25-1.34] vs 0.45 [0.14-1.19] mg/dL P ≤ .001) and direct bilirubin levels (3.1 [2.1-8.4] vs 1.7 [0.5-6.5] µmol/L, P ≤ .001), (0.18 [0.03-0.49] vs 0.10 [0.03-0.38] mg/dL, P ≤ .001). At multivariate analysis, total bilirubin (odds ratio: 1.05, 95% confidence interval: 1.03-1.08, P ≤ .001) was the independent predictor of high thrombus burden. In conclusion, total bilirubin level is independently associated with high thrombus burden in patients with STEMI.

Efficacy of ivabradin to reduce heart rate prior to coronary CT angiography: comparison with beta-blocker

PURPOSE The objective of our study was to assess the effect of ivabradine on image quality of ECG-gated multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) coronary angiography. MATERIALS AND METHODS Computed tomography coronary angiography (CTCA) was performed on two groups. In Group 1 (n=54), an intravenous beta-blocker was administered to patients with a heart rate >70 beats per minute (bpm) just before CTCA. In Group 2 (n=56), oral ivabradine 5 mg was administered twice a day for three days prior to CTCA examination to patients with a heart rate >70 bpm and contraindication to beta-blockers. Images acquired on two different MDCT scanners were scored in terms of image quality of the coronary artery segments using a 5-point grading scale (Grade 1, unreadable; Grade 5, excellent). RESULTS The mean heart rates during CTCA were 64 ± 6.7 bpm for Group 1 and 59 ± 4.1 bpm for Group 2 (P < 0.05). Mean heart rate reduction was 9 ± 5% and 14 ± 8% for Groups 1 and 2, respectively (P < 0.001). A total of 880 segments were evaluated in 110 patients. When the best reconstruction interval was used, 89.8% and 95.5% of all the coronary segments showed acceptable image quality in Groups 1 and 2, respectively. Acceptable image quality of the middle right coronary artery was obtained in 78.3% of Group 1 and 92.4% of Group 2. These ratios for the other segments were 88.4% for Group 1 and 95.2% for Group 2. CONCLUSION Reduction of heart rates with ivabradine premedication improves the image quality of CTCA. It should be considered as an alternative drug, particularly in patients with contraindications to beta-blockers.

Left ventricular mechanics in Behcet’s disease: A speckle tracking echocardiographic study

Although cardiac involvement is rarely seen in Behcets disease (BD), it is essential to detect subclinical left ventricular (LV) dysfunction for prognostic purposes. Herein we aimed to show the role of two dimensional (2D) speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) in determination of subclinical LV dysfunction in patients with BD. 30 patients diagnosed as BD due to International Study Group Behcets diagnostic criteria and 25 control subjects underwent Doppler echocardiography including pulsed tissue Doppler of the mitral annulus and speckle-tracking echocardiography. LV peak longitudinal strain and strain rate (SR) was calculated in four-chamber (4C), apical long-axis (LAX), and two-chamber (2C) views, and values of the three views were averaged LV global longitudinal strain (LV-GLS) and SR. LV torsion was determined as the net difference in the mean rotation between the apical and basal levels. There was not any significant difference in age and gender between groups. Patients with BD had significantly lower LV longitudinal strain and Sr measurements than the control group. Although LV basal rotation (LVR) basal values were similar in both groups, LVR-apical and LV torsion (LVTR) values were significantly higher in patient group. LVR-apical and LV-GLS were found to have a good positive corelation (r:0.44, p<0.001) (r: -0.56, r: -0.65,respectively. p<0.001). There was a weak positive correlation between LVTR and LV-GLS (r: 0.29, p<0.05). We demonstrated that combined assessment of LV-GLS, LV-GLSR, LVTR and LVR-apical values detected by STE can be useful in determination of subclinical left ventricular dysfunction in BD.

Myocardial deformation and total atrial conduction time in the prediction of cardiac involvement in patients with pulmonary sarcoidosis.

In this study, we aim to evaluate the left atrial global longitudinal strain (LAGLS), total atrial conduction time (TACT) and left ventricle (LV) functions in recently diagnosed pulmonary sarcoidosis (PS) patients.

Ivabradine on Aortic Stiffness in Patients With Heart Failure

Aim The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of ivabradine treatment on aortic stiffness by measuring aortic elastic parameters in patients with heart failure (HF) receiving ivabradine treatment. Materials and Methods The study included clinical patients who were diagnosed with HF (ejection fraction, <35%), had sinus rhythm and persistent symptoms despite full medical treatment. The study group consisted of patients with a heart rate greater than 70 beats per minute and the control group consisted of patients with a heart rate less than 70 beats per minute. Echocardiographic measurements were conducted and aortic strain, aortic distensibility, and aortic stiffness index were calculated. Results By the end of the twelfth month, a decrease was observed in the left ventricular end-diastolic and end-systolic volumes, whereas ejection fraction was increased (P < 0.001). When aortic elastic parameters were evaluated between the 2 groups, there was no significant difference regarding aortic strain, aortic distensibility, and aortic stiffness index at the time of enrollment and during the visit at 3 months. At the twelfth month visit, aortic strain (P < 0.001) and distensibility (P < 0.001) were significantly increased, whereas there was a significant decrease in the aortic stiffness index (P < 0.001). Conclusions During the follow-up at 12 months, significant improvements were observed in the left ventricular functions and aortic elastic parameters along with decreased heart rate in patients with HF receiving ivabradine treatment. This outcome may indicate that ivabradine treatment may correct aortic stiffness and may reduce aortic stiffness after 1 year of follow-up.

Determination of Correlation Among Heart Rate Variability, Left Atrium Global Strain, and Nighttime Blood Pressure Among Patients with Tinnitus

Background We aimed to examine the correlation among nighttime blood pressure, heart rate variability, and left atrium peak systolic global longitudinal strain among patients with subjective tinnitus. Material/Methods Eighty patients with tinnitus were assigned to Group 1 and 80 healthy individuals were assigned to Group 2. Clinical blood pressure measurements, ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, and Holter electrocardiography monitoring were performed. All of the cases included in the study were examined with conventional echocardiography and 2-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography. Results Mean nighttime systolic blood pressure (130.3±5.4) and mean nighttime diastolic blood pressure (82.8±3.9) in Group 1 were higher than in Group 2 (125.1±5.4 and 80.7±4.7, respectively) (p<0.05). Mean heart rate in Group 1 was significantly lower than in Group 2 but there was no statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of heart rate variability parameters and left atrium peak systolic global longitudinal strain values (p>0.05). Conclusions Nighttime systolic blood pressure and nighttime diastolic blood pressure were higher among the patients with tinnitus. In light of these results, we can conclude that both clinical blood pressure measurement and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring are important for patients with tinnitus.

Relationship of the total atrial conduction time to subclinical atherosclerosis, inflammation and echocardiographic parameters in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus

OBJECTIVES: The aim of our study was to evaluate the total atrial conduction time and its relationship to subclinical atherosclerosis, inflammation and echocardiographic parameters in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. METHODS: A total of 132 patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (mean age 54.5±9.6 years; 57.6% male) and 80 age- and gender-matched controls were evaluated. The total atrial conduction time was measured by tissue-Doppler imaging and the carotid intima-media thickness was measured by B-mode ultrasonography. RESULTS: The total atrial conduction time was significantly longer in the patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus than in the control group (131.7±23.6 vs. 113.1±21.3, p<0.001). The patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus had significantly increased carotid intima-media thicknesses, neutrophil to lymphocyte ratios and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein levels than those of the controls. The total atrial conduction time was positively correlated with the high-sensitivity C-reactive protein level, neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, carotid intima-media thickness and left atrial volume index and negatively correlated with the early diastolic velocity (Em), Em/late diastolic velocity (Am) ratio and global peak left atrial longitudinal strain. A multiple logistic regression analysis demonstrated that the neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio, carotid intima-media thickness and global peak left atrial longitudinal strain were independent predictors of the total atrial conduction time. CONCLUSIONS: We suggest that subclinical atherosclerosis and inflammation may represent a mechanism related to prolonged total atrial conduction time and that prolonged total atrial conduction time and impaired left atrial myocardial deformation may be represent early subclinical cardiac involvement in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus.