Search results for "Heart"
showing 10 items of 3201 documents
A Five-Step Vascular Ultrasound Examination in Heart Failure: The First Two Years of the "ABCDE" G-SIUMB Multicenter Study 2018-2022.
2020
The aim of this study is the creation of a 5-step ultrasound examination to evaluate and monitor Heart Failure (HF) patients during hospitalization and follow-up. “ABCDE” is the acronym of an Italian multicentre study composed of a consecutive sample of HF patients admitted from the Emergency to the Internal Medicine/Geriatric Departments of several Italian hospitals. The “ABCDE” score includes the evaluations of A, the Ankle-brachial index (ABI), B, the B-lines, C, the Carotid intima media thickness (CIMT), D, the Diameter of the abdominal aorta and of the inferior cave vein and E, the echocardiographic assessment of the ejection fraction. This paper reports the preliminary results. Up to …
May Dyspnea Sensation Influence the Sexual Function in Men With Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome? A Prospective Control Study
2019
Abstract Introduction Dyspnea sensation is frequently present in obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSA) patients; however, its possible influence on sexual function and body image has not been well analyzed. Aims To evaluate sexual function, the prevalence of sexual dysfunction (SD), and body image during sexual activity and its relationship with dyspnea in men with OSA. Methods 129 men were included in the prospective study, with 61 diagnosed with OSA (cases) and 68 age- and BMI-matched healthy control subjects. Patients were assessed for the severity of heart failure by the New York Heart Association scale and dyspnea by the Visual Analogue Scale. OSA was confirmed by in-laboratory polyso…
Impact of Nonstationarities on Short Heart Rate Variability Recordings During Obstructive Sleep Apnea
2017
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a sleep disorder characterized by breathing pauses due to collapse of the upper airways. During OSA the autonomic modulation, as noninvasively assessed through heart period (HP) variability, is altered in a time-varying way even though time-varying properties of HP fluctuations are often disregarded by HP variability studies. We performed a time domain analysis computed over very short epochs corresponding to the sole OSA events explicitly accounting for HP variability nonstationarities. Length-matched epochs were extracted during OSA and quiet sleep (SLEEP) in 13 subjects suffering from OSA (11 males, age 55±11, apnea-hypopnea index 44±19). Mean HP, varianc…
Effects of vigorous late-night exercise on sleep quality and cardiac autonomic activity
2011
Sleep is the most important period for recovery from daily load. Regular physical activity enhances overall sleep quality, but the effects of acute exercise on sleep are not well defined. In sleep hygiene recommendations, intensive exercising is not suggested within the last 3 h before bed time, but this recommendation has not been adequately tested experimentally. Therefore, the effects of vigorous late-night exercise on sleep were examined by measuring polysomnographic, actigraphic and subjective sleep quality, as well as cardiac autonomic activity. Eleven (seven men, four women) physically fit young adults (VO(2max) 54±8 mL·kg(-1)·min(-1) , age 26±3 years) were monitored in a sleep labor…
Growth and differentiation factor 11 (GDF11): Functions in the regulation of erythropoiesis and cardiac regeneration
2015
International audience; Members of the TGF-β superfamily transduce their signals through type I and II receptor serine/threonine kinases. The binding of activins to activin type IIA (ActRIIA) or type IIB (ActRIIB) receptors induces the recruitment and phosphorylation of an activin type I receptor (ALK4 and/or ALK7), which then phosphorylates the Smad2 and Smad3 intracellular signaling proteins. The regulation of members of the TGF-β family is known to be complex, because many proteins able to bind the ligands and inhibit their activities have been identified. Growth and differentiation factor 11 (Gdf11) belongs to the TGF-β family. GDF11, like other members of the TGF-β superfamily, is prod…
Should we measure routinely the LDL peak particle size?
2004
Low density lipoproteins (LDL) do not show in humans a normal distribution and comprise two different main fractions: large, buoyant (phenotype pattern A) and small, dense (phenotype pattern B) particles, that differ not only in size and density but also in physicochemical composition, metabolic behaviour and atherogenicity. The prevalence of small, dense LDL changes with age (30-35% in adult men, 5-10% in men <20 years and in pre-menopausal women, 15-25% in postmenopausal women) and is genetically influenced, with a heritability ranging from 35% to 45%. Small, dense LDL correlate negatively with plasma HDL levels and positively with plasma triglyceride levels and are associated with the me…
Health literacy of patients on oral anticoagulation treatment- individual and social determinants and effect on health and treatment outcomes
2021
Abstract Background Assessment health literacy in people with cardiovascular health problems would facilitate the development of appropriate health strategies for the care and reduction of complications associated with oral anticoagulation therapy. Aim: To evaluate the relationship between health literacy and health and treatment outcomes (concordance with oral anticoagulants, Normalized Ratio control and occurrence of complications) in patients with cardiovascular pathology. Methods Observational, analytic and cross-sectional study carried out on 252 patients with cardiovascular pathology (atrial fibrillation, flutter or valve prosthesis), aged 50–85 years, accessing primary care services …
Special Article - Exercise-induced right ventricular injury or arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (ACM): The bright side and the dark side of the moon.
2020
There is still debate on the range of normal physiologic changes of the right ventricle or ventricular (RV) function in athletes. Genetic links to arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (ACM) are well-established. There is no current consensus on the importance of extensive exercise and exercise-induced injury to the RV. During the intensive exercise of endurance sports, the cardiac structures adapt to athletic load over time. Some athletes develop RV cardiomyopathy possibly caused by genetic predisposition, whilst others develop arrhythmias from the RV. Endurance sports lead to increased volume and pressure load in both ventricles and increased myocardial mass. The extent of volume increase and cha…
Exercise Testing in Sports Medicine
2018
Background Bicycle and treadmill exercise tests are used in sports medicine and occupational medicine to detect latent disease, to monitor treatment, and to measure patients' physical performance ability and reserve. In this review, we describe the indications, contraindications, and manner of performance of these tests, along with the variables tested, criteria for evaluation, (sub)maximal stress, and the factors that affect these tests, including age, sex, and medications. Methods This review is based on pertinent articles retrieved by a selective literature search and on the ergometry guidelines of four medical specialty societies. Results The proper performance of ergometric stress test…
Familial hypercholesterolaemia is underdiagnosed and undertreated in the general population: guidance for clinicians to prevent coronary heart diseas…
2013
AIMS: The first aim was to critically evaluate the extent to which familial hypercholesterolaemia (FH) is underdiagnosed and undertreated. The second aim was to provide guidance for screening and treatment of FH, in order to prevent coronary heart disease (CHD).METHODS AND RESULTS: Of the theoretical estimated prevalence of 1/500 for heterozygous FH, <1% are diagnosed in most countries. Recently, direct screening in a Northern European general population diagnosed approximately 1/200 with heterozygous FH. All reported studies document failure to achieve recommended LDL cholesterol targets in a large proportion of individuals with FH, and up to 13-fold increased risk of CHD. Based on prev…