| 1. |
- Johansson, Birgitta, 1960, et al.
(författare)
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Low Mortality and Low Rate of Perceived and Documented Arrhythmias after Cox Maze III Surgery for Atrial Fibrillation.
- 2014
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Ingår i: Pacing and clinical electrophysiology : PACE. - : Wiley. - 1540-8159 .- 0147-8389. ; 37:2, s. 147-156
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: To report a long-term single-site experience of the cut-and-sew Cox maze III procedure for atrial fibrillation (AF). Methods: A total of 232 consecutive patients underwent the Cox maze III procedure for symptomatic therapy-refractory AF, with concomitant surgery in 34 patients. Follow-up data were obtained from electrocardiograms, patient visits, questionnaires, and medical files. Results: There were 103 patients (44%) with paroxysmal AF during 8.8 ± 6.5 years and 129 patients (56%) with nonparoxysmal AF for 7.3 ± 6.7 years. The preoperative New York Heart Association class was better in patients with paroxysmal AF (P < 0.0001); the left ventricular ejection fraction was 59 ± 7% versus 56 ± 8%, P = 0.003, and the left atrial area 24 ± 6 versus 27 ± 6cm 2 ,P = 0.01. Early and late postoperative adverse events occurred at similar rates. Four patients from each group died of reasons unrelated to surgery. The mean follow-up was 66 ± 42 (5–155) months. In total, 184/229 (80%) patients were free of documented AF/atrial flutter/atrial tachycardia (AF/AFl/AT) off antiarrhythmic drugs (AA) and 189/229 (83%) on or off AA. The hazard ratio (HR) for paroxysmal versus nonparoxysmal AF patients regarding documented AF/AFl/AT was 0.8 (95% confidence interval [CI] 0.4–1.4; P = 0.40). For patients without versus with concomitant surgery, the corresponding HR was 0.4 (95% CI 0.2–0.8; P = 0.008). Of 197 patients (89%) responding to the questionnaire, 41 had sought care for symptoms of arrhythmia, 29 of whom had documented AF/AFl/AT, whereas another six had other arrhythmias. Conclusion: Cut-and-sew Cox maze III surgery provided long-lasting high efficacy, also in patients with nonparoxysmal AF of long duration and/or concomitant surgery, and was associated with low rates of subsequent adverse events. (PACE 2014; 37:147–156)
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| 2. |
- Strömberg, Anna, et al.
(författare)
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ICD Recipients Understanding of Ethical Issues, ICD Function, and Practical Consequences of Withdrawing the ICD in the End-of-Life
- 2014
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Ingår i: Pacing and Clinical Electrophysiology. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 0147-8389 .- 1540-8159. ; 37:7, s. 834-842
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: The current international expert consensus statements recommend that clinicians should discuss elective implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) deactivation before implantation of the device, and then consistently during the illness trajectory. However, no previous studies have investigated predictors of ICD patients knowledge about end-of-life issues or whether knowledge influences patients attitudes about deactivation. Methods: This nationwide survey study (n = 3,067) had a cross-sectional correlational design of self-reported data. Participants were recruited from the Swedish ICD and Pacemaker Registry and asked to complete a questionnaire about knowledge in relation to the ICD and end-of-life. Results: Only 79 respondents (3%) scored correctly on all 11 questions. The mean sample score was 6.6 +/- 2.7 out of a maximum score of 11. A total of 835 participants (29%) had an insufficient knowledge when using the 25th percentile as a cutoff. Younger ICD recipients, those cohabiting, male participants, and those who had received shocks, had a generator replacement, or who had discussed illness trajectory with their physician were more likely to have sufficient knowledge on the end-of-life issues. Insufficient knowledge was associated with indecisiveness to make decisions about ICD deactivation in the end-of-life situations, and with favorable attitudes about replacing the ICD even if seriously ill or have reached an advanced age, and keeping the shock therapy of the ICD even in a terminal phase of life when dying from cancer or other serious chronic illnesses. Conclusion: Insufficient knowledge is common among ICD recipients and is associated with attitudes and decisions that may result in a stressful and potentially painful end-of-life situation.
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| 3. |
- Tesselaar, Erik, et al.
(författare)
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Effect of Cardiac Resynchronization Therapy on Endothelium-Dependent Vasodilatation in the Cutaneous Microvasculature
- 2012
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Ingår i: Pacing and Clinical Electrophysiology. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 0147-8389 .- 1540-8159. ; 35:4, s. 377-384
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Aims: Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) improves hemodynamic parameters, exercise capacity, symptoms, functional status, and prognosis among patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). The role of the vascular endothelium in these improvements is largely unknown. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether the endothelium-dependent reactivity of the peripheral microcirculation improves in CHF patients during the first 2 months of CRT. less thanbrgreater than less thanbrgreater thanMethods: We used local heating and iontophoresis of acetylcholine (ACh) and sodium nitroprusside (SNP) to measure endothelial function and smooth muscle function in the cutaneous microvasculature of 11 CHF patients before and 2 months after CRT. less thanbrgreater than less thanbrgreater thanResults: We found that the perfusion response in the skin to local heating was increased 2 months postCRT compared with baseline, both in terms of maximum perfusion (baseline: 113 [90-137] vs 2-months post-CRT: 137 [98-175], P = 0.037) and area under curve (baseline: 1,601 [935-2,268] vs 2-months CRT: 2,205 [1,654-2,757], P = 0.047). Also, the perfusion response to iontophoresis of ACh was improved (Emax: 23.9 [20.6-26.2] vs at 2-months CRT: 31.2 [29.3-33.4], P = 0.005). No difference was found between the responses to SNP before and after CRT. less thanbrgreater than less thanbrgreater thanConclusion: These results show that CRT improves endothelium-dependent vasodilatory capacity in the peripheral microcirculation within 2 months of therapy. The improvement in functional capacity that is seen in patients treated with CRT may, therefore, be in part mediated by an improvement of endothelium-dependent vasodilatory capacity.
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| 4. |
- Zysko, Dorota, et al.
(författare)
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Vasovagal Syncope Related to Emotional Stress Predicts Coronary Events in Later Life
- 2013
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Ingår i: PACE. - : Wiley. - 1540-8159. ; 36:8, s. 1000-1006
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: The aim of the study was to assess whether history of vasovagal syncope (VVS) mediated by emotional (emotional VVS) or orthostatic stress (orthostatic VVS) is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular (CV) events in later life. Methods: Retrospective analysis based on medical records of the consecutive 3,288 cardiologic outpatients (mean age, 61 +/- 12 years; 43% men). Results: A total of 254 patients (7.7%) reported emotional VVS, whereas 294 (9.0%) had history of orthostatic VVS. First-ever syncopal episode was reported at a median age of 16 years (interquartile range [IQR], 12 years to 28 years), and the median total number of episodes was two (IQR, 1 to 5). There were 779 patients (23.7%) with at least one CV event, and the median age for the first CV event was 59 years (IQR, 52 years to 67 years). In the fully adjusted model, history of emotional VVS was predictive of CV event (hazard ratio [95% confidence interval]: 1.63, [1.27-2.09]; P < 0.001), myocardial infarction (1.99, [1.49-2.66]; P < 0.001), and percutaneous coronary intervention (1.84, [1.31-2.60]; P = 0.001). There was one significant interaction (P = 0.07) between history of emotional VVS and gender. Emotional VVS was predictive of CV event in men (1.89 [1.41-2.53]; P < 0.001) but not in women (1.24 [0.79-1.94]; P = 0.35). Conclusions: History of emotional but not orthostatic VVS is independently associated with increased risk of coronary events in later life. The relationship between predisposition to emotional VVS in adolescence and development of cardiovascular disease requires further studies.
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