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- Delgado-Vega, Angelica Maria, et al.
(author)
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Family History and Warning Symptoms Precede Sudden Cardiac Death in Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy (From A Nationwide Study in Sweden)
- 2022
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In: American Journal of Cardiology. - : Elsevier. - 0002-9149 .- 1879-1913. ; 178, s. 124-130
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) is an inherited cardiacdisease explaining about 4% of sudden cardiac death (SCD) cases among the youngin Sweden. The aim of this study was to describe the circumstances preceding SCDdue to ARVC in all victims <35 years of age who received an autopsy-confirmeddiagnosis of ARVC from January 1st, 2000 to December 31st, 2010 in Sweden (n=22).Data on demographics, medical and family history, circumstances of death, andanatomopathological findings were collected from several compulsory national healthregistries, clinical records, family interviews, and autopsy reports. Registry-based datawas compared with age-, sex- and geographically-matched population controls. Duringthe 6 months preceding SCD, 15 cases (68%) had experienced symptoms of cardiacorigin, mainly syncope or presyncope (54%), and chest discomfort (27%). Eight cases(36%) had sought medical care due to cardiac symptoms. The occurrence of hospitalvisits was significantly increased in cases compared with controls (OR 4.62 [1.35-15.8]). Ten cases (45%) had a family history of SCD. The most common activity at thetime of death was exercise (41%). Complete cardiac investigation was seldomperformed, only one case was diagnosed with ARVC before death. In conclusion, inthis nationwide study we observed a high prevalence of symptoms of cardiac origin,health-care utilization, and family history of SCD preceding SCD due to ARVC amongthe young. Increased awareness of these warning signals in the young is critical toimprove risk stratification and early disease detection.
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| 2. |
- Guerra, Federico, et al.
(author)
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The use of social media for professional purposes by healthcare professionals : the #intEHRAct survey
- 2022
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In: Europace. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 1099-5129 .- 1532-2092. ; 24:4, s. 691-696
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Social media (SoMe) represents a medium of communication in everyday life and has gained importance for professional use among clinicians. In the #intEHRAct survey, we aimed to describe the use of SoMe by the healthcare community in a professional setting. The EHRA e-Communication Committee and the Scientific Initiatives Committee prepared a questionnaire and distributed it via newsletters, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook. The survey consisted of 19 questions made on an individual basis and collected anonymously. Two hundred and eighty-five responders from 35 countries (72.3% male, age 49 +/- 11 years old) completed the survey. Most respondents (42.7%) declared to use SoMe as passive users while 38.3% and 19.0% declared to share content on a non-daily and daily basis, respectively. The respondents estimated they spent a median of 5 (Q1-Q3: 2-10) h per week on SoMe. The most widely used SoMe was LinkedIn (60.8%), but the use of each platform was heterogeneous between countries. Among the advantages of SoMe, respondents indicated the chance of being updated on recent publications (66.0%), networking (48.5%), and the availability of rare or interesting cases (47.9%) as the most useful. Regarding the disadvantages of SoMe, the respondents underlined the loss of personal contact (40.7%), the inability to get 'hands-on' training (38.7%), and the lack of control regarding quality of scientific evidence (37.1%). Social media is increasingly used for professional purposes for scientific updating, networking, and case-based learning. The results of this survey encourage scientific societies, journals, and authors to enhance the quality, reach and impact of scientific content provided through SoMe.
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| 3. |
- Kommata, Varvara, 1980-
(author)
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Novel approaches using electrocardiographic imaging for early detection of ARVC in patients and relatives and symptoms preceding sudden death
- 2022
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Doctoral thesis (other academic/artistic)abstract
- Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy (ARVC) is an inherited disease of the myocardium, predominantly affecting the right ventricle (RV). Arrhythmias are common among patients with the disease and Sudden Cardiac Death (SCD) can occur even in early stages. The overall purpose of this thesis was to investigate the effectiveness of new diagnostic methods in detecting early abnormalities in genetically predisposed individuals and to emphasize the importance of early diagnosis. The analysis of body surface mapping (BSM) signals recorded using a 252-lead vest revealed abnormal repolarisation patterns in all ARVC patients, but also in 25% of family members who were carriers of the family pathogenic variant (M-carriers). The abnormal repolarization patterns preceded repolarization abnormalities on 12-leads electrocardiogram (ECG). Depolarization abnormalities were also detected by the analysis of body surface signals. The QRS dispersion calculated by the body surface signals was significantly higher among ARVC patients compared with controls. 20% of M-carriers presented also with a slightly elevated QRS dispersion. ECG based QRS dispersion could not adequately differentiate ARVC patients from controls. Thus, the higher resolution of the BSM system permitted the detection of repolarization and depolarization abnormalities even in early stages of the disease.The analysis of reconstructed epicardial signals using Electrocardiographic Imaging (ECGI) revealed terminal ventricular epicardial activation (the last 20msecs) located only in parts of RV, as opposed to controls, where the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) and cardiac base (both right and left ventricle) were activated last. The total ventricular activation time and the RV activation time were both longer in ARVC patients, whereas the area activated during the last 20 msecs was smaller. Similar pattern with delayed conduction in limited areas of the RV were also observed in 50% of the M-carriers. This subgroup presented also smaller area of terminal ventricular activation and longer RV activation time, but the total ventricular activation was normal. Through nationwide registries, the first SCD cohort due to ARVC in Sweden was described. Cardiac related symptoms were common (68%) prior to death and 36% of cases had sought medical care the last six months prior to death. A family history of SCD was present in 45% of the cases. The careful clinical evaluation of young individuals seeking with cardiac related symptoms and the evaluation of both medical and family history is crucial.In conclusion, new technologies, using multiple electrodes for the recording of body surface signals and the reconstruction of the epicardial signals have shown promising results in detecting early repolarization and depolarization abnormalities and could facilitate the early diagnosis in M-carriers.
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| 4. |
- Kommata, Varvara, et al.
(author)
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Repolarisation abnormalities unmasked with a 252-lead BSM system in patients with ARVC and healthy Gene Carriers
- 2022
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In: Pacing and Clinical Electrophysiology. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0147-8389 .- 1540-8159. ; 45:4, s. 509-518
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Diagnosing Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy (ARVC) at an early stage can be challenging even after ECG recording and a combination of several imaging techniques. The purpose of this study was to explore if a Body Surface Mapping (BSM) system with 252-leads could identify repolarization abnormalities and thereby diagnose early stages of ARVC.METHODS: ARVC patients, gene carriers without signs of ARVC and controls underwent a 12 lead resting ECG, signal-averaged ECG, echocardiography, 24-hours Holter monitoring and BSM with electrocardiographic imaging (ECGI). All 252-leads, divided into four quadrants of the vest, were analyzed regarding concordances between T wave polarity and QRS main vector.RESULTS: Of 40 patients included there were 12 ARVC patients, 20 gene carriers and 8 controls. The ARVC patients had two different repolarization patterns, one with more pronounced negative T waves at the lower left panel and another with mixed changes that clearly differed from the controls, all of whom had a normal 12 lead ECGs and consistent repolarization patterns on their BSM recordings. The patterns observed in ARVC patients were also present in 5/20 (25%) gene carriers, three of whom had normal resting ECG. A novel repolarization index successfully detected all ARVC patients and 88% of gene carriers with pathologic repolarization pattern.CONCLUSIONS: The finding that abnormal repolarization patterns could be unmasked by BSM in 25% of healthy gene carriers, suggests that it may potentially be a useful tool for identifying early manifestations of ARVC. Further and larger studies are warranted to assess its diagnostic accuracy.
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