International Cardiovascular Research Journal
Volume:8 Issue: 4, Dec 2014

Cardiovascular diseases are the main cause of 40% of deaths in Iran annually. Many patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery have previous cardiovascular risk factors which could be prevented.. The present study aimed to assess the prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors in the patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery.. In this cross-sectional (descriptive – analytical) study, a data collecting form was used. A total of 246 patients were selected from six hospitals of Shiraz using random stratification. Descriptive statistics were presented through figures and tables and t-test was used to analyze the continuous variables. All the statistical analyses were performed using the SPSS statistical software (version 15.0). Besides, P < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.. Among the study patients, only 11.67% had no risk factors and 88.33% had one or more risk factors. The most common risk factors observed in the patients were hypertension, obesity and overweight, hyperlipidemia, and diabetes mellitus. The results showed a significant difference between males and females regarding the prevalence of hypertension (P = 0.001), diabetes (P = 0.028), hypercholesterolemia (P = 0.020), and cigarette smoking (P = 0.001). In addition, the patients'' mean levels of cholesterol, LDL, triglyceride, and fasting blood sugar were higher than the acceptable level, while that of HDL was lower than the accepted level.. These patients are recommended to be trained regarding lifestyle changes. Also, prevention strategies can play an important role in reducing patient morbidity and mortality..

Galectin-3 is a soluble ß-galactoside–binding lectin released by activated cardiac macrophages. Galectin-3 has been proposed for diagnosis and prognosis of HF patients.. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between galectin-3 as a biomarker and ejection fraction and functional capacity in the patients with compensated systolic heart failure..Patients and In this study, serum levels of Galectin-3 were measured in 76 patients with compensated heart failure with New York Heart Association class I–IV and left ventricular ejection fraction < 45%. Galectin-3 was measured by an ELISA kit. Besides, echocardiography was used to evaluate left ventricular ejection fraction. Additionally, functional capacity was determined based on the patients’ ability to perform a set of activities. After all, the data were analyzed used t-test, Kruskal-Wallis, one–way ANOVA, and chi-square test. P < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.. The patients’ age ranged from 45 to 75 years, with the mean age of 63.85 ± 9 years. In addition 57.9% of the patients were male. The results revealed no significant correlation between Galectin-3 and age, body mass index, and estimated glomerular filtration rate. Also, no significant correlation was observed between Galectin-3 levels and left ventricular ejection fraction (P = 0.166) and functional capacity (P = 0.420). Yet, a significant difference was found between males and females regarding the mean of Galectin-3 (P = 0.039).. The study results suggested that Galectin-3 could not be used as a marker of disease progression in the patients under treatment, which could probably be the result of medication use in these patients..

Right Ventricular (RV) dysfunction has been introduced as a predictor of mortality in acute myocardial infarction.. This study aimed to investigate the effect of right coronary revascularization on systolic and diastolic RV dysfunction..Patients and This study was conducted on unstable angina patients who were candidate for elective Percutaneous Revascularization Intervention (PCI) on the right coronary artery. The participants were initially evaluated by transthoracic echocardiography and tissue Doppler imaging prior to PCI and the RV function parameters were assessed. Echocardiography was repeated two months after PCI and the results were compared with baseline. Paired t-test was used to compare the pre- and post-procedural measurements. Besides, Pearson’s correlation was used to find out the linear association between the RV function parameters and Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction (LVEF). P value < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.. This study was conducted on 30 patients (mean age = 60.00 ± 8.44 years; 24 [80%] males). In the pre-procedural echocardiography, 15 patients (50%) had normal RV function, 14 patients (46.7%) had grade-1 RV dysfunction, and only 1 patient (3.3%) had grade-2 RV dysfunction. Following PCI, however, all the patients had normal systolic and diastolic RV functions. Comparison of echocardiographic RV function parameters showed an improvement in both systolic and diastolic functional parameters of the RV. Nonetheless, no significant correlation was observed between these parameters and Left Ventricular (LV) function.. A significant improvement was found in RV function, but not LV function, after right coronary PCI. Revascularization of the right coronary artery may be beneficial for the patients who suffer from RV failure due to ischemia..

Fungal endocarditis, the most severe form of infective endocarditis, is characterized by excessive mortality and morbidity.. The present study aimed to analyze the characteristics of fungal endocarditis to improve the management of these patients.. In this cross-sectional study, vegetations on the mitral or tricuspid valves and embolic material surgically removed from the patients with suspected infective endocarditis between December 2009 and November 2011 were examined for fungal infection by direct smear and culture, and the susceptibility patterns of the isolated species were determined. Then, blood samples were cultured on BACTEC media and real-time PCR was done with blood and tissue samples.. Of the 31 patients with suspected infective endocarditis who did not respond to antibacterial therapy, 11 had confirmed fungal endocarditis. The most frequent predisposing risk factors were previous surgery and drug abuse. The organisms isolated were Aspergillus spp. and Candida albicans. Resistance to amphotericin B and itraconazole was observed in Aspergillus species, and to fluconazole in Candida albicans. Positive PCR results were obtained in blood and tissue samples.. Fungal endocarditis should be considered in the patients not responsive to antimicrobials. Moreover, management of these patients can be improved with molecular diagnostic methods and by determining the susceptibility patterns of the etiologic agents..

There is evidence that inflammation may be involved in pathogenesis of MetS. Inflammatory biomarkers are moving to the forefront as the potent predictors of MetS.. The present study aimed to evaluate the association between MetS and some inflammatory biomarkers..Patients and This community-based cross-sectional study was conducted on 800 subjects aged above 35 years selected through random sampling in Borujerd (west of Iran) from 2011 to 2013. MetS was defined based on ATP III criteria and the subjects were divided into two groups (MetS and non-MetS groups). Waist circumference and Body Mass Index (BMI) were calculated. In addition, blood samples were taken and C-Reactive Protein (CRP), lipid profile, Fasting Blood Sugar (FBS), and Bleeding Time (BT) were measured. Then, the correlations between MetS and the above-mentioned variables were estimated. After all, the data were entered into the SPSS statistical software (v. 17) and analyzed using T-test, chi-square, median test, and spearman’s rank correlation.. In this study, 344 subjects (43%) met the ATP III criteria. The results showed a significant difference between MetS and non-MetS groups regarding BMI, white blood cell, total cholesterol, LDL, platelet, and high-sensitivity CPR (hs-CRP) (P < 0.0001, P = 0.040, P < 0.0001, P < 0.0001, and P = 0.045, respectively). Besides, waist circumference, Triglyceride (TG), FBS, and systolic and diastolic blood pressure were significantly higher, while HDL was significantly lower in the MetS group (P < 0.0001).. The incidence rate of MetS in our survey was higher compared to the previous reports. In addition, this incidence rate was higher in females in comparison to males. The results also showed a significant correlation between inflammatory biomarkers and MetS and that the higher levels of hs-CRP were associated with higher rate of MetS..

QT dispersion (QTd) is equal to longer QTc minus shorter QTc measured by 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG). QTd reflects inhomogeneity in repolarization of ventricular myocardium and because of easy and fast measurement of QTd, it can be used to predict high-risk patients for dysrhythmia after Acute Myocardial Infarction (AMI).. This study aimed to assess the effect of thrombolytic therapy on QTd before and 1 hour and 4 days after beginning of thrombolytic therapy..Patients and The patients with chest pain and ST Elevated Myocardial Infarction (STEMI) that underwent thrombolytic therapy were enrolled into this study. Streptokinase was the thrombolytic agent in all the patients. Standard 12-lead (ECG) was evaluated before beginning of thrombolytic therapy (QTd 1) and 1 hour (QTd2) and 4 days (QTd3) after thrombolytic therapy. First, ECG was magnified × 10 for exact calculation of QT and QTd. After all, the variables were compared using one–way analysis of variance (ANOVA). Besides, P ≤ 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.. This study was conducted on 160 patients. The results revealed no significant differences among QTd 1, QTd 2, and QTd 3 (P > 0.05). At inferior AMI, however, a significant difference was observed among QTd1, QTd2, and QTd3 (P = 0.031).. Thrombolytic therapy had no significant effects on QTd. Thus, thrombolytic therapy does not increase the risk of arrhythmia..

The prevalence of cardiovascular diseases is rising in industrial and developing countries. Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) is the most common cardiovascular disease. Thus, understanding the signs and risk factors of CAD from the patients’ perspective and their ways of dealing with this disease is of vital importance.. This qualitative study aimed to explore the Iranian patients’ viewpoints about CAD and how they dealt with it in their first encounter..Patients and This study was a qualitative content analysis conducted on 18 patients with CAD. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews. Initially, purposeful sampling was performed followed by maximum variety. Sampling continued until data saturation. Then, all the interviews were recorded and transcribed verbatim. After all, the data were analyzed by constant comparative analysis using MAXQUDA2010 software.. The themes manifested in this study included “invasion of disease” with subthemes of “warning signs” and “risk factors” and “confrontation strategies” with subthemes of “seeking for information”, “follow-up”, and “control measures”.. The results of this study described the patients’ perceptions of CAD and how they dealt with this disorder in early encountering. Based on the results, physicians and nurses should focus on empowerment of patients by facilitating this process as well as by educating them with regards to dealing with CAD..

Poor sexual function is associated with impaired Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQoL), and patients with Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) are not exceptions. It is not known, however, if symptoms of depression mediate the effect of sexual function on HRQoL among men and women with CAD.. This study aimed to determine the mediating effect of depressive symptoms on the association between sexual function and HRQoL among men and women with CAD..Patients and This cross-sectional study was conducted on 401 men and 156 women with CAD. Sexual function, measured by the Relation and Sexuality Scale (RSS), was the independent variable. In addition, physical and mental HRQoL measured using physical and mental health summary scores of Short Form 36 (SF-36) were dependent variables. Besides, the severity of depressive symptoms measured by the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was conceptualized as the mediator. Age, income, education, and medical comorbidities (Ifudu index) were control variables, and gender was the moderator. Multi-group path analysis was conducted using AMOS20.0 for data analysis.. When the effects of age, education, income, and comorbidities were controlled, sexual function was correlated with poor mental HRQoL in both genders. However, the association between sexual function and poor physical HRQoL could be found only among men but not women. Evidence also supported partial mediation of depressive symptoms on the effect of sexual function on mental HRQoL of both men and women. Nonetheless, the results suggested partial mediation of depressive symptoms on the effect of sexual function on physical HRQoL only among men but not women.. Symptoms of depression may not have a similar role in explaining the effect of sexual function on physical HRQoL of men and women with CAD. Our findings suggest that only among men, depressive symptoms might be the mechanism by which sexual function affects the CAD patients’ physical HRQoL..

Multifocal fibrosclerosis is a rare syndrome of unknown cause that is characterized by fibrosis involving multiple organ systems. Definitive diagnosis can only be made based on biopsy findings. In this case, the biopsy specimen of the patient demonstrates pulmonary hyalinated granuloma or sclerosing mediastinitis. There are few reports of multiple fibrosclerosis with heart failure. Here, we reported a case of retroperitoneal fibrosis with massive mediastinal involvement extending to pleura and pericardium causing pleuro- pericardial effusion with dilated cardiomyopathy. Systolic dysfunction was improved and pericardial effusion disappeared with methylprednisolone treatment..

Takayasu’s arteritis is an inflammatory disease with a variety of manifestations, such as cardiac involvement. We describe a 52-year-old woman with clinical and echocardiographic manifestations mimicking infectious endocarditis, such as periaortic and mital-aortic intervalvular fibrosa abscess with extension to the anterior mitral leaflet. However, no infective tissue was discovered intraoperatively. Pathological evaluation demonstrated Takayasu’s arteritis. To the best of our knowledge, Takayasu’s arteritis can involve mitral-aortic intervalvular fibrosa and imitate infectious endocarditis..