Bedside BNP measurement and Doppler echocardiography are both useful for establishing the cause of acute dyspnea. However, Doppler analysis of the mitral inflow pattern was more accurate, particularly in patients with intermediate BNP levels or "flash" pulmonary edema.

Background It is unclear whether HIV infection affects the long‐term prognosis after an acute coronary syndrome (ACS). The objective of the current study was to compare rates of major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events after a first ACS between people living with HIV (PLHIV) and HIV‐uninfected (HIV−) patients, and to identify determinants of cardiovascular prognosis. Methods and Results Consecutive PLHIV and matched HIV− patients with a first episode of ACS were enrolled in 23 coronary intensive care units in France. Patients were matched for age, sex, and ACS type. The primary end point was major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (cardiac death, recurrent ACS, recurrent coronary revascularization, and stroke) at 36‐month follow‐up. A total of 103 PLHIV and 195 HIV− patients (mean age, 49 years [SD, 9 years]; 94.0% men) were included. After a mean of 36.6 months (SD, 6.1 months) of follow‐up, the risk of major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events was not statistically significant between PLHIV and HIV− patients (17.8% and 15.1%, P =0.22; multivariable hazard ratio [HR], 1.60; 95% CI, 0.67–3.82 [ P =0.29]). Recurrence of ACS was more frequent among PLHIV (multivariable HR, 6.31; 95% CI, 1.32–30.21 [ P =0.02]). Stratified multivariable Cox models showed that HIV infection was the only independent predictor for ACS recurrence. PLHIV were less likely to stop smoking (47% versus 75%; P =0.01) and had smaller total cholesterol decreases (–22.3 versus –35.0 mg/dL; P =0.04). Conclusions Although the overall risk of major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events was not statistically significant between PLHIV and HIV− individuals, PLHIV had a higher rate of recurrent ACS. Registration URL: https://www.clini​caltr​ials.gov ; Unique identifier: NCT00139958.

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