Background: Turner syndrome (TS) is an X-chromosomal disease affecting one in 2,500-3,000 female newborns. Girls and women with TS show multiple cardiovascular risk factors that all have an impact on arteriosclerosis and thus arterial stiffness. An accurate and non-invasive screening of arterial stiffness is essential to improve the overall outcome in these patients.Methods: Thirty-five TS patients and 19 healthy, age-matched controls were prospectively recruited for this study. Arterial stiffness was measured at the abdominal aorta in subxiphoid view using two-dimensional speckle tracking (2DST). Acquisition was performed at a frame rate of 60-90 fps. Mean peak circumferential strain (AAO-S, %) was measured offline for respective layers (inner layer = AAO-SENDO, %; middle layer = AAO-SMESO, %; outer layer = AAO-SEPI, %).Results: Compared with the control group, patients with TS showed significantly lower peak circumferential strain values in each layer [AAO-SENDO (mean ± SD): 10.98%±4.73% vs.

BackgroundThe consumption of Energy Drinks (ED) is very popular among children and teenagers. While potential cardiovascular side effects of these beverages are suggested, the acute impact of ED consumption on the pediatric cardiovascular system has not been systematically examined yet. The aim of this study was to investigate the acute effects of ED consumption on blood pressure and heart rate in healthy children and teenagers.MethodsThis study was a randomized, single-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover clinical trial. On two consecutive days, the study participants were asked to consume a weight-adjusted amount of an ED (3 mg caffeine per kg of body weight) or a placebo containing a similar amount of sugar but without conventional ED ingredients. Systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and heart rate were measured at the following time points: baseline as well as 30, 60, 120 and 240 min after beverage consumption.ResultsIn total, 27 healthy children and adolescents (mean age 14.53 ± 2.40 years, 14 male) were included in the present study. Compared to placebo intake, mean SBP was demonstrated to be up to 5.23 mmHg (p < 0.0001) and mean DBP up to 3.29 mmHg (p < 0.001) increased after ED consumption. Prevalence of elevated blood pressure, stage 1 and stage 2 hypertension was higher after ED consumption. Heart rate tended to be lower after ED consumption.ConclusionsThe acute ED consumption is associated with a significantly increased SBP and DBP in healthy children and teenagers. Minors, particularly those with pre-existing health conditions, should be discouraged from drinking EDs.Clinical Trial Registrationhttps://www.drks.de/drks_web/, identifier: DRKS00027580.

Background: Turner syndrome (TS), a relatively rare chromosomal disease, is associated with multiple cardiovascular risk factors that possibly lead to increased left ventricular afterload and functional impairment.The aim of this study was to investigate whether alterations in myocardial work and work efficiency can be found in TS patients through left ventricular pressure-strain loop analysis (PSL).Methods: Thirty-eight patients with TS and 19 healthy, age-matched controls were recruited for this study. Global peak systolic strain (GLPS) and PSL of the left ventricle was assessed in study participants. TS patients whose history included coarctation of the aorta or prior cardiac surgery were excluded from GLPS and PSL analyses (n=5).Results: Median age was 16.00 years in the TS group and 16.35 years in the control group (P=0.236).GLPS did not show significant differences between both groups (P=0.524). TS patients demonstrated, compared to controls, a significantly higher global myocardial work index (BSA) (mean ± SD: 1,497±505 vs. 1,214±245 mmHg*%/m 2 ; P=0.027). Heart rate was significantly increased in TS patients, compared to controls (mean ± SD: 90.08±14.79 vs. 73.95±15.05 bpm; P<0.001), and correlated significantly with global myocardial work index [body surface area (BSA)] within the TS cohort (r=0.558, P=0.001).Conclusions: TS patients showed signs of increased myocardial workload that were only detectable through the novel PSL analysis method and not through GLPS. Moreover, elevated resting heart rate was linked with increased myocardial workload in TS patients. Further studies will have to investigate whether TS patients may develop advanced left ventricular systolic dysfunction later in life.

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Background Turner syndrome (TS) is a chromosomal disorder, in which a female is partially or entirely missing one of the two X chromosomes, with a prevalence of 1:2500 live female births. The present study aims to identify a circulating microRNA (miRNA) signature for TS patients with and without congenital heart disease (CHD). Methods Microarray platform interrogating 2549 miRNAs were used to detect the miRNA abundance levels in the blood of 33 TS patients and 14 age-matched healthy volunteer controls (HVs). The differentially abundant miRNAs between the two groups were further validated by RT-qPCR. Results We identified 60 differentially abundant miRNA in the blood of TS patients compared to HVs, from which, 41 and 19 miRNAs showed a higher and a lower abundance levels in TS patients compared to HVs, respectively. RT-qPCR confirmed the significantly higher abundance levels of eight miRNAs namely miR-374b-5p, miR-199a-5p, miR-340-3p, miR-125b-5p, miR-30e-3p, miR-126-3p, miR-5695, and miR-26b-5p in TS patients as compared with the HVs. The abundance level of miR-5695 was higher in TS patients displaying CHD as compared to TS patients without CHD (p = 0.0265; log2-fold change 1.99); whereas, the abundance level of miR-126-3p was lower in TS patients with congenital aortic valve disease (AVD) compared to TS patients without BAV (p = 0.0139, log2-fold change 1.52). The clinical feature statistics revealed that miR-126-3p had a significant correlation with sinotubular junction Z-score (r = 0.42; p = 0.0154).