No abstract

Low-dose slow infusion of t-PA repeated as needed without a bolus provides effective and safe thrombolysis in patients with prosthetic valve thrombosis. (Comparison of Different TRansesophageal Echocardiography Guided thrOmbolytic Regimens for prosthetIc vAlve Thrombosis; NCT01451320).

The aim of this study is to investigate the association between neutrophil to lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and severity of coronary atherosclerosis. A total of 172 patients undergoing coronary angiography were included in the study. Control group consisted of patients with normal coronary arteries. Patients with coronary stenosis were divided into 2 groups by use of Gensini scores. The NLR was higher in severe atherosclerosis group compared with mild atherosclerosis and control groups (P < .001). In correlation analysis, NLR showed significant correlation with Gensini score. A cutoff value of 2.5 for NLR predicted severe atherosclerosis with a sensitivity and specificity of 62% and 69%, respectively. After multivariate analysis, high levels of NLR were independent predictors of severe atherosclerosis together with glucose and high-density lipoprotein. Our study suggests that the NLR is a predictor of severe atherosclerosis that may be useful for cardiac risk stratification in patients with coronary artery disease.

Objective:In this study, we aimed to explore the association between platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and the severity of atherosclerosis in coronary artery disease (CAD).Methods:Clinical and laboratory data of 388 patients who underwent coronary angiography were evaluated retrospectively. Gensini score, which indicates the severity of atherosclerosis, was calculated for all of the patients. Patients with CAD were categorized as mild and severe atherosclerosis, according to their Gensini score. Eighty patients with normal coronary arteries formed the control group. Mean PLR values of the three study groups were compared. Also, PLR value was tested for whether it showed a positive correlation with Gensini score.Results:The mean PLR of the severe atherosclerosis group was significantly higher than that of the mild atherosclerosis and controls groups (p<0.001). Also, PLR was positively correlated with Gensini score in CAD patients. A cut-off value of 111 for PLR predicted severe atherosclerosis with 61% sensitivity and 59% specificity. Pre-procedural PLR level was found to be independently associated with Gensini score, together with WBC, age, and low HDL level, in the multivariate analysis.Conclusion:Our study suggests that high PLR appears to be additive to conventional risk factors and commonly used biomarkers in predicting severe atherosclerosis.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of obesity on dispersion of P-wave duration and QTc interval in obese women. Methods: Forty-two obese women (Body mass index (BMI) ¼ 4073 kg/m 2 , mean age 4579 years) and compared agematched (BMI ¼ 2271 kg/m 2 , mean age 4176 years) twenty-five non-obese women were included in our study. Maximum and minimum P-wave duration, P-wave dispersion (difference between the maximum and the minimum P-wave duration), maximum and minimum QTc interval, and QTc dispersion (the difference between the maximum and the minimum QTc interval) were measured from 12-lead ECG. ECG's were transferred to a personal computer via a scanner and then used for magnification of 400 times by Adobe Photoshop software. Results: There was significant difference in BMI (4073 vs 2271 kg/m 2 , Po0.001, respectively) between obese and non-obese women. Obese women had higher Max. P-wave duration (116711 vs 94714 ms, Po0.001), P-wave dispersion (51715 vs 26711 ms, Po0.001), Max. QTc interval (449738 vs 419730 ms, Po0.001) and QTc dispersion (57723 vs 38715 ms, Po0.001) compared to non-obese women. A significant correlation was found between BMI and Max. P-wave duration (r ¼ 0.584, Po0.001), P-wave dispersion (r ¼ 0.621, Po0.001), Max. QTc interval (r ¼ 0.410, Po0.001), and QTc dispersion (r ¼ 0.429, Po0.001). In the linear regression analysis, compared to co-morbidity factors such as age, hypertension, diabetes mellitus and smoking, there was significant association between only BMI and electrocardiographic values (P-wave and QTc dispersion). Conclusion: We concluded that obesity caused significant increase in P-wave and QTc dispersion. Therefore, obese women may not only be under the risk of ventricular arrhythmias, but also they may under the risk of atrial arrhythmias.