The prevalence of LOP requiring treatment is 4.7% when UGFAA is used during pediatric cardiac catheterizations. Arterial spasm was more common than thrombus as a cause of LOP. FA diameter <3 mm was the only independent predictor for LOP in this carefully designed prospective study. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Sarcoidosis is a chronic multi-system disorder with an unknown etiology that can affect the cardiac tissue, resulting in Cardiac Sarcoidosis (CS). The majority of these CS cases are clinically silent, and when there are symptoms, the symptoms are vague and can have a lot in common with other common cardiac diseases. These symptoms can range from arrhythmias to heart failure. If CS goes undetected, it can lead to detrimental outcomes for patients. Diagnosis depends on timely utilization of imaging modalities and non-invasive testing, while in some cases, it does necessitate biopsy. Early diagnosis and treatment with immunosuppressive agents are crucial, and it is essential that follow-up testing be performed to ensure resolution and remission. This manuscript provides an in-depth review of CS and the current literature regarding CS diagnosis and treatment.

Infection with hepatitis A virus is usually a self-limited illness that rarely results in fulminant liver failure. Severe hemolysis is an uncommon complication but has been reported in patients with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency. Here, we report a case with undiagnosed G6PD deficiency who presented with hyperbilirubinemia, severe hemolysis, and acute renal failure precipitated by acute hepatitis A infection.

Objective: We assessed the relationships among blood cell counts, metabolic syndrome (MetS), and prediabetes risk in a biracial cohort of African Americans (AA) and European Americans (EA) with parental type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Methods: We studied 603 normoglycemic subjects (264 EA, 339 AA), mean (+SD) age 46.14 ± 10.58 y and BMI 31.1 + 7.30 kg/m2. Each subject underwent clinical examination and OGTT. Blood specimens were analyzed for RBC, WBC and differentials, and lipids. MetS markers were identified using NCEP cut-offs for waist, blood pressure, HDL cholesterol and triglyceride (TG) levels. Results: Total WBC count correlated positively with waist circumference (P=&lt;0.001), TG (P=0.018) and fasting plasma glucose (FPG) (P=0.023) and inversely with HDL level (P=0.005), as did segmented neutrophil and monocyte counts. RBC count also correlated positively with waist (P= 0.0002), TG (P= 0.0004), FPG (P=0.035) and WBC count (P=0.0016) and inversely with HDL cholesterol level (P=&lt;0.0001). Hemoglobin (Hb) and hematocrit (Hct), both strongly reflecting RBC count (r=0.75, P=0.0001), mirrored the association with MetS markers seen with RBC. Among 372 subjects followed longitudinally for 5 y, baseline MetS markers, absolute eosinophil and basophil counts, and Hb significantly predicted progression to prediabetes. After adjustment for age and BMI, logistic regression odds ratio [95% CI] for incident prediabetes was 1.37[1.094-1.633], P=0.0045 for MetS; 1.21[1.037-1.405], P=0.015 for Hb; 1.006[1.002-1.011], P=0.0093 for absolute basophil count; and 1.003[1.000-1.005], P=0.0237 for absolute eosinophil count. Conclusions: The known association between cardiometabolic risk and WBC extends to RBC count as well. Moreover, Hb level, eosinophil and basophil counts specifically predict increased risk of prediabetes, probably via proinflammatory and iron-related mechanisms. Disclosure I. Abutineh: None. N.A. Umekwe: None. F. Ariganjoye: None. S. Dagogo-Jack: Board Member; Self; Jana Care Inc. Consultant; Self; Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Merck & Co., Inc., Sanofi-Aventis. Research Support; Self; AstraZeneca, Novo Nordisk Inc. Stock/Shareholder; Self; Dance Biopharm Holdings Inc. Funding National Institutes of Health