This study evaluated the effect of music on the mood of women during exercise. 16 middle-aged women, aged 49.9 +/- 7.53 yr., performed 60-min. bench stepping exercise while listening to Japanese traditional folk song, aerobic dance music, or nonmusic. The subjects reported significantly less fatigue with aerobic dance music and Japanese traditional folk song than with nonmusic. Aerobic dance music was associated with significantly more vigor and less confusion than nonmusic.

SummaryRecently two-dimensional (2D) speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) derived from right ventricular (RV) free wall has been shown to be a very useful tool for the estimation of RV performance. The purpose of this study was to examine whether RV basal free wall strain can detect increased mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) in patients with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH). We investigated a total of 126 patients with CTEPH (mean age, 56 ± 12 years). They underwent echocardiography and right heart catheter examination. 2D STE-derived longitudinal strain was measured by placing 2 regions of interests (ROIs) on the RV basal free wall in RV-focused apical 4-chamber view. Peak strain (RV-PS) was acquired between the 2 ROIs. Conventional echocardiographic RV parameters (RV fractional area change, RV myocardial performance index, tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion, tricuspid annular peak systolic velocity, and tricuspid regurgitant pressure gradient) were evaluated as well. Right heart catheterization was performed on the day following of echocardiographic evaluation. Among RV echo parameters, RV-PS showed the best correlation with mPAP (r = 0.75, P < 0.0001). Receiver operating characteristic analysis revealed that a cut-off value of RV-PS -20.8% could detect mPAP ≧ 25 mmHg (sensitivity 78%, specificity 93%, area under the curve 0.90, P < 0.001). RV basal free wall strain was a useful tool for the non-invasive detection of increased mPAP in patients with CTEPH. (Int Heart J 2015; 56: 100-104) Key words: Peak longitudinal strain, Right ventricular function, Mean pulmonary arterial pressure C hronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH) is a life-threatening condition characterized by pulmonary thromboemboli that obstruct or obliterate the pulmonary vascular bed, followed by increased pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) and progressive pulmonary hypertension (PH).Most standard techniques for assessing pulmonary hemodynamics, such as mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) or PVR, are invasive and impractical for serial assessment. Therefore, a non-invasive method to measure pulmonary hemodynamics accurately is clearly more useful. Echocardiography is a key tool for estimating pulmonary artery pressure in patients with PH. It is valuable in diagnosing, assessing a prognosis, and monitoring the efficacy of treatment.1) However, conventional echocardiographic methods are often challenging to assess right-sided hemodynamics or right ventricular (RV) function because of the complexity of RV anatomy. The recently developed technique, two-dimensional (2D) RV speckle tracking echocardiography (STE), has been introduced for the evaluation of RV function.2,3) The purpose of this study was to examine the utility of 2D RV basal strain in comparison with other RV echocardiographic parameters as well as invasive estimation of pulmonary hemodynamics in patients with CTEPH.

AimsWe evaluated the usefulness of left atrial volume index (LAVI) and the degree of changes in LAVI (delta LAVI) during hospitalization for the prediction of prognosis after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Methods and resultsWe investigated 205 consecutive patients with first AMI. They underwent echocardiography on admission as well as at discharge. Delta LAVI was calculated by subtracting the value on admission from that at discharge. The primary endpoints were major cardiac events (MACE): cardiac death due to heart failure and heart failure hospitalization. During a mean follow-up of 26 months, MACE occurred in 29 patients. Patients were divided into two groups according to the optimal cut-off values of LAVI (32.0 mL/m 2 ) at discharge and delta LAVI (2.5 mL/m 2 ) derived from receiver operating characteristic curves, respectively; Group I: LAVI ≤ 32.0 mL/m 2 , Group II: LAVI . 32.0 mL/m 2 and Group A: delta LAVI ≤ 2.5 mL/m 2 , Group B: delta LAVI . 2.5 mL/m 2 . In comparisons of two groups, respectively, the incidence of MACE between the groups showed significant differences [Group I (3.8%) vs. Group II (32.0%): P , 0.001, log-rank, Group A (7.4%) vs. Group B (20.0%): P ¼ 0.0079, log-rank]. In multivariate analysis, LAVI at discharge [risk ratio (RR): 1.077, 95% CI: 1.035-1.124, P ¼ 0.0002] and delta LAVI (RR: 1.056, 95% CI: 1.012 -1.108, P ¼ 0.0109) were significant. LAVI . 32.0 mL/m 2 at discharge (sensitivity: 93%, specificity: 69%) and delta LAVI . 2.5 mL/m 2 (sensitivity: 79%, specificity: 50%) were predictors of MACE. ConclusionLAVI at discharge and delta LAVI would be useful predictors for MACE after first AMI.--

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