No abstract

Although not frequent in the pediatric population, ischemia could occur in children due to several congenital and acquired disease. Stress imaging is key for the non-invasive evaluation of myocardial abnormalities and perfusion defect in this clinical setting. Moreover , beyond ischemia assessment, it can provide complementary diagnostic and prognostic information in valvular heart disease and cardiomyopathies. When performed using cardiovascular magnetic resonance, it could detect, in addition, myocardial fibrosis and infarction, increasing the diagnostic yield. Several imaging modalities are currently available for the evaluation of stress myocardial perfusion. Advances in technologies have also increased the feasibility, safety and availability of these modalities in the pediatric age group. However, despite the established role of stress imaging and its increasing use in daily clinical practice, there are currently no specific guidelines, and little data are available in the literature on this topic. The aim of this review is to summarize the most recent evidence on pediatric stress imaging and its clinical application with a focus on the advantages and limitations of each imaging modality currently available.

To evaluate the value of angiographic factors in predicting failure of both venous and arterial coronary artery bypass graft.We retrieved from our angiographic database 148 patients who underwent venous and/or arterial CABG and for whom a control coronary angiography at more than 1 month after surgery was available. Pre-CABG and follow-up angiographies were analyzed in order to evaluate diameter stenosis (DS,%), stenosis length (mm), Bogaty score (extent index), Sullivan score, and Gensini score for the extent of coronary artery disease, and Jeopardy Duke score for the extent of myocardial area supplied by an artery.Thirty-nine patients (26%) experienced graft failure at follow-up (mean follow-up 11.3 ± 4.6 months). Patients with venous graft failure [26 (20%)] had significantly smaller DS (P = 0.013), shorter stenosis length (P = 0.01), and lower extent index (P = 0.015), Sullivan score (P = 0.013), Gensini score (P = 0.04) as compared with those without venous graft failure. Patients with arterial graft failure [13 (11%)] had significantly lower DS (P = 0.008), shorter stenosis length (P = 0.001), and lower extent index (P = 0.03) and Sullivan score (P = 0.023) as compared with those without arterial graft failure.Venous and arterial graft failure are associated with less severe stenosis and less extensive atherosclerosis of the grafted vessel.