The pathologic characteristics of the heart in dialysis patients with DCM are interstitial fibrosis and severe myocyte hypertrophy with occasional disarray. The extent of LV fibrosis is a strong predictor of cardiac death. Careful follow-up and treatment are necessary for dialysis patients with a high percent area of LV fibrosis.

In vivo acute stent recoil of the BVS is slightly larger but insignificantly different from that of the EES, implying that the BVS may have good radial strength similar to the metallic stent.

No abstract

Background and Purpose-Prevalence of carotid artery stenosis in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD) is unknown in Japanese population. Methods-The study populations consisted of 632 consecutive patients who underwent coronary angiography because of suspicion of CAD. All patients underwent carotid ultrasonography to screen carotid artery stenosis before coronary angiography. We defined echographic carotid stenosis as area stenosis of Ͼ50% or peak systolic velocity of Ͼ200 cm/s.