DIAGNOSTIC CARDIAC CATHETERIZATION AND CORONARY ANGIOGRAPHY Jane A. Leopold David P. Faxon Diagnostic cardiac catheterization and coronary angiography are considered the gold standard in the assessment of the anatomy and…
UNSTABLE ANGINA AND NON-ST-SEGMENT ELEVATION MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION Christopher P. Cannon Eugene Braunwald Patients with ischemic heart disease fall into two large groups: patients with chronic coronary artery disease (CAD) who…
ACUTE RHEUMATIC FEVER Jonathan R. Carapetis Acute rheumatic fever (ARF) is a multisystem disease resulting from an autoimmune reaction to infection with group A streptococcus. Although many parts of the…
DISEASES OF THE AORTA Mark A. Creager Joseph Loscalzo The aorta is the conduit through which blood ejected from the left ventricle is delivered to the systemic arterial bed. In…
PULMONARY HYPERTENSION Stuart Rich Pulmonary hypertension, an abnormal elevation in pulmonary artery pressure, may be the result of left heart failure, pulmonary parenchymal or vascular disease, thromboembolism, or a combination…
PRINCIPLES OF ELECTROPHYSIOLOGY David D. Spragg Gordon F. Tomaselli HISTORY AND INTRODUCTION The field of cardiac electrophysiology was ushered in with the development of the electrocardiogram (ECG) by Einthoven at…
PHYSICAL EXAMINATION OF THE CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM Patrick T. O’Gara Joseph Loscalzo The approach to a patient with known or suspected cardiovascular disease begins with the time-honored traditions of a directed…
CHEST DISCOMFORT Thomas H. Lee Chest discomfort is a common challenge for clinicians in the office or emergency department. The differential diagnosis includes conditions affecting organs throughout the thorax and…
TUMORS AND TRAUMA OF THE HEART Eric H. Awtry Wilson S. Colucci TUMORS OF THE HEART PRIMARY TUMORS Primary tumors of the heart are rare. Approximately three-quarters are histologically benign,…
