Evaluation of patients with heart failure
An estimated 6.2 million Americans older than 20 years suffer from heart failure. As the population ages and heart failure treatments improve, this number is expected to increase, with more…
Evaluation and monitoring of patients with cardiomyopathies (including myocardial infiltration)
Cardiomyopathy is a general term used to describe a heterogeneous group of diseases that result in impairment of ventricular function. Clinical manifestations of these diseases can range from an asymptomatic…
Temporal dispersion of contraction, arrhythmias, and dyssynchrony and role in resynchronization therapy
Pathophysiology of dispersed ventricular contraction The prediction of sudden cardiac arrest from ventricular arrhythmias remains challenging. Ventricular arrhythmias can occur from all major myocardial diseases and are the most common…
Detection of subclinical heart failure
Introduction Limitations of left ventricular ejection fraction for detection of subclinical cardiomyopathy Left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) plays a primary role in the diagnosis and management of cardiovascular disease. However,…
Strain imaging applications and techniques
Background The assessment of left ventricular (LV) function is a fundamental requirement in many clinical situations in cardiology. Numerous techniques are used for this purpose, and a number of parameters…
Future Treatment of Emphysema with Roles for Valves, Novel Strategies and Lung Volume Reduction Surgery
Although there are multiple pharmacologic and nonpharmacological options to alleviate symptoms of emphysema, none of these treatment modalities halts disease progression. The expanding disease burden has led to development of…
Economic Considerations of Lung Volume Reduction Surgery and Bronchoscopic Valves
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is a challenging disease to treat, and at advanced stages of the disease, procedural interventions become some of the only effective methods for improving quality of…
Lung Volume Reduction Surgery in Patients with Homogeneous Emphysema
Randomized controlled trials have demonstrated that lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) improves exercise capacity, lung function, and quality of life in patients with heterogenous emphysema on computed tomographic and perfusion…
Bronchoscopic Valve Treatment of End-Stage Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Endobronchial valve therapy has evolved over the past decade, with demonstration of significant improvements in pulmonary function, 6-minute walk distance, and quality of life in patients with end-stage chronic obstructive…
Life Expectancy and Rate of Decline After Lung Volume Reduction Surgery
Lung volume reduction surgery (LVRS) patient selection guidelines are based on the National Emphysema Treatment Trial. Because of increased mortality and poor improvement in functional outcomes, patients with non–upper lobe…
