Thoracic Key

This study evaluates the prognostic value of stress echocardiography (Secho) in short-term (10 years) and lifetime atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease risk–defined groups according to the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association…

Patients with single-ventricle (SV) anatomy now live to adulthood. Little is known about the cost of care and outcomes for patients with SV anatomy, especially those who develop heart failure…

Although tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy (TTC) is regarded as a reversible condition with favorable outcome, a malignant clinical course evolves in some subjects. In this single-institution experience, we describe the clinical profile…

Risk stratification for sudden death (SD) is an essential component of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HC) management, given the proven effectiveness of implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICD) for preventing SD. Although highly effective in…

Natriuretic peptides have established prognostic value in heart failure (HF). The role of many other clinical and laboratory variables is still to be proved. The aim of this study was…

Atrial fibrillation (AF) may be clinically silent and therefore undiagnosed. To date, no estimates of the direct medical cost of undiagnosed AF exist. We estimated the United States (US) incremental…

Right heart catheterization (RHC) and endomyocardial biopsy are mainstay procedures for patients with heart failure and heart transplantation. Approaches are predominantly neck (internal jugular) or leg (femoral vein). We describe…

Class Ic antiarrhythmic agents are effective in the treatment of various atrial tachyarrhythmias. They are known to cause rate-related QRS widening in the presence of structural heart disease, which can…

As it is controversial whether metabolic syndrome (MetS) affects cardiovascular outcomes in patients who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), we investigated the impact of MetS on clinical outcomes in patients…

Contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) after primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) is associated with adverse short- and long-term outcomes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the predictive value of gamma-glutamyl…