Care and referral patterns in a large, dedicated nurse-led atrial fibrillation outpatient clinic

Introduction Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common arrhythmia and imposes a high burden on the healthcare system. A nurse-led AF outpatient clinic may alleviate the burden on the cardiology outpatient clinic by triaging patients who need care by a cardiologist or general practitioner (GP). However, care and referral patterns after initial assessment in a nurse-led AF outpatient clinic are unknown. We examined the proportion of AF patients assessed in a nurse-led clinic without outpatient follow-up by a cardiologist. Methods All patients with AF referred to our tertiary medical centre underwent cardiac work-up in the nurse-led AF outpatient clinic and were prospectively followed. Data on patient characteristics, rhythm monitoring and echocardiography were collected and described. Odds ratio (OR) for continuing care in the nurse-led AF outpatient clinic was calculated. Results From 2014 to 2018, 478 consecutive individual patients were referred to the nurse-led AF outpatient clinic. After the initial cardiac work-up, 139 patients (29.1%) remained under nurse-led care and 121 (25.3%) were referred to a cardiologist and 218 (45.6%) to a GP. Patients who remained under nurse-led care were significantly younger, were more symptomatic, more often had paroxysmal AF and had less comorbidities than the other two groups. After multivariable testing, CHA2DS2-VASc score ≥ 2 was associated with discontinued nurse-led care (OR 0.57, 95% confidence interval 0.34–0.95). Conclusion After initial cardiac assessment in the nurse-led outpatient clinic, about half of the newly referred AF patients were referred back to their GP. This strategy may reduce the burden of AF patients on secondary or tertiary cardiology outpatient clinics.

Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid Type 1 Contributes to Modulate the Nitric Oxide Pathway and Oxidative Stress in the Isolated and Perfused Rat Heart during Ischemia and Reperfusion

The transient vanilloid receptor potential type 1 (TRPV1) regulates neuronal and vascular functions mediated by nitric oxide (NO) and by the calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP). Here we study the participation of TRPV1 in the regulation of myocardial injury caused by ischemia-reperfusion and in the regulation of NO, tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4), the cGMP pathway, CGRP, total antioxidant capacity (TAC), malondialdehyde (MDA) and phosphodiesterase-3 (PDE-3). Isolated hearts of Wistar rats were used (according to Langendorff) to study the effects of capsaicin (CS), capsazepine (CZ) and CZ+CS treatments. The hearts were divided into three subgroups; 1) perfusion, 2) ischemia and 3) ischemia-reperfusion. In all groups we studied cardiac work and levels of NO, cGMP, BH4, CGRP, TAC, MDA and PDE-3 in ventricular tissue. Western blots were used to determine the expressions of eNOS, iNOS and phosphorylated NOS (pNOS). Structural changes were determined by histological evaluation. CS prevented damage caused by ischemia-reperfusion by improving cardiac work and the levels of NO, cGMP, BH4, TAC and CGRP. TRPV1 and iNOS expression were increased under ischemic conditions, while eNOS and pNOS were not modified. We conclude that the activation of TRPV1 constitutes a therapeutic possibility to counteract the damage caused by ischemia and reperfusion by regulating the NO pathway through CGRP.

CONTROL OF INTRAOPERATIVE SHIVERING UNDER SPINAL ANAESTHESIA- A PROSPECTIVE RANDOMIZED COMPARATIVE STUDY OF NALBUPHINE WITH TRAMADOL

spinal anesthesia is a widely used technique for both elective and emergency surgeries. Shivering is one of the most commonly recognized complications of the central neuraxial blockade because of impairment of thermoregulatory control, reported in 40%-70% of the patients undergoing surgery under spinal anaesthesia. Post-anesthetic shivering is defined as an involuntary,spontaneous,rhythmic oscillating muscle hyperactivity that increases metabolic heat production up to 600% after anesthesia. Shivering during neuraxial anesthesia is a common issue that could have possibly adverse impacts, for example, increased oxygen consumption, carbon dioxide production, lung ventilation and cardiac work, as well as causing diminished mixed venous oxygen saturation. Spinal anesthesia impedes the thermoregulatory system by restraining tonic vasoconstriction which assumes significant role in the regulation of temperature

Saphenion®: Oxygen Multi-Step Therapy in Varicose Veins: Improvement of the Microcirculation- Our Prospective Study Results in 118 Cases Over 6 Months

Oxygen multi-step therapy for Varicose Veins: Oxygen as an energy carrier, all mechanisms in the human organism during growth, its maintenance and its physical and mental activity require energy. This becomes particularly clear to the patient during cardiac work, breathing work in the lungs, skeletal muscles and intellectual work. The pathology of the microcirculation in the capillaries depends largely on the oxygen partial pressure and on the blood pressure in the supplying arteries and the high pressure in the draining veins.

Prevention of Ischemic Myocardial Contracture Through Hemodynamically Controlled DCD

Purpose Ischemic myocardial contracture (IMC) or “stone heart” is a condition with rapid onset following circulatory death. It inhibits transplantability of hearts donated upon circulatory death (DCD). We investigate the effectiveness of hemodynamic normalization upon withdrawal of life-sustaining therapy (WLST) in a large-animal controlled DCD model, with the hypothesis that reduction in cardiac work delays the onset of IMC. Methods A large-animal study was conducted comprising of a control group ($$n=6$$ n = 6 ) receiving no therapy upon WLST, and a test group ($$n=6$$ n = 6 ) subjected to a protocol for fully automated computer-controlled hemodynamic drug administration. Onset of IMC within 1 h following circulatory death defined the primary end-point. Cardiac work estimates based on pressure-volume loop concepts were developed and used to provide insight into the effectiveness of the proposed computer-controlled therapy. Results No test group individual developed IMC within $${1} \text { h}$$ 1 h , whereas all control group individuals did (4/6 within $${30}{\text { min}}$$ 30 min ). Conclusion Automatic dosing of hemodynamic drugs in the controlled DCD context has the potential to prevent onset of IMC up to $${1}{\text { h}}$$ 1 h , enabling ethical and medically safe organ procurement. This has the potential to increase the use of DCD heart transplantation, which has been widely recognized as a means of meeting the growing demand for donor hearts.

Veno-occlusive unloading of the heart reduces infarct size in experimental ischemia–reperfusion

Mechanical unloading of the left ventricle reduces infarct size after acute myocardial infarction by reducing cardiac work. Left ventricular veno-occlusive unloading reduces cardiac work and may reduce ischemia and reperfusion injury. In a porcine model of myocardial ischemia–reperfusion injury we randomized 18 pigs to either control or veno-occlusive unloading using a balloon engaged from the femoral vein into the inferior caval vein and inflated at onset of ischemia. Evans blue and 2,3,5-triphenyltetrazolium chloride were used to determine the myocardial area at risk and infarct size, respectively. Pressure–volume loops were recorded to calculate cardiac work, left ventricular (LV) volumes and ejection fraction. Veno-occlusive unloading reduced infarct size compared with controls (Unloading 13.9 ± 8.2% versus Control 22.4 ± 6.6%; p = 0.04). Unloading increased myocardial salvage (54.8 ± 23.4% vs 28.5 ± 14.0%; p = 0.02), while the area at risk was similar (28.4 ± 6.7% vs 27.4 ± 5.8%; p = 0.74). LV ejection fraction was preserved in the unloaded group, while the control group showed a reduced LV ejection fraction. Veno-occlusive unloading reduced myocardial infarct size and preserved LV ejection fraction in an experimental acute ischemia–reperfusion model. This proof-of-concept study demonstrated the potential of veno-occlusive unloading as an adjunctive cardioprotective therapy in patients undergoing revascularization for acute myocardial infarction.

Contractile work directly modulates mitochondrial protein levels in human engineered heart tissues

In this work, we present a novel bioreactor that allows for active length control of engineered heart tissues during extended tissue culture. Specific length transients were designed so that engineered heart tissues generated complete cardiac work loops. Chronic culture with various work loops suggests that mitochondrial mass and biogenesis are directly regulated by work output.