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PLoS One 2019 14;14(2):e0211624. Epub 2019 Feb 14.

Heart and Vascular Center, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary.

Background: We aimed to characterize gender specific left ventricular hypertrophy using a novel, accurate and less time demanding cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) quantification method to differentiate physiological hypertrophy and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy based on a large population of highly trained athletes and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy patients.

Methods: Elite athletes (n = 150,>18 training hours/week), HCM patients (n = 194) and athletes with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (n = 10) were examined by CMR. CMR based sport indices such as maximal end-diastolic wall thickness to left ventricular end-diastolic volume index ratio (EDWT/LVEDVi) and left ventricular mass to left ventricular end-diastolic volume ratio (LVM/LVEDV) were calculated, established using both conventional and threshold-based quantification method. Read More

Int Heart J 2019 Feb 8. Epub 2019 Feb 8.

Division of Cardiology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University.

This case report demonstrates a pair of monozygotic twins with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) carrying the same pathogenic mutation of MYH7 (p.G768R; c.2302G>A), detected by whole exome and Sanger genetic sequencing methods. Read More

Rev Med Interne 2019 Feb 7. Epub 2019 Feb 7.

Fédération médico-chirurgicale de cardiologie, CHU Rangueil, 1, avenue Jean-Poulhès, TSA 50032, 31059 Toulouse cedex 9, France; Centre d'imagerie cardiaque, CHU de Toulouse, 31000 Toulouse, France; Faculté de médecine Toulouse - Purpan, université Paul-Sabatier, 31000 Toulouse, France. Electronic address:

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathies represent a heterogeneous group of pathophysiological mechanisms and etiologies (genetic or not), which lead to the development of left ventricular hypertrophy. Left ventricular hypertrophy, when not explained by a significant and prolonged increase in post-load (such as severe poorly controlled arterial hypertension or severe aortic stenosis) justifies etiological exploration. The etiology may range from physiological adaptation in the athlete to myocardial involvement, isolated or integrated as part of a global neuromuscular involvement; metabolic or mitochondrial disease to deposition disease. Read More

Circ Res 2019 Feb 8. Epub 2019 Feb 8.

Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Oxford.

Rationale: Subcellular Ca indicators have yet to be developed for the myofilament where disease mutation, or small molecules may alter contractility through myofilament Ca sensitivity. Here we develop and characterise genetically encoded Ca indicators restricted to the myofilament to directly visualise Ca2 changes in the sarcomere.

Objective: To produce and validate myofilament restricted Ca imaging probes in an adenoviral transduction adult cardiomyocyte model using drugs that alter myofilament function (MYK-461, omecamtiv mecarbil and levosimendan) or following co-transduction of two established hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) disease causing mutants (cTnT R92Q and cTnI R145G) that alter myofilament Ca handling. Read More

Eur J Prev Cardiol 2019 Feb 6:2047487319828474. Epub 2019 Feb 6.

2 The Heart Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA, USA.

Atrial fibrillation is the most common sustained arrhythmia in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), occurring in approximately 25% of patients, which is four to six times more common than in similarly aged patients of the general population. Atrial fibrillation is poorly tolerated by HCM patients, largely due to their dependence on atrial systole for left ventricular filling. HCM patients who develop atrial fibrillation have an increased rate of heart failure related mortality and disabling or fatal thromboembolic events, as well as functional deterioration due to progressive heart failure when left untreated. Read More

Cardiovasc Interv Ther 2019 Feb 6. Epub 2019 Feb 6.

Department of Cardiology, Sendai Kousei Hospital, Hirosemachi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, 980-0873, Japan.

Preprocedural computed tomography (CT) imaging appears to provide an advantage in localization of the appropriate septal branch targeted for alcohol septal ablation (ASA). The objective of this study was to compare the clinical backgrounds, procedural characteristics, and outcomes of patients who underwent ASA with preprocedural CT assessment against those without CT assessment. Thirty consecutive patients with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy who underwent ASA were retrospectively included. Read More

Int J Cardiovasc Imaging 2019 Jan 31. Epub 2019 Jan 31.

Cardiology Department, University Hospital Ramón y Cajal, Carretera de Colmenar Km 9.100, 28034, Madrid, Spain.

Left atrium (LA) size has an important role in determining prognosis and risk stratification in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Cardiovascular magnetic resonance myocardial feature tracking (CMR-FT) is a novel technique for the quantification of LA function. Our aim was first to evaluate LA function by CMR-FT and volumetric analysis in patients with HCM; and secondly we sought to determine the association of LA-longitudinal strain (LA-LS) with major cardiovascular outcomes, particularly all cause mortality and heart failure. Read More

Circ Res 2019 Jan 31. Epub 2019 Jan 31.

Genetics, Harvard Medical School, UNITED STATES.

Rationale: Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) in combination with CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing provide unparalleled opportunities to study cardiac biology and disease. However, sarcomeres, the fundamental units of myocyte contraction, are immature and nonlinear in hiPSC-CMs, which technically challenges accurate functional interrogation of contractile parameters in beating cells. Furthermore, existing analysis methods are relatively low-throughput, indirectly assess contractility, or only assess well-aligned sarcomeres found in mature cardiac tissues. Read More

Environ Int 2019 Mar 25;124:511-520. Epub 2019 Jan 25.

Centre of Marine Sciences, University of Algarve, Faro, Portugal. Electronic address:

Background: Endocrine disruption is one of the consequences of industrialization and chemicals released into the environment have a profound impact on organisms. Waterborne micromolar concentrations of ioxynil (IOX) and diethylstilbestrol (DES) in fish affect the development of the heart, vasculature and thyroid gland.

Objectives: The present study aimed to determine how IOX and DES disrupt the crosstalk between the developing thyroid gland and cardio-vascular system in zebrafish. Read More

Ann Cardiol Angeiol (Paris) 2019 Jan 22. Epub 2019 Jan 22.

Centre de médecine et des sciences de sport, Tunis, Tunisia.

Introduction: Premature ventricular complexes (PVC) are generally considered as a benign electrocardiographic abnormality in the athletic population. However it may be indicative of underlying heart disease which may increase the risk of sudden death. This implies the need for cardiological evaluation before indicating the ability to practice competitive sports. Read More

Neth Heart J 2019 Jan 24. Epub 2019 Jan 24.

Department of Cardiology, Thorax Centre, Erasmus Medical Centre, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Background: Previous studies have reported that global longitudinal strain (GLS) is reduced in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) while left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) is normal. Our aim was to assess GLS in individuals with HCM mutations without hypertrophic changes and to determine its prognostic value for the development of HCM.

Methods And Results: This retrospective case-control and cohort study included 120 HCM mutation carriers and 110 controls. Read More

Cardiovasc Ultrasound 2019 Jan 23;17(1). Epub 2019 Jan 23.

University of Molise, Health Sciences Department-Campobasso, Campobasso, IT, Italy.

The Anderson-Fabry disease (AFD, or simply Fabry Disease, FD; MIM #301500) is a rare X-linked lysosomal storage disorder (Xq22.1) characterized by progressive renal failure, leading to morbidity through cardio- and cerebro-vascular involvement. Despite the classic phenotype, only cardiac involvement (cardiac variant of AFD; MIM 301500) is frequent in about 40% of male and 28% of female AFD patients, as reported by the Fabry Registry ( https://www. Read More

Eur Heart J Cardiovasc Imaging 2019 Jan 21. Epub 2019 Jan 21.

Flinders Medical Centre, 1 Flinders Drive, Bedford Park 5042, Adelaide, Australia.

Aims: Myocardial oxygenation is impaired in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) patients with left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), and possibly also in HCM gene carriers without LVH. Whether these oxygenation changes are also associated with abnormalities in diastolic function or left ventricular (LV) strain are unknown.

Methods And Results: We evaluated 60 subjects: 20 MYBPC3 gene positive patients with LVH (G+LVH+), 18 MYBPC3 gene positive without LVH (G+LVH-), 11 gene negative siblings (G-), and 11 normal controls (NC). Read More

Int J Cardiol 2019 Apr 4;280:135-141. Epub 2019 Jan 4.

Ultrasound Department, Xijing Hospital, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China. Electronic address:

Background: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is a common genetic cardiovascular disease, causing breathlessness, chest pain, syncope and sudden death. One-year outcome of echo-guided transthoracic percutaneous laser ablation (TPLA) of the sheep interventricular septum was studied as a novel treatment to reduce the septal thickness. It may partially address the limitations of surgical myectomy and alcohol septal ablation in terms of trauma, safety, and efficacy. Read More

JACC Cardiovasc Imaging 2019 Jan 9. Epub 2019 Jan 9.

Department of Medicine (Cardiovascular Division), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts. Electronic address:

Objectives: This study sought to examine the diagnostic ability of radiomic texture analysis (TA) on quantitative cardiovascular magnetic resonance images to differentiate between hypertensive heart disease (HHD) and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM).

Background: HHD and HCM are associated with increased left ventricular wall thickness (LVWT). Contemporary guidelines define HCM as LVWT ≥15 mm that is unexplained by other disease, which complicates diagnosis in cases of co-occurrences. Read More

JACC Cardiovasc Imaging 2019 Jan 9. Epub 2019 Jan 9.

Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Center, Division of Cardiology, Tufts Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts.

Int J Cardiovasc Imaging 2019 Jan 17. Epub 2019 Jan 17.

Department of Echocardiography, Heart Center, Beijing Chao Yang Hospital, Capital Medical University, 8 Gongren Tiyuchang Nanlu, Chaoyang District, Beijing, 100020, People's Republic of China.

The present study investigated the changes of biventricular mechanics at rest and during exercise and examined the association between exercise capacity and biventricular mechanics and functional reserve in nonobstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (NHCM) patients. A total of 50 NHCM patients and 25 controls were consecutively recruited for this study. Using echocardiography and two-dimensional speckle-tracking imaging, an experienced echocardiographer determined the following indices: RV free wall longitudinal strain (RVFWLS), LV global longitudinal strain (LVGLS), strain rate (SR), and functional reserve of strain values. Read More

Acta Cardiol 2019 Jan 16:1-3. Epub 2019 Jan 16.

a Department of Nuclear Medicine , Ankara Training and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences , Ankara , Turkey.

3D Print Med 2018 Dec 6;4(1):15. Epub 2018 Dec 6.

University of Illinois College of Medicine, 1 Illini Drive, Peoria, IL, 61605, USA.

Objectives: The purpose was to create a time sequential three-dimensional virtual reality model, also referred to as a four-dimensional model, to explore its possible benefit and clinical applications. We hypothesized that this novel solution allows for the visuospatial benefits of the 3D model and the dynamic benefits of other existing imaging modalities.

Background: We have seen how 3D models hold great value in medical decision making by eliminating the variable visuospatial skills of practitioners. Read More

Kardiochir Torakochirurgia Pol 2018 Dec 31;15(4):246-253. Epub 2018 Dec 31.

Cardiology Institute and Clinic, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, Poland.

Apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (AHCM) is a rare form of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, occasionally resulting in severe complications. The paper covers the etiology and pathogenesis of AHCM, different imaging methods and characteristic appearance of the disease in each of them. Echocardiography and cardiovascular magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) are known to be the most valuable imaging methods. Read More

Heart 2019 Jan 15. Epub 2019 Jan 15.

CMR Unit, Bristol Heart Institute, University of Bristol and University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation Trust, Bristol, UK.

Clinical Introduction: A young adult with Friedreich ataxia complaining of exertional breathlessness underwent a cardiological evaluation. On physical examination, high blood pressure and a loud systolic murmur were noted. ECG showed sinus rhythm with voltage criteria for left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and T-wave changes in the inferolateral leads. Read More

Kardiol Pol 2019 Jan 15. Epub 2019 Jan 15.

Institute of Clinical Physiology, National Council Research, Pisa, Italy.

Stress echocardiography (SE) is based on the detection of regional wall motion abnormalities (RWMA) mirroring a physiologically critical epicardial artery stenosis determining subendocardial underperfusion. Recently the core protocol of SE was enriched by adding left ventricular contractile reserve (LVCR) based on Force. An altered Force can be due to microvascular and/or epicardial coronary artery disease, but also to myocardial scar, necrosis and/or sub-epicardial layer disease. Read More

Int J Cardiovasc Imaging 2019 Jan 8. Epub 2019 Jan 8.

Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center, 5-7-1 Fujishiro-dai, Suita, Osaka, 565-8565, Japan.

Exercise-induced pulmonary hypertension (EIPH) is associated with worse outcomes in patients with heart failure or valvular heart disease. However, little is known regarding the implications of EIPH in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) patients. We retrospectively reviewed data of consecutive HCM patients who underwent clinically indicated exercise echocardiography using a semi-supine bicycle ergometer at our hospital. Read More

Heart Surg Forum 2018 Nov 7;21(6):E443-E447. Epub 2018 Nov 7.

Department of Cardiac Surgery, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100029, China.

Background: We sought to analyze the pathological characteristics of hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM) with concomitant mitral valve abnormalities and to discuss the surgical treatment strategies.

Methods: The clinical data of 26 HOCM patients treated from January 2014 to March 2016 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 19 males and 7 females with a mean age of 47 ± 16 years (range, 10-70 years). Read More

Acta Cardiol 2019 Jan 3:1-5. Epub 2019 Jan 3.

a Department of Cardiology , Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre (AIMS) , Kochi , India.

Background: Fragmented QRS (fQRS) and Q waves are ECG findings in patients with myocardial scar. fQRS is more sensitive than pathological Q waves in detecting myocardial fibrosis in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). Cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging is used for the diagnosis and for quantifying scar tissue in patients with HCM. Read More

Echocardiography 2019 02 1;36(2):266-275. Epub 2019 Jan 1.

Department of Echocardiography, Heart Center, Beijing Chao Yang Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.

Background: Reduced metabolic equivalents (METs) are an indicator of exercise intolerance, which predicts poor prognosis in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) patients. We sought to evaluate the changes in left ventricular (LV) mechanics and functional reserves, as well as their association with functional capacity in HCM patients.

Methods: Seventy HCM patients and thirty controls were included in this study. Read More

Zhonghua Yi Xue Za Zhi 2018 Dec;98(47):3842-3847

Department of Cardiology, the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University, College of Medicine, Hangzhou 310003, China.

To evaluate the patients with Cardiac amyloidosis (CA) and Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) by using the strain indexes of three-dimensional speckle tracking imaging(3D-STI) technique, and to evaluate the prognosis. A total of 32 patients with pathologically confirmed cardiac amyloidosis and 34 patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and 16 normal controls were enrolled from the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang University College of Medicine from June, 2013 to January, 2018.The color Doppler echocardiography and three-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography were used to measure strain indexes of each group, and the Logistic regression equation was used to analyze the index differences. Read More

Circ Cardiovasc Imaging 2018 Nov;11(11):e008154

Oxford Centre for Clinical Magnetic Resonance Research, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, United Kingdom.

Nucl Med Commun 2019 Mar;40(3):206-211

School of Computing, University of Southern Mississippi, Long Beach, Mississippi, USA.

Aim: The aim of this study is to develop and validate a new method to diagnose apical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (AHCM) by the integral quantitative analysis of myocardial perfusion and wall thickening from gated single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI).

Patients And Methods: Twenty-two consecutive patients, who showed T wave inversion of at least 3 mm in precordial leads and sinus rhythm in ECG, were enrolled. All the patients underwent cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR), gated rest SPECT MPI and echocardiography. Read More

Circ Genom Precis Med 2018 Dec;11(12):e001974

University College London Institute of Cardiovascular Science, London, United Kingdom (C.J.C., P.S., T.A.T., J.C.M., L.R.L., C.G.A.M., W.J.M., P.M.E.).

Background: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is characterized by a complex phenotype that is only partly explained by the biological effects of individual genetic variants. The aim of this study was to use proteomic analysis of myocardial tissue to explore the postgenomic phenotype.

Methods: Label-free proteomic analysis was used initially to compare protein profiles in myocardial samples from 11 patients with HCM undergoing surgical myectomy with control samples from 6 healthy unused donor hearts. Read More

Radiology 2018 Dec 18:180339. Epub 2018 Dec 18.

From the Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences, Clinical Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Md (D.M.V., M.W.T.); Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Department of Engineering Science, University of Oxford, Oxford, England (D.M.V., M.W.T., J.A.N.); Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences, Tufts University School of Medicine, Boston, Mass (D.M.V.); Division of Cardiology (E.Y.) and Russell H. Morgan Department of Radiology and Radiological Science (L.C.), Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, Md; University of Chicago, The College, Chicago, Ill (P.J.J.); Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio (M.W.T.); Cardiovascular Division, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Mass (H.F., C.Y.H.); Departments of Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Mich (S.M.D., M.W.R.); Department of Cardiology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, Mass (S.D.C.); The Heart Institute and Pediatric Cardiology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio (J.T.);New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY (M.V.S.); Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Mo (C.E.C.); Department of Nursing, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, Mass (L.S.); and School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison, 600 Highland Ave, Madison, WI 53792 (D.A.B.).

Purpose To evaluate myocardial strain and circumferential transmural strain difference (cTSD; the difference between epicardial and endocardial circumferential strain) in a genotyped cohort with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) and to explore correlations between cTSD and other anatomic and functional markers of disease status. Left ventricular (LV) dysfunction may indicate early disease in preclinical HCM (sarcomere mutation carriers without LV hypertrophy). Cardiac MRI feature tracking may be used to evaluate myocardial strain in carriers of HCM sarcomere mutation. Read More

J Med Case Rep 2018 Dec 18;12(1):372. Epub 2018 Dec 18.

Department of Anesthesiology, University of Florida College of Medicine, Gainesville, Florida, USA.

Background: Transcatheter aortic valve replacement is indicated for severe symptomatic aortic stenosis in patients who have a very high or prohibitive surgical risk as assessed pre-procedurally by the Society of Thoracic Surgery Risk Score, EuroSCORE (II), frailty testing, and other predictors. When combined with another left ventricular outflow tract obstruction, careful consideration must be taken prior to proceeding with transcatheter aortic valve replacement because an additional masked left ventricular outflow tract pathology can lead to challenging hemodynamics in the peri-deployment phase, as reported in this case.

Case Presentation: A 56-year-old Caucasian man with multiple comorbidities and severe aortic stenosis underwent transcatheter aortic valve replacement under monitored anesthesia care. Read More

Medicine (Baltimore) 2018 Dec;97(50):e13711

Heart Center, Sunshine Union Hospital, Weifang, Shandong procince, China.

Rationale: This study aimed to report a case of hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy causing an illusion of aortic stenosis on imaging.

Patient Concerns: A 71-year-old woman presented with chest tightness after activity for 1 year and coughing for 2 months. A systolic 3/6 grade murmur was found in the third intercostals of the left border of sternum. Read More

Medicine (Baltimore) 2018 Dec;97(50):e13369

Secondary Hypertension Unit, Department of Internal Medicine and Medical Specialties, University of Rome.

Rationale: Catecholamine-producing tumors are rare, occurring in less than 0.2% of patients with hypertension, but can have relevant cardiovascular morbidity and mortality.

Patient Concerns: A 37-year-old woman presented with a history of dyspnea, chest pain, palpitations, and paroxysmal hypertension. Read More

J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol 2018 Dec 16. Epub 2018 Dec 16.

Arrhythmia Unit, Cardiology Service, Hospital Universitari Vall d'Hebron, Barcelona, Spain.

Background: Radiofrequency ablation (RF) of ventricular tachycardia (VT) due to intramural foci has a high recurrence rate. Several techniques, such as bipolar ablation, irrigated needle ablation catheter, and retrograde coronary venous ethanol ablation have been suggested. Transarterial coronary ethanol ablation (TCEA) can also be effective. Read More

Int J Cardiol 2019 Mar 6;278:173-179. Epub 2018 Dec 6.

Hospital da Luz, Lisboa, Portugal; Faculdade de Ciências Médicas, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal.

Background: We present an ancillary study of the Portuguese Registry of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (PRo-HCM). This is one of the largest HCM genetic studies based on a registry.

Methods And Results: Collected genetic variants were re-analysed for pathogenicity. Read More

J Med Case Rep 2018 Dec 16;12(1):370. Epub 2018 Dec 16.

Department of Clinical Research, Chiba Tokushukai Hospital, Chiba, Japan.

Background: Transthyretin amyloidosis is a systemic disorder caused by extracellular deposition of insoluble amyloid fibrils in peripheral and autonomic nerves, heart, kidney, gastrointestinal tract, and other organs. Hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis is an autosomal dominant disease. More than 120 mutations have been reported in the transthyretin gene with considerable phenotypic heterogeneity and geographic diversity. Read More

J Am Soc Echocardiogr 2018 Dec;31(12):1330-1343

Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Newark, New Jersey. Electronic address:

Over the past six decades, echocardiography has evolved into an important technique for not only imaging cardiac structures, but also, by employing the Doppler equation, for assessing cardiac blood flow and tissue velocities. This review focuses on pulsed Doppler echocardiography: its principles, early development, and clinical applications. Important clinical applications include: (1) measurement of flow velocities, stroke volumes, and regurgitant and shunt volumes; (2) assessment of time intervals, e. Read More

Medicine (Baltimore) 2018 Nov;97(48):e13380

Department of Gastroenterology and Hepatology.

Rationale: Although esophageal compression due to cardiomegaly may be a risk factor of drug-induced esophageal injuries (DIEIs), the causal relationship between the two conditions has not been fully demonstrated.

Patient Concerns: We present a case of a drug-induced esophageal ulcer caused by left atrial enlargement in a 44-year-old woman with end-stage hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Upper gastrointestinal endoscopy showed a deep, circumferential ulcer in the middle thoracic esophagus. Read More

J Vet Intern Med 2019 Jan 29;33(1):37-45. Epub 2018 Nov 29.

Laboratory of Veterinary Internal Medicine, Division of Therapeutic Sciences 1, Department of Veterinary Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Nippon Veterinary and Life Science University, Tokyo, Japan.

Background: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a primary disorder of the myocardium, is the most common cardiac disease in cats. However, determination of layer-specific myocardial function with 2D speckle-tracking echocardiography in cats with asymptomatic HCM has not yet been reported.

Objectives: To quantitatively measure layer-specific myocardial function of asymptomatic cats with HCM. Read More

J Electrocardiol 2018 Nov - Dec;51(6):983-989. Epub 2018 Jul 17.

Heart Center, Department of Cardiology, Tampere University Hospital, and Faculty of Medicine and Life Sciences, University of Tampere, Finland.

Objectives: The sensitivity and specificity of the conventional 12-lead ECG to identify carriers of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) - causing mutations without left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) has been limited. We assessed the ability of novel electrocardiographic parameters to improve the detection of HCM mutation carriers.

Methods: We studied 140 carriers (G+) of the TPM1-Asp175Asn or MYBPC3-Gln1061X pathogenic variants for HCM: The G+/LVH+ group (n = 98) consisted of mutation carriers with LVH and the G+/LVH- group (n = 42) without LVH. Read More

Echocardiography 2019 01 29;36(1):74-82. Epub 2018 Nov 29.

University of Rennes, CHU Rennes, Inserm, LTSI - UMR 1099, Rennes, France.

Background: The estimation of myocardial work by pressure strain loops (PSLs) is a totally new non-invasive approach to assess myocardial performance, and its role in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is unknown. The aims of the present study are therefore: (a) to compare myocardial work in patients with non-obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) and in a subset of age-matched healthy controls and (b) to assess the correlation between myocardial work and left ventricular (LV) fibrosis.

Design: Eighty-two patients with non-obstructive HCM (58 ± 14 years) and 20 age-matched healthy subjects (58 ± 7 years, P = 0. Read More

J Nucl Cardiol 2018 Nov 19. Epub 2018 Nov 19.

Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Center of Excellence, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.

Background: Vasodilator-induced transient left ventricular cavity dilation (LVCD) by positron emission tomography (PET) is associated with microvascular dysfunction in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). Here we assessed whether HCM patients who develop LVCD by PET during vasodilator stress also develop LV cavity dilation by echocardiography (ECHO-LVCD) following exercise stress.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of cardiac function and myocardial blood flow (MBF) was conducted in 108 HCM patients who underwent perfusion-PET and exercise-ECHO as part of their clinical evaluation. Read More

Cardiol Clin 2019 Feb 26;37(1):27-33. Epub 2018 Sep 26.

Westchester Medical Center, 100 Woods Road, Macy 132, Valhalla, NY 10595, USA. Electronic address:

Cardiac MRI (CMR) is an essential tool for the evaluation of the patient with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). First, the accurate morphologic imaging and measures that are possible with CMR help to ascertain the diagnosis. Second, the tissue characterization that can be done with MRI helps to define the abnormalities in the myocardium and to identify areas of fibrosis that have been linked to increase risk of sudden cardiac death and heart failure. Read More

Cardiol Clin 2019 Feb;37(1):1-10

Division of Cardiology, Westchester Medical Center, New York Medical College, 100 Woods Road, Macy Pavilion, Suite 11, Valhalla, NY 10595, USA.

Since the first anatomic description of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) in 1958, significant advancements have expanded the understanding of this condition. At the same time, new imaging tools and treatment modalities have contributed to an ever-changing armamentarium for the assessment and treatment of patients with HCM. The historical perspective of HCM discovery and the progress made in the last several decades shed light on the road still ahead, which is expected to lead to better forms of treatment and perhaps even prevention of this, at times, devastating disease. Read More

Heart Lung Circ 2019 Jan 24;28(1):164-177. Epub 2018 Oct 24.

Department of Cardiology, Westmead Applied Research Centre, Westmead Hospital, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia. Electronic address:

Arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (ACM) is now commonly used to describe any form of non-hypertrophic, progressive cardiomyopathy characterised by fibrofatty infiltration of the ventricular myocardium. Right ventricular (RV) involvement refers to the classical arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy, but left ventricular, or bi-ventricular involvement are now recognised. ACM is mostly hereditary and associated with mutations in genes encoding proteins of the intercalated disc. Read More

Medicine (Baltimore) 2018 Nov;97(45):e13083

Department of Cardiology, Nanjing First Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China.

Introduction: We aimed to explore the layer-specific systolic strain of left ventricular (LV) myocardium in patients with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM) before and after alcohol septal ablation (ASA).The routine 2D (frame rate: >50 Hz) data sets were acquired using GE Vivi7 system for 44 consecutive HOCM patients and 21 matched normal subjects. Fifteen of HOCM patients had serial echocardiograms available for speckle tracking analyses before and 1 year after ASA. Read More

Eur Heart J Cardiovasc Imaging 2019 01;20(1):65

Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, Tokai University, Shimokasuya 143, Isehara-shi, Kanagawa, Japan.

Ann Noninvasive Electrocardiol 2018 Nov 7:e12612. Epub 2018 Nov 7.

Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, Bangkok, Thailand.

Background: Electrocardiography (ECG) may be an efficacious diagnostic and prognostic tool in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). This study aimed to investigate association between deep T-wave inversion (TWI) and apical HCM, and between fragmented QRS (fQRS) complex and myocardial fibrosis in patients with HCM.

Methods: Patients with documented HCM by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR) during 2005-2015 were studied. Read More

J Cardiovasc Magn Reson 2018 11 5;20(1):71. Epub 2018 Nov 5.

National Heart Research Institute Singapore, National Heart Centre Singapore, 5 Hospital Drive, Singapore, 169609, Singapore.

Background: Abnormal left atrial (LA) function is a marker of cardiac dysfunction and adverse cardiovascular outcome, but is difficult to assess, and hence not, routinely quantified. We aimed to determine the feasibility and effectiveness of a fast method to measure long-axis LA strain and strain rate (SR) with standard cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) compared to conventional feature tracking (FT) derived longitudinal strain.

Methods: We studied 50 normal controls, 30 patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, and 100 heart failure (HF) patients, including 40 with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF), 30 mid-range ejection fraction (HFmrEF) and 30 preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Read More