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Radiol Case Rep 2022 Jun 11;17(6):2058-2062. Epub 2022 Apr 11.

Department of Radiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA.

Double right coronary artery (RCA) is an extremely uncommon anomaly that is mostly detected incidentally in patients undergoing coronary angiography. It can be a benign and isolated anomaly or associated with other congenital abnormalities, mostly other coronary anomalies. Although atherosclerosis and myocardial ischemia have been frequently reported in patients with double RCA, this likely reflects that the patients were evaluated for chest pain rather than the predisposition to atherosclerosis in double RCA. Read More

World J Pediatr Congenit Heart Surg 2022 May;13(3):353-360

Divisions of Pediatric Cardiac Surgery, 10624Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA, USA.

Background: Supravalvar aortic stenosis (SVAS) may be an isolated defect of the proximal ascending aorta. However, more severe cases have extension of the arteriopathy into the transverse and proximal descending aorta. The purpose of this study was to review our experience with SVAS with and without aortic arch arteriopathy. Read More

Rheumatology (Oxford) 2022 Apr 8. Epub 2022 Apr 8.

Paediatric Allergy Immunology Unit, Department of Pediatrics, Advanced Paediatrics Centre, Post Graduate Institute of Medical education and Research, Chandigarh, India -160012.

Objective: Precise evaluation of coronary artery abnormalities (CAAs) in Kawasaki disease (KD) is essential. The aim of this study is to determine role of CT coronary angiography (CTCA) for detection of CAAs in distal segments of coronary arteries in patients with KD.

Methods: CTCA findings of KD patients with distal coronary artery involvement were compared with those on transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) during the period 2013-2021. Read More

BMJ Case Rep 2022 Mar 29;15(3). Epub 2022 Mar 29.

Cardiology, SMS Medical College and Hospital, Jaipur, Rajasthan, India.

Isolated right ventricular myocardial infarction (RVMI) is a rare clinical presentation of acute coronary syndrome. A high index of suspicion is needed for its timely diagnosis and management to prevent serious complications like heart failure, cardiogenic shock, ventricular arrythmias or sudden cardiac death. Coronary anomalies are rare entities with a varied clinical presentation. Read More

J Pediatr 2022 Feb 28. Epub 2022 Feb 28.

Division of Cardiology, Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Atlanta, GA.

Objective: To describe the cardiac magnetic resonance (MR) findings of children recovered from multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) longer than 3 months after acute illness.

Study Design: We performed a retrospective cohort study of children hospitalized with MIS-C at a single institution receiving cardiac MR imaging between July 2020 and May 2021. Patient demographics, echocardiogram data from diagnosis through follow-up, and cardiac MR data obtained at approximately 3 months after hospitalization were recorded. Read More

Eur Heart J 2022 Feb 15. Epub 2022 Feb 15.

Clinic for General and Interventional Cardiology/Angiology, Herz- und Diabeteszentrum NRW, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Georgstr. 11, 32545 Bad Oeynhausen, Germany.

Aims: Current troponin cut-offs suggested for the post-operative workup of patients following coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery are based on studies using non-high-sensitive troponin assays or are arbitrarily chosen. We aimed to identify an optimal cut-off and timing for a proprietary high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I (hs-cTnI) assay to facilitate post-operative clinical decision-making.

Methods And Results: We performed a retrospective analysis of all patients undergoing elective isolated CABG at our centre between January 2013 and May 2019. Read More

Cells 2022 01 22;11(3). Epub 2022 Jan 22.

Department of Physiology, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, PR 00936, USA.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) includes the formation of extracellular deposits comprising aggregated β-amyloid (Aβ) fibers associated with oxidative stress, inflammation, mitochondrial abnormalities, and neuronal loss. There is an associative link between AD and cardiac diseases; however, the mechanisms underlying the potential role of AD, particularly Aβ in cardiac cells, remain unknown. Here, we investigated the role of mitochondria in mediating the effects of Aβ and Aβ in cultured cardiomyocytes and primary coronary endothelial cells. Read More

Eur Heart J 2022 Feb 9. Epub 2022 Feb 9.

Department of Cardiac Surgery, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.

Aims: The most appropriate definition of perioperative myocardial infarction (pMI) after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and its impact on clinically relevant long-term events is controversial. We aimed to (i) analyse the incidence of pMI depending on various current definitions in a 'real-life' setting of CABG surgery and (ii) determine the long-term prognosis of patients with pMI depending on current definitions.

Methods And Results: A consecutive cohort of 2829 coronary artery disease patients undergoing CABG from two tertiary university centres with the presence of serial perioperative cardiac biomarker measurements (cardiac troponin and creatine kinase-myocardial band) were retrospectively analysed. Read More

J Clin Med 2021 Dec 30;11(1). Epub 2021 Dec 30.

Cardiology Clinic, University Clinical Center of Serbia, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia.

Background: It has been shown that coronary flow velocity reserve (CFVR) measurement by transthoracic Doppler echocardiography (TTDE) during dobutamine (DOB) provocation provides a more accurate functional evaluation of myocardial bridging (MB) compared to adenosine. However; the cut-off value of CFVR during DOB for identification of MB associated with myocardial ischemia has not been fully clarified.

Purpose: This prospective study aimed to determine the cut-off value of TTDE-CFVR during DOB in patients with isolated-MB, as compared with stress-induced wall motion abnormalities (VMA) during exercise stress-echocardiography (SE) as reference. Read More

Clin Exp Pediatr 2021 Dec 8. Epub 2021 Dec 8.

Department of Pediatrics, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.

Background: Dyslipidemia is a major health problem among children and adolescents worldwide due to its significant association with cardiovascular disease. Primary dyslipidemias are commonly familial syndromes that can be completely asymptomatic.

Purpose: Apart from the risk of coronary artery disease (CAD), limited data are currently available on the direct effects of dyslipidemia on myocardial function in children. Read More

BMJ Case Rep 2021 Oct 29;14(10). Epub 2021 Oct 29.

Cardiology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada

We present the case of a previously healthy 25-year-old woman who presented with an out-of-hospital ventricular fibrillation arrest. Postresuscitation ECG did not show any evidence of ST segment elevation. Echocardiogram showed regional wall abnormalities in keeping with takotsubo syndrome (TTS). Read More

J Am Coll Cardiol 2021 08;78(9):870-879

Division of Cardiology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, New York, USA. Electronic address:

Background: The risk of pregnancy-associated vascular complications in Marfan syndrome (MFS) is uncertain because of ascertainment bias, prepartum lack of knowledge of diagnosis, and insufficient peripartum imaging data. Furthermore, U.S. Read More

JACC Case Rep 2020 Sep 24;2(11):1702-1707. Epub 2020 Jun 24.

Department of Cardiology, Cardiovascular Institute, Hospital Clínico San Carlos, Madrid, Spain.

Some coronary artery anomalies are associated with increased risk of sudden cardiac death and myocardial infarction in young patients. There are few data on the clinical and prognostic relevance of isolated origin of the left circumflex artery from the pulmonary artery, an extraordinarily rare variant of anomalous left coronary artery from the pulmonary artery. (). Read More

Ann Anat 2021 Nov 16;238:151785. Epub 2021 Jun 16.

INCLIVA Health Research Institute, Valencia, Spain; Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red - Cardiovascular, Spain; Cardiology Department, Hospital Clinico Universitario, Valencia, Spain. Electronic address:

Background: Coronary arteries supply oxygen and nutrients to the heart. We evaluated the dynamics of microscopic damage throughout the ischemia-reperfusion process in the wall of coronary arteries following myocardial infarction (MI).

Methods: In a swine model of reperfused MI, animals were divided into one control and four MI groups: 90-min ischemia without reperfusion, or followed by one minute, one week or one month reperfusion. Read More

J Cardiothorac Surg 2021 May 29;16(1):150. Epub 2021 May 29.

New Tokyo Hospital, 1271 Wanagaya, Matsudo, Chiba, 270-2232, Japan.

Background: An isolated coronary sinus (CS) atrial septal defect (ASD) is defined as a CS unroofed in the terminal portion without a persistent left superior vena cava or other anomalies. This defect is rare and part of the wide spectrum of unroofed CS syndrome (URCS). Recently, several reports have described this finding. Read More

N Engl J Med 2021 05 22;384(21):e79. Epub 2021 May 22.

Azienda Socio Sanitaria Territoriale di Cremona, Cremona, Italy

J Am Heart Assoc 2021 06 25;10(11):e019343. Epub 2021 May 25.

Department of Cardiovascular Medicine Mayo Clinic Rochester MN.

Background Hypertriglyceridemia is associated with increased risk of coronary heart disease but the association is often attributed to concomitant metabolic abnormalities. We investigated the epidemiology of primary isolated hypertriglyceridemia (PIH) and associated cardiovascular risk in a population-based setting. Methods and Results We identified adults with at least one triglyceride level ≥500 mg/dL between 1998 and 2015 in Olmsted County, Minnesota. Read More

Cardiol Young 2021 Nov 21;31(11):1876-1878. Epub 2021 May 21.

Gazi University, Faculty of Medicine, Department of Pediatric Cardiology, Ankara, Turkey.

High take-off coronary artery anomaly is a quite rare anomaly which is usually seen in isolated form and diagnosed incidentally. Association with tetralogy of Fallot is also rare and it is not one of the well-known coronary anomalies seen in this disease. Here, we describe high take-off right coronary artery in a 10-month-old female patient with tetralogy of Fallot which was diagnosed during catheter angiography. Read More

Heart Rhythm 2021 07 8;18(7):1064-1073. Epub 2021 May 8.

Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeon, New York, New York.

Background: Coronary sinus (CS) ostial atresia/abnormalities prevent access to the CS from the right atrium (RA) for left ventricular (LV) lead implantation. Some patients with CS ostial abnormalities also have a small persistent left superior vena cava (sPLSVC).

Objective: The purpose of this study was to describe CS ostial abnormalities and sPLSVC as an opportunity for LV lead implantation and unrecognized source of stroke. Read More

Cureus 2021 Mar 1;13(3):e13646. Epub 2021 Mar 1.

Cardiothoracic Surgery, Rehman Medical Institute, Peshawar, PAK.

Introduction Mitral valve abnormalities in rheumatic heart disease commonly lead to functional tricuspid regurgitation. Tricuspid annuloplasty (TA) is often performed in these cases along with mitral valve replacement (MVR). Our aim was to compare the perioperative morbidity and mortality among those patients that underwent mitral valve replacement with tricuspid annuloplasty versus those that underwent isolated mitral valve replacement. Read More

J Pediatr Intensive Care 2021 Mar 29;10(1):79-82. Epub 2020 Apr 29.

Division of Pediatric Cardiology, Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of NewYork-Presbyterian, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, United States.

Congenital coronary artery anomalies are extremely rare causes of early cardiac failure. Several cardiac lesions are associated with coronary anomalies such as pulmonary atresia with intact ventricular septum. Isolated coronary ostial atresia is extremely rare and described in only a few published case reports. Read More

Cureus 2021 Jan 29;13(1):e12986. Epub 2021 Jan 29.

Cardiovascular Diseases, University of Maryland Capital Region Health, Cheverly, USA.

Quadricuspid aortic valve (QAV) is a rare congenital cardiac anomaly that commonly becomes symptomatic in the fifth or sixth decade of life and can present as an isolated finding or in association with other congenital cardiovascular abnormalities. Previously, QAV was mainly a postmortem or intraoperative diagnosis and data was very limited on its natural history, associated complications, and long-term outcomes. In recent decades, however, there has been an increase in the reported cases of QAV, considering the advances in the diagnostic modalities such as transthoracic echocardiography (TTE), transesophageal echocardiography (TEE), and cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR). Read More

BMC Cardiovasc Disord 2021 02 2;21(1):68. Epub 2021 Feb 2.

Immunology Research Center (IRC), Institute of Immunology and Infectious Disease, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Shahid Hemmat Highway 14496, Tehran, Iran.

Background: Coronary artery disease (CAD) is characterized by narrowing/ blockade of coronary arteries that is mainly caused by atherosclerotic plaques. Considering the involvement of platelet abnormalities, such as defective aggregation and adhesion, in the cardiovascular-related disorders, genetic variations in human platelet alloantigens (HPA) have been implicated in the CAD susceptibility. Herein, we intended to determine the association of HPA-1 to -6, -9, and -15 biallelic polymorphisms with CAD in an Iranian population. Read More

Scand J Med Sci Sports 2021 May 28;31(5):1078-1085. Epub 2021 Jan 28.

Clinique du Sport, Bordeaux-Mérignac, Mérignac, France.

The value of echocardiography in the screening of athletes in addition to the electrocardiogram is debated and still unclear. 336 rugby players in French professional divisions (Top 14, Pro D2) were prospectively assessed with electrocardiogram and echocardiography. 75% were Caucasian, 16. Read More

J Invasive Cardiol 2021 Jan;33(1):E45-E51

Texas Children's Hospital, Baylor College of Medicine, 6651 Main Street, MC E1920, Houston, TX 77030 USA.

Background: Invasive fractional flow reserve (FFR) is considered the gold standard to evaluate coronary artery flow. Stress cardiovascular magnetic resonance (sCMR) is an emerging non-invasive tool to evaluate myocardial perfusion in children. We sought to compare sCMR with FFR to determine impaired intracoronary flow in children with anomalous aortic origin of a coronary artery (AAOCA) and/or myocardial bridge (MB) who presented concern for myocardial ischemia. Read More

J Card Surg 2021 Feb 8;36(2):731-734. Epub 2020 Dec 8.

Division of Cardiovascular Surgery, Pronto Socorro Cardiológico de Pernambuco - PROCAPE, Recife, Pernambuco, Brazil.

Background: The adult type of anomalous origin of the left coronary artery from the pulmonary artery (ALCAPA) is characterized by late presentation due to collateral coronary flow. Patients often present with long time recurrent angina or dyspnea. Surgical correction can be a challenge due to the vast collateral coronary circulation. Read More

Cureus 2020 Oct 20;12(10):e11053. Epub 2020 Oct 20.

Department of Cardiology, Bursa Postgraduate Hospital, Bursa, TUR.

Introduction The pathophysiology of isolated coronary artery ectasia (iCAE) has not been clearly identified, although multiple abnormalities, including arteritis, endothelial dysfunction, and vascular destruction, have been reported. In this study, we aimed to analyze serum cystatin C concentrations in patients with iCAE and controls. Methods Forty-seven patients with iCAE (mean age: 55. Read More

J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2020 Oct 10. Epub 2020 Oct 10.

Cardiac Surgery, Bluhm Cardiovascular Institute, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Ill.

Objective: Postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) is a common complication after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Currently, there is no reliable way to determine preoperatively which patients will develop POAF following CABG. The aim of this study was to determine whether preoperative left atrial (LA) strain analysis might identify patients destined to develop POAF following CABG. Read More

Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 2021 04;59(3):705-710

Department of Pediatric and Adult Congenital Heart Diseases, Marie Lannelongue Hospital, Groupe Hospitalier Saint Joseph Reference Center of Complex Congenital Heart Diseases M3C, Le Plessis Robinson, France.

Objectives: Anomalous aortic origin of the coronary artery (AAOCA) with an interarterial ± an intramural course is a rare anomaly that carries a high risk of ischaemic events and even sudden death. The unroofing of the intramural course has been adopted as the gold standard surgical treatment. However, some anatomical forms need alternative techniques. Read More