Search Our Scientific Publications & Authors

J Clin Med 2022 Jun 8;11(12). Epub 2022 Jun 8.

Department of Non-Communicable Diseases, Santé Publique France, French Public Health Agency, 94410 Saint-Maurice, France.

Mitral regurgitation (MR) is the second most common valvular heart disease in Europe. The aging of the population and the increase in post-infarction survival could increase the prevalence of MR. To estimate the burden of patients hospitalized for MR in France in 2019 and temporal trends by etiology and sex from 2006 to 2020, we selected all patients hospitalized for MR using the national hospital database. Read More

Med Sci (Basel) 2022 Jun 15;10(2). Epub 2022 Jun 15.

Allegheny Health Network, Pittsburgh, PA 15212, USA.

Valvular heart disease is a rapidly growing cause of global cardiovascular morbidity and mortality with diverse and evolving geographic distribution. The prevalence of rheumatic heart disease, the most common valvular heart disease (affecting approximately 41 million people), has been rising in developing nations, likely due to the expansion of the young adult population and the decrease in premature mortality that has resulted from improved access to antibiotics, microbiological testing, and echocardiography. Rheumatic heart disease has also been rising among the impoverished and, often, indigenous populations of developed nations, spurring public health initiatives that are aimed at alleviating healthcare disparities. Read More

Methodist Debakey Cardiovasc J 2022 3;18(3):87-88. Epub 2022 Jun 3.

Houston Methodist DeBakey Heart & Vascular Center, Houston, Texas, US.

A 73-year-old male with a history of dilated cardiomyopathy and paroxysmal atrial fibrillation underwent transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) to evaluate for endocarditis due to fever and gram-positive cocci in chains on blood cultures. TTE revealed a 3 × 8 mm mass on the ventricular aspect of the tricuspid valve ( ). Subsequent transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) showed that the mass in question was actually myxomatous degeneration of the tricuspid valve (TV) and redundant chordae with significant valve prolapse. Read More

Kardiol Pol 2022 Jun 20. Epub 2022 Jun 20.

Cardiology Department, Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem.

Mitral valve prolapse (MVP) is the most common primary valvular abnormality, associated with various degrees of incompetence and sequelae, including heart failure and sudden cardiac death. Recent improvements in echocardiographic techniques and new insights into mitral valve anatomy and physiology have rendered the diagnosis of this condition more accurate and reliable. Here we review the genetic etiology, clinical significance, diagnosis, and treatment options for MVP patients. Read More

Heart Lung Circ 2022 Jun 10. Epub 2022 Jun 10.

Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, The Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne, Vic, Australia; The Royal Melbourne Hospital, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Vic, Australia.

Background: Mitral Valve Prolapse (MVP) is relatively common condition and while generally benign a small subset of patient suffers from malignant ventricular arrhythmias (MVA) and sudden cardiac death (SCD).

Method And Material: We report three cases of mitral valve prolapse, mitral regurgitation and malignant ventricular arrhythmias refractory to medical therapy, who had surgical cryoablation at the time of surgery on the mitral valve.

Results: During a follow up period ranging from three to eleven years all three patients have remained free of ventricular arrhythmias and cryoablation lesions targeting the base of the papillary muscles have not caused any detrimental effect on the valve function. Read More

Sci Rep 2022 Jun 11;12(1):9705. Epub 2022 Jun 11.

Department of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, SH Ho Scoliosis Research Laboratory, Joint Scoliosis Research Centre of the Chinese University of Hong Kong and Nanjing University, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.

Bone densitometry revealed low bone mass in patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) and its prognostic potential to predict curve progression. Recent studies showed differential circulating miRNAs in AIS but their diagnostic potential and links to low bone mass have not been well-documented. The present study aimed to compare miRNA profiles in bone tissues collected from AIS and non-scoliotic subjects, and to explore if the selected miRNA candidates could be useful diagnostic biomarkers for AIS. Read More

JACC Cardiovasc Imaging 2022 Jun;15(6):987-988

Division of Cardiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.

Surg Clin North Am 2022 Jun;102(3):517-528

Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Washington DC Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 50 Irving Street Northwest, Washington, DC 20422, USA. Electronic address:

Acquired diseases of the aortic and mitral valves are the most common cause of morbidity and mortality among Valvular heart diseases. Aortic stenosis (AS) is increasing in incidence in the United States (4,43 US), driven largely by an aging demographic. Aortic valve replacement is the only effective treatment of AS and has a dramatic mortality benefit. Read More

J Cardiovasc Echogr 2022 Jan-Mar;32(1):29-37. Epub 2022 Apr 20.

Department of Cardiology, Ospedale San Giuseppe Multi Medica IRCCS, Milan, Italy.

Background: The possible influence of chest wall conformation on cardiovascular (CV) outcome of patients with mitral regurgitation (MR) due to mitral valve prolapse (MVP) has never been previously investigated.

Methods: This retrospective study included all consecutive symptomatic patients with MVP and moderate MR who underwent exercise stress echocardiography at our institution between February 2014 and February 2021. Modified Haller Index (MHI; chest transverse diameter over the distance between sternum and spine) was noninvasively assessed. Read More

Int J Cardiol 2022 Sep 1;362:158-167. Epub 2022 Jun 1.

University of Alberta, Division of Cariology, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; Canadian VIGOUR Centre, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Electronic address:

Introduction: Loeys-Dietz syndrome (LDS) is a connective tissue disorder that arises from mutations altering the transforming growth factor β signalling pathway. Due to the recent discovery of the underlying genetic mutations leading to LDS, the spectrum of characteristics and complications is not fully understood.

Methods: Our search included five databases (Pubmed, SCOPUS, Web of Science, EMBASE and google scholar) and included variations of "Loeys-Dietz Syndrome" as search terms, using all available data until February 2021. Read More

Front Cardiovasc Med 2022 17;9:872288. Epub 2022 May 17.

The Roslin Institute, The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.

Mitral valve prolapse (MVP) due to myxomatous degeneration is one of the most important chronic degenerative cardiovascular diseases in people and dogs. It is a common cause of heart failure leading to significant morbidity and mortality in both species. Human MVP is usually classified into primary or non-syndromic, including Barlow's Disease (BD), fibro-elastic deficiency (FED) and Filamin-A mutation, and secondary or syndromic forms (typically familial), such as Marfan syndrome (MFS), Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, and Loeys-Dietz syndrome. Read More

Indian J Dermatol 2022 Jan-Feb;67(1):72-74

Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Hacettepe University, Ankara, Turkey E-mail:

J Innov Card Rhythm Manag 2022 May 15;13(5):5013-5018. Epub 2022 May 15.

First Department of Cardiology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece.

Mitral valve prolapse (MVP) is one of the most common valvular heart diseases. Although MVP is generally considered benign, it can be associated with important complications, including sudden cardiac death (SCD), owing to ventricular arrhythmias (VAs). Several clinical, electrocardiographic, and imaging findings have been associated with MVP-related SCD, including female sex, T-wave inversions in the inferior leads, complex ventricular ectopy, leaflet redundancy (classic MVP), mitral annular disjunction, pickelhaube sign (a spiked configuration of the lateral annular velocities), and evidence of myocardial fibrosis in cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging. Read More

J Med Case Rep 2022 May 29;16(1):211. Epub 2022 May 29.

Department of Cardiology, Gifu University Graduate School of Medicine, 1-1 Yanagido, Gifu, 501-1194, Japan.

Background: Hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia, also known as Osler-Weber-Rendu disease, induces arteriovenous malformations in visceral organs. Arteriovenous malformations increase the risk of severe infections and are a common complication associated with hemorrhagic telangiectasia. However, cases of endocarditis associated with hemorrhagic telangiectasia are rarely reported. Read More

Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg 2022 May 27. Epub 2022 May 27.

From the Division of Cardiovascular Surgery of the Peter Munk Cardiac Centre at Toronto General Hospital, and University of Toronto.

Comput Math Methods Med 2022 21;2022:1997371. Epub 2022 May 21.

Department of Cardiac Surgery, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University; Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing 100029, China.

Surgical treatment of mitral valve diseases has become minimally invasive. This study analyzed the follow-up results of patients after mitral valve repairs (MVRep) using the da Vinci robot. The clinical data of patients who underwent minimally invasive MVRep using the da Vinci robot between January 2016 and June 2021 and completed follow-ups were prospectively collected. Read More

J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2022 Apr 9. Epub 2022 Apr 9.

Division of Cardiac Surgery, University of Padova, Padova, Italy.

Objective: Transapical off-pump beating-heart neochord implantation (NC) has shown encouraging early results in patients with degenerative mitral regurgitation. The aim of this study was to evaluate clinical and echocardiographic 5-year outcomes of patients who underwent NC.

Methods: All patients who underwent NC at our institution from November 2013 to March 2016 were included. Read More

Elife 2022 May 25;11. Epub 2022 May 25.

Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, United States.

MAF1, a key repressor of RNA polymerase (pol) III-mediated transcription, has been shown to promote mesoderm formation in vitro. Here, we show that MAF1 plays a critical role in regulating osteoblast differentiation and bone mass. Global deletion of ( mice) produced a high bone mass phenotype. Read More

Echocardiography 2022 May 23. Epub 2022 May 23.

Laboratory of Echocardiography, National Institute of Cardiology, Mexico City, Mexico.

Introduction And Objectives: Mitral valve (MV) prolapse is highly prevalent in patients with atrial septal defect (ASD). Abnormal left ventricular geometry has been proposed as the main mechanism of MV prolapse in ASD, however, the changes in the morphology of the MV apparatus remain to be clarified. Our aim was to assess the MV geometry in patients with ASD and MV prolapse. Read More

CASE (Phila) 2022 May 16;6(3):95-102. Epub 2021 Dec 16.

Department of Cardiology, Tan Tock Seng Hospital, Singapore.

J Cardiol 2022 May 16. Epub 2022 May 16.

Department of Echocardiography, State Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Diseases, Fuwai Hospital, National Center for Cardiovascular Diseases, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Beijing, China; Department of Echocardiography, Fuwai Yunnan Cardiovascular Hospital, Kunming, China. Electronic address:

Background: Cardiac blood cysts (BCs) are rare benign cardiac masses. This study aimed to summarize the clinical and echocardiographic characteristics and clinical outcomes of patients with BCs.

Methods: This retrospective study enrolled patients diagnosed with BC between 2009 and 2021 at a single center in China. Read More

J Cardiovasc Surg (Torino) 2022 May 19. Epub 2022 May 19.

Cardiovascular Center - Klinik im Park, Zurich, Switzerland -

Background: Patients (pt) with mitral valve prolapse (MVP) due to Barlow disase (BD) have an increased incidence of ventricular arrhythmias (VA; including ventricular tachycardias VT) and sudden cardiac death (SCD). Data on the effect of MV repair on VA are scarce.

Methods: Pre- and postoperative VA in severe mitral regurgitation (MR) with MVP due to BD undergoing surgical mitral valve repair were analyzed. Read More

BMC Vet Res 2022 May 16;18(1):184. Epub 2022 May 16.

VCA Japan Shiraishi Animal Hospital, Saitama, 350-1304, Japan.

Background: Mitral valvuloplasty (MVP) has been widely recognized as a treatment option for myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD). However, postoperative complications such as thromboembolism, arrhythmia, and pancreatitis in some cases have resulted in death. We treated a dog with severe MMVD complicated by impaired sinus function with MVP and pacemaker implantation. Read More

JACC Case Rep 2022 May 4;4(9):529-532. Epub 2022 May 4.

DeBakey Heart and Vascular Institute, Houston Methodist Hospital, Houston, Texas, USA.

Giant cell arteritis (GCA) is an inflammatory cranial and/or extracranial vasculitis. Although cranial GCA is widely recognized, extracranial GCA is underdiagnosed because of its nonspecific and atypical presentations. We report a case of asymptomatic extracranial GCA with ascending thoracic aortopathy discovered incidentally during surgical mitral valve repair. Read More

Cureus 2022 Apr 12;14(4):e24061. Epub 2022 Apr 12.

Cardiology, Staten Island University Hospital, Northwell Heath, Staten Island, USA.

Papillary muscle rupture (PMR) is a rare complication of myocardial infarction. Its incidence has been decreasing nowadays because of improved early revascularization techniques. When it occurs, surgical treatment is the only therapeutic lifesaving approach. Read More

J Card Surg 2022 May 5. Epub 2022 May 5.

Cardiovascular Research Center, Institute for Experimental and Clinical Research, Catholic University of Louvain, Brussels, Belgium.

Background: We report the clinical and echocardiographic results of our experience in robotic mitral valve repair over a 7-year period. The outcomes of the earliest and the latest patients will be compared.

Methods: Between March 2012 and October 2019, 226 patients underwent robotic mitral valve repair for severe mitral regurgitation in a single institution. Read More

Front Cardiovasc Med 2022 12;9:862044. Epub 2022 Apr 12.

Department of Cardiology, Antwerp University Hospital, Antwerp, Belgium.

Mitral valve prolapse (MVP) is a common valvular disorder that can be associated with mitral regurgitation (MR), heart failure, ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death. Given the prognostic impact of these conditions, it is important to evaluate not only mitral valve morphology and regurgitation, but also the presence of left ventricular (LV) function and remodeling. To date, several possible hypotheses have been proposed regarding the underlying mechanisms of LV remodeling in the context of non-syndromic MVP, but the exact pathophysiological explanation remains elusive. Read More

Front Cardiovasc Med 2022 12;9:850700. Epub 2022 Apr 12.

Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, St. Antonius Hospital, Nieuwegein, Netherlands.

Degenerative mitral regurgitation (DMR) based on posterior leaflet prolapse is the most frequent type of organic mitral valve disease and has proven to be durably repairable in most cases by chordal repair techniques either by conventional median sternotomy or by less invasive approaches both utilizing extracorporeal circulation and cardioplegic myocardial arrest. Recently, several novel transapical chordal repair techniques specifically targeting the posterior leaflet have been developed as a far less invasive and beating heart (off-pump) alternative to port-access mitral repair. In order to perform a safe and effective minimally invasive mitral chordal repair, thorough knowledge of the anatomy of the mitral valve apparatus and adequate use of multimodality imaging both pre- and intraoperatively are fundamental. Read More

Cureus 2022 Mar 27;14(3):e23535. Epub 2022 Mar 27.

Department of Internal Medicine, Saint Joseph Mercy Oakland Hospital, Pontiac, USA.

Antiphospholipid antibodies (aPLs) against Beta-2 glycoprotein-I (βGPI) are considered to be the center of pathogenesis of antiphospholipid syndrome (APS). Autoimmune aPLs are pathogenic as patients are at increased risk of enhancing thrombin generation at a young age. There are only three aPLs considered as diagnostic laboratory markers for APS - IgM, IgG, and IgA isotypes. Read More

Med Clin North Am 2022 May 4;106(3):545-555. Epub 2022 Apr 4.

Department of Internal Medicine, UC Davis School of Medicine, 4150 V Street, Suite 2400, Sacramento, CA 95817, USA.

Patients with valvular heart disease may present with or without symptoms. A thorough cardiac physical examination can identify patients who require further evaluation and management. Although the utility of different cardiac findings varies widely, diastolic murmurs indicate important underlying valvular pathology requiring further investigation, typically with echocardiography. Read More