Frequency and angiographic characteristics of coronary artery ectasia in patients undergoing coronary angiograms at AFIC and NIHD

To determine the frequency and angiographic characteristics of coronary artery ectasia in the patient population of AFIC and NIHD. Descriptive Study Armed Forces Institute of Cardiology and National Institute of Heart Diseases, Rawalpindi from Jan 2007 to Dec 2011. All coronary angiograms done during the period were included in the study. The reports of coronary angiograms of those patients who were diagnosed to have coronary artery ectasia were left circumflex artery reviewed to assess the distribution of ectasia in different coronary arteries. Concomitant significant coronary artery stenosis left ventricular [LV] systolic function and history of revascularization were also documented. Over the study period, a total of 41,459 patients underwent coronary angiograms. 548 [1.32%] patients were diagnosed to have coronary artery ectasia. Out of these 467 [85.21%] patients were males and 81 [14.78%] were females. Their mean age was 53.7 years. Left anterior descending [LAD] was the coronary artery, most commonly affected by ectasia followed by left circumflex artery [LCx] and Right coronary artery [RCA]. Twenty three patients also had ectasia of left main stem. Four Hundred and three [73.54%] patients also had concomitant occlusive coronary artery disease and 19.52% patients had history of coronary revascularization either by percutaneous coronary intervention [PCI] or coronary artery bypass grafting [CABG]. Coronary artery ectasia is not a benign disorder as it could present as acute coronary syndrome having its own morbidity and mortality

Leukoaraiosis y agrandamiento ventricular / Leukoaraiosis and ventricular enlargement

Se describen las características tomográficas de la leukoaraiosis (LA) y sus imágenes asociadas. Asimismo se hace mención a las manifestaciones clínicas que acompañan a esta neuroimagen. En un trabajo prospectivo, de grupos paralelos con y sin LA, se pudo determinar que la hipertensión arterial y el antecendente de enfermedad vascular cerebral estuvieron asociados a la población con LA. En orden decreciente los trastornos en la marcha, la demencia y la alteración esfinteriana fueron los síntomas clínicos más relevantes. En el grupo de enfermos con trastornos demenciales no hubo predominio de los tipos Alzheimer y vascular. La secuela tomográfica de lesión vascular estuvo presente en un 36 por ciento y la presencia de hemorragias cerebrales en un 8,1 por ciento de los pacientes con LA. El hallazgo principal de este estudio se relacionó con el análisis del índice de Evans. En el grupo sin LA la dilatación ventricular tuvo una correlación lineal con la edad. A mayor edad hubo mayor dilatación ventricular. En la población con LA no existió correlación entre la edad y el aumento de las cavidades ventriculares. La LA presentó un agrandamiento ventricular que es independiente de la edad del paciente