A Case Report on Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection.

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection is an extremely rare cause of acute coronary syndrome. Although it predominantly affects young women in the peripartum period, it can also occur in men. The left coronary artery is most frequently involved. The usual presentation is ST segment elevation myocardial infarction. Although several treatment modalities have been proposed, the optimal treatment options still remain to be established. This current case report focuses on a 40- year-old male presented with acute coronary syndrome and subsequently was found to have coronary artery dissection.

Lipid Profile and Atherogenic Index of Plasma (AIP) in Vegetarians.

Background: Diet deficient in fresh fruits and vegetables are associated with an increased risk of coronary diseases. Low levels of vitamin C, vitamin E and other antioxidants may enhance the production of oxidized LDL and are important independent risk factors for coronary disease. Objective: To make a comparative evaluation of lipid profile and atherogenic index of plasma (AIP) between vegetarians and nonvegetarians. Materials and Methods: This case-control study was carried out in the Department of Biochemistry of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU), Dhaka between July 2011 to June 2012. Vegetarian and nonvegetarian subjects of male sex were the study population. Vegetarians were considered as cases while nonvegetarians as controls. After proper ethical consideration a total of 30 vegetarians and 40 nonvegetarians were consecutively included in the study based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Laboratory investigations were done in the Department of Biochemistry, BSMMU, Dhaka. Results: The vegetarians had significantly lower total cholesterol and LDLcholesterol than the nonvegetarians (p=0.000 and p=0.000 respectively). Serum HDL cholesterol was also lower among the vegetarians (p=0.002) and triglycerides were almost identical in both the groups (p=0.272). Conclusion: The study reveals lower level of total cholesterol, LDLcholesterol and HDL-cholesterol in vegetarians. No difference regarding triglycerides and AIP was found between the groups. So, the findings of this study do not indicate any superiority of vegetarian diet in control and prevention of cardiac diseases.

Admission Serum Uric Acid Levels and In-Hospital Outcomes in Patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome.

Background: Uric acid is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Hospital admission for ischemic heart disease (IHD) is increasing rapidly in our country. Although studies were conducted abroad regarding association of serum uric acid with in-hospital outcomes in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS), no data is yet available to show the association in our country. Objective: The objective of this study was to assess the association of serum uric acid level on admission with in-hospital outcomes of the patients with ACS. Materials and Methods: This cross sectional comparative study was done in the Department of Cardiology, Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) from January to December 2012. After proper ethical consideration total 93 ACS patients were enrolled in the study by nonrandom sampling. Serum uric acid of all subjects was measured within 24 hours of admission. Then in-hospital outcomes were observed in all subjects. Results: The frequency of hyperuricemia among ACS patients was 24.7% (22.54% in male and 31.82% in female). Hyperuricemic patients significantly developed heart failure (30.4% vs 11.4%, p=0.032) and conduction defect (13.0% vs 1.4%, p=0.017) than normouricemic subjects. The mean ejection fraction was significantly lower in hyperuricemic patients than patients with normal uric acid level (50.87 ± 10.27% vs 55.94 ± 6.66%). The mean ± SD duration of hospital stay of hyperuricemic group was significantly longer in patients with ACS (8.26 ± 1.18 vs 7.51±1.18 days, p=0.010). Conclusion: The measurement of serum uric acid level, an easily available and inexpensive biochemical tool, might turn out as a valuable risk marker for prediction of in-hospital outcomes in patients with ACS.

In-Hospital Outcome of Older and Younger Patients with Acute Coronary Syndrome.

Background: Acute coronary syndrome is a cardiac emergency. It is increasingly common in younger peoples. Management of elderly peoples is difficult due to their associated comorbidity. This study tried to compare the in-hospital outcome of the younger and older patients with acute coronary syndrome. Methods: The study was a comparative cross sectional study. Clinical and biochemical evaluation was done in hospital settings. A total number of 120 patients were included in the study and divided into two groups according to distribution of age. In group I there were elderly groups of aged >60 yrs. and in group II there were patients within the age 40 to 60 yrs. All the data were collected systematically in a preformed data collection form. Results: Group I populations had more in hospital stay and more complications than group II. Conclusion: The study revealed significant association with age and outcome of Acute coronary syndrome patients. Complications of acute coronary syndrome increase as the age of the patients increases.

Comparison of Diagnostic Criteria to Detect Undiagnosed Diabetes in Acute Coronary Syndrome Patients with Admission Hyperglycemia.

Background: Diabetes mellitus is one of the most important risk factors of coronary artery disease. Admission hyperglycemia adversely influences the outcome of acute coronary syndrome patients. The study was conducted to compare the various diagnostic methods for the detection of undiagnosed diabetes mellitus in acute coronary syndrome patients with admission hyperglycaemia in Bangladeshi population. Methods: It was a cross sectional comparative study involving 157 patients with admission blood glucose level e”7.8 mmol/l. Fasting plasma glucose, Glycated haemoglobin, pre-discharge oral glucose tolerance test was measured in all subjects and comparison of performance of different methods was done. Results: Oral glucose tolerance test revealed that in spite of admission hyperglycaemia, 57 (36.3%) patients were diabetic and 52 (33.12%) patients had impaired glucose homeostasis and 48 (30.57%) patients had normal glucose metabolism. Undiagnosed diabetes could not be adequately predicted with admission plasma glucose, fasting plasma glucose or HbA1c alone (area under the ROC curve 0.589, 0.825 and 0.852 respectively). Conclusion: Admission hyperglycaemia does not diagnose diabetes reliably in a stressful condition like acute coronary syndrome. Although neither admission plasma glucose, fasting plasma glucose, nor HbA1c level were as good as oral glucose tolerance test in detecting true diabetes, but combined fasting plasma glucose & HbA1c were found to be more sensitive & specific screening tool for detecting unknown diabetes in acute coronary syndrome patients with admission hyperglycaemia.

Association of Creatinine Clearance Rate and Coronary Angiographic Severity in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease.

Background: In epidemiological studies and clinical trials renal function has been shown to be an independent predictor of coronary artery disease (CAD). We conducted this study to find out the association between creatinine clearance rate (CCr) and coronary angiographic severity in patients with (CAD). Method: It was a cross sectional study carried out in the department of Cardiology, Dhaka Medical College Hospital, Dhaka during the period of April, 2011 to March, 2012. All the patients with Ischaemic heart disease (IHD) admitted in the department of Cardiology who fulfill the inclusion and exclusion criteria and underwent coronary angiogram were taken as sampling population. Sampling technique was purposive and sample size was 118. By Cockcroft-Gault formula, CCr was estimated from serum creatinine. Coronary angiographic severity of coronary artery disease was assessed by vessel score and stenosis score. Statistical analysis was carried out by descriptive statistics, correlation coefficient test and one way ANOVA test. Level of significance was set at 0.05. Results: Mean CCr among study subjects was 72.57 ± 17.78 ml/min. Vessel score showed 18.6% had normal coronaries, 37.3% single vessel disease, 31.4% double vessel disease and 12.7% triple vessel disease. There was significant positive relationship between serum creatinine and vessel score, and also negative relationship between CCr and vessel score. The study also showed significant negative correlation between CCr and stenosis score. Conclusion: Angiographic severity of coronary artery disease is associated with degree of renal dysfunction. Decreased creatinine clearance is associated with more extensive CAD.