ABSTRACT
Recently, the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) has updated its guidelines for the management of patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) without ST-segment elevation. The current consensus document of the Dutch ACS working group and the Working Group of Interventional Cardiology of the Netherlands Society of Cardiology aims to put the 2020 ESC Guidelines into the Dutch perspective and to provide practical recommendations for Dutch cardiologists, focusing on antiplatelet therapy, risk assessment and criteria for invasive strategy.
ABSTRACT
Hereditary haemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT) is characterized by easily bleeding telangiectases of the skin and mucosa. Epistaxis is the most common symptom of HHT. Larger arteriovenous malformations (AVM) occur in the lungs (in up to 33% of the patients), brain (in up to 11% of patients), and liver. These may cause severe complications which can be prevented by early therapy. To gain insight in the characteristics of epistaxis in HHT, 171 persons were investigated, who either had HHT or participated in a screening programme for relatives of HHT patients. Of these, 58 persons had HHT. Epistaxis without signs of HHT was present in 12 persons, whereas 10% of HHT patients did not have epistaxis. Seventeen HHT patients with epistaxis had visited an otorhinolaryngologist before, without a correct diagnosis of HHT being made. Telangiectases were most common on lips, tongue, the nasal septum, and the turbinates. In view of the prevalence of visceral AVM and the associated complications, HHT patients presenting to an otorhinolaryngologist should be encouraged to engage in a screening programme for these AVM.
