[Initial experience in percutaneous closure of interatrial communication with the amplatzer device]. / Experiência inicial no fechamento percutâneo da comunicação interatrial com a prótese de Amplatzer.

PURPOSE: To evaluate our initial experience with percutaneous closure of secundum type atrial septal defects (ASD) with the Amplatzer septal occluder. METHODS: Seven patients underwent occlusion by anterograde approach, under general anesthesia and transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) guidance. One child had 2 ASD and a patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). The ASD size ranged from 8.7 to 20 mm as measured by TEE. A transthoracic echocardiogram was performed in the morning after the procedure. RESULTS: Eight devices were successfully implanted in 7 patients and the PDA was occluded with a Gianturco coil at the same session. In this patient, there was an episode of supraventricular tachycardia during the occlusion of one ASD which was reverted with adenosin. All patients were discharged the day after, with complete occlusion of all defects. CONCLUSION: The procedure is safe, effective and versatile. It can be applied as an initial alternative to the treatment of selected patients with ASD.

[Mitral valvuloplasty with double balloon catheter. Analysis of 200 cases]. / Valvoplastia mitral com duplo cateter-balão. Análise de 200 casos.

PURPOSE: To study the immediate clinical, echocardiographic and hemodynamic results of 200 patients who underwent percutaneous mitral balloon valvotomy (PMV) with double balloon technique. METHODS: Two hundred patients were submitted to PVM for treatment of congestive heart failure secondary to severe mitral stenosis, between August 1987 to July 1991. Their mean age was 35.2 years, and 86.5% were female patients: 81% of them was in functional class, New York Heart Association (NYHA) III or IV; 4% was in atrial fibrilation and 4% had previous surgical commissurotomy. RESULTS: PMV was successfully performed in 89% of the patients. The mitral valve area, by pressure half time method, increased from 0.91 +/- 0.27 to 2.10 +/- 0.47 cm2, p < 0.001; the mean mitral gradient decreased from 20.86 +/- 6.16 to 4.26 +/- 3.13 mmHg, p < 0.001; the left atrium and mean pulmonary artery pressure decreased from 22.3 +/- 7.1 to 11.9 +/- 8.3 and 36.47 +/- 12.93 to 24.56 +/- 9.98 mmHg, p < 0.001, respectively. Complications related to transeptal technique occurred in 12 patients, which resulted in cardiac tamponade in 5 and death in 1. In 19 patients the punction of the atrial septum could not be performed. Mitral regurgitation (MR) immediately after PMV appeared 1+ or more grade in 50 patients, increased in 8 patients and remained unchanged in 11 patients. Ten patients needed mitral valve replacement in the first 48h after PMV, for treatment of severe MR. CONCLUSIONS: PMV produces excellent immediate results and can be considered an alternative to surgery for the relief of mitral stenosis.

[Infective endocarditis. Prospective Doppler-echocardiographic study]. / Endocardite infecciosa. Estudo Doppler-echocardiográfico prospectivo.

PURPOSE: To study of the Doppler-echocardiographic aspects in patients with IE and its correlation with the prognosis and evolution. PATIENTS AND METHODS: One hundred and eight patients with clinical of IE were prospectively studied by Doppler-echocardiography (D-E) in order to determine whether the simple presence of vegetation, its size, mobility and place of attachment could identify high risk groups. Vegetations were classified according to its size (longest axis) into small (veg less than 5 mm), medium (5 mm less than veg less than 10 mm) and large (veg less than 10 mm); according to its kind into "sessible" or "mobile" and according to its appearence into "cotton like" or "calcified". RESULTS: Patients with (84.2%) and without (15.8%) vegetations didn't show any significant difference in the complications incidence (emboli, heart failure or death) and the same happened with its size. However, patients with aortic positioned vegetations showed ligher incidence of HF (Aortic 53.8 x Mitral 31.0% x Tricuspid 3.7%) need for surgery (Aortic 69.2% x Mitral 34.5% x Tricuspid 3.7%) and death (Aortic 30.7% x Mitral 13.7% x Tricuspid 7.4%). Emboli were observed in 81.4% of the patients with tricuspid valve vegetations. Eight patients showed IE on aortic prothesis. Five of them needed surgical treatment and 2 of them died. Among 12 patients with IE on mitral prothesis, 7 needed surgery and 3 died. Pericardial effusion were verified in 51 patients (47.2%), chordal rupture in 14 (12.8%) and valve abcess in 6 (5.5%). All patients with valve abcess were submitted to surgery. CONCLUSION: Doppler-echocardiography is an excellent method in the diagnosis of IE and its aspects may have, sometimes, a positive correlation with the prognosis and patient's evolution.

[Visualization of coronary artery obstructions by echocardiography]. / Visibilização de obstruções em artérias coronárias pela ecocardiografia.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to determine the sensitivity and specificity of 2D ECO in identifying proximal and medial obstruction of the coronary artery. PATIENTS AND METHOD: Sixty five patients with coronary artery disease were studied. In thirty three patients with previous coronary angiography the echocardiographer had knowledge of the topography and the degree of the coronary obstruction (group I) but in thirty two patients he didn't (group II). The mean age of group I was 54.4 years (44 to 76) and the mean age of the group II was 58 years (42 to 74). Two-dimensional echocardiography was performed at short-axis cross-sectional of aortic valve and images were frozen at end-diastole and reject settings were used to best visualize the coronary artery. RESULTS: It was possible to observe by 2D ECO the left main coronary artery in all patients. It was also possible to identify the proximal segment of the three main arteries. The detection of obstruction was overestimated by 2D ECO when it was in the left main coronary artery. In the proximal segment, in group I, the detection of obstruction in LAD, RCA and CXA was 87.5%, 66.6% and 50% and in group II, 77.7%, 100% and 50% respectively. In the medial segment, in group I, the detection of obstruction in LAD and CXA was respectively 100% and 33.3% and in group II, 60% and 75%. These results show that the sensitivity and specificity to detect obstruction was highest in the LAD. The method overestimated the presence of obstruction in the medial segment of RCA in both groups. CONCLUSION: These findings indicate that 2D ECO is a feasible noninvasive method in assessing obstruction of the main coronary arteries with good sensitivity and specificity.

Criss-cross heart with intact ventricular septum.

We report a case of a criss-cross heart in a 6-month-old male child with echocardiographic and angiocardiographic findings of concordant atrioventricular and discordant ventriculoarterial connexions and an intact ventricular septum. This entity has been described with a ventricular septal defect as part of its own anatomic spectrum. The concept of the criss-cross heart, however, is best restricted to a form of spatial atrioventricular arrangement in which the atrioventricular connexions are criss-crossed.

[Syphilitic aneurysm communicating with an aortic sinus of Valsalva. A case report]. / Aneurisma sifilítico comunicando-se com um seio de Valsalva aórtico. Relato de caso.

The authors present the case of a 27-year old woman with an aneurysm, possibly originating from an ectopic coronary sprout and communicating with the right anterior sinus of Valsalva. Secondary syphilitic lesions were observed. By virtue of its great size and localization, this aneurysm produced obstruction of the outlet of the right ventricle and dislocation of the left coronary artery. The authors conclude that this aneurysm was a congenital anomaly because of its great volume, configuration, the way it opened in the aortic right anterior sinus of Valsalva, the normal aortic wall and valve, and normal sinuses of Valsalva, observed at surgery. The follow-up was uneventful.

Valvoplastia pulmonar com cateter-balão. Uma alternativa no tratamento da estenose pulmonar valvar / Pulmonary valvuloplasty with catheter-balloon.An alternative in the treatment of pulmonary valve stenosis

Os autores apresentam sua experiencia inicial sobre valvoplastia pulmonar em 14 doentes portadores de estenose pulmonar valvar. A idade variou de 1 a 13 anos, com media de 7 anos, predominando o sexo masculino (9 casos). A dilatacao foi precedida de selecao, atraves da clinica, eletrocardiografia, radiologia e, sobre tudo dos aspectos ecocardiograficos e angiograficos Foram excluidos casos com estenose pulmonar associada a hipoplasia do anel pulmonar, calcificacao das cuspides da valva pulmonar e a severa hipertrofia do infundibulo do ventriculo direito. Utilizou-se o cateter-balao da Medi Tech. Em todos os casos, verificou-se alivio da estenose, com queda substancial do gradiente de pressao transvalvar, que variou de 47 a 128 mmHg (media 81,1), antes da dilatacao, e de 0 a 50 mmHg (media 17,7), apos a dilatacao. O seguimento dos doentes, avaliados atraves da queda do gradiente transvalvar, aumento da area de abertura valvar e regressao da hipertrofia ventricular direita no eletrocardiograma, tem mostrado resultados satisfatorios, comparaveis aos obtidos com o tratamento cirurgico

Cintigrafia do miocardio com talio-201 em pacientes com prolapso da valva mitral, com e sem coronariopatia. / Myocardial scintillography with thalium 201 in patients with mitral valve prolapse, with or without coronary disease

Trinta pacientes com dor precordial e prolapso da valva mitral a cineangiografia e ao ecocardiograma modo-M foram submetidos a cintigrafia do miocardio com Talio-201 (201Tl) associado ao teste ergometrico (TE). Os pacientes foram assim distribuidos: grupo I (GR I) - 18 pacientes portadores de prolapso da valva mitral com arterias coronarias normais, dos quais 10 apresentavam TE positivo (55,6%) e 8 negativos; a cintigrafia do miocardio com 201Tl foi normal em 14 pacientes (77,8%); 4 apresentaram isquemia transitoria (3 em parede inferior e 1 em parede lateral); grupo II (GR II) - constituido por 12 pacientes com prolapso da valva mitral de doenca obstrutiva coronariana grave (lesoes maior igual 60% em pelo menos um vaso principal da circulacao coronaria), dos quais 9 apresentavam TE positivo (75%) e 3 negativo. A cintigrafia do miocardio com 201Tl apresentou defeitos de captacao em 9 (75%), sendo 6 com isquemia transitoria e 3 definitiva; nos outros 3 pacientes o mapeamento foi normal. Baseados nestes achados, os autores concluem que a cintigrafia do miocardio com 201Tl foi mais sensivel para detectar presenca de doenca obstrutiva coronariana em portadoes de prolapso da valva mitral (PVM) que o TE, apesar de um pequeno numero (22,2%) de pacientes com PVM e coronarias normais exibir defeitos de captacao do radioindicador

Estudo ecocardiografico do ventriculo esquerdo durante esforco isometrico em coronariopatas. / Echocardiographic study of the left ventricle during isometric exercise in coronary disease patients

Foram estudados 49 pacientes com dor precordial, sugestiva de angina do peito, atraves da ecocardiografia modo - M, em repouso (A) e durante esforco isometrico (B), com a seguinte distribuicao: grupo I - 10 individuos normais; grupos II - 15 portadores de prolapso da valva mitral; grupo III - 24 coronariopatas, sem infarto do miocardio (IM) no eletrocardiograma. As seguintes variaveis foram analisadas: fracao de ejecao (FE), percentagem de encurtamento sistolico (delta D%), velocidade media de encurtamento circuferencial da fibra (Vcf), excursao do septo e da parede posterior do ventriculo esquerdo (ppVE) e velocidades de contracao e relaxamento do septo e ppVE. No grupo I, houve aumento significativo destes valores, o que nao ocorreu nos demais grupos. A analise morfologica mostrou diferencas entre os tres grupos estudados. O ecocardiograma durante o esforco isometrico (EI) mostrou-se superior ao exame em repouso, fornecendo importantes subsidios para a diferenciacao clinica entre os tres grupos de pacientes analisados