[Coronary endoprosthesis. Short- and mid-term results]. / Endoprothèses coronariennes. Résultats à court et moyen terme.

Mechanical stenting of the coronary wall by an endoprosthesis is a method of treating and preventing the 2 major complications of balloon angioplasty: acute occlusion by dissection and secondary restenosis. Forty-four self expanding stents were implanted in 42 patients presenting with post-angioplasty restenosis (35 cases), stenosis of an aortocoronary bypass graft (4 cases) or symptomatic post-angioplasty coronary dissection (3 cases). The primary results featured a high early occlusion rate of the endoprosthesis (28.5%, 12 cases). Better patient selection to include patients with stable angina and coronary arteries with a diameter greater than 3 millimeters, and the administration of an association of platelet antiaggregant therapy with heparin and oral anticoagulants has led to an improvement in these results. The early occlusion rate in the first 23 patients implanted without these selection criteria was 43% (10 cases) whereas it was only 10.5% (2 cases) in the last 19 selected patients who were prescribed effective medical therapy. The medium term results of the 27 patients implanted without complications at 6 months showed restenosis in 5 cases and reocclusion (asymptomatic) in 1 case (22.2% at control angiography at the 6th month). Restenosis was only observed in cases in which the endoprosthesis did not completely cover the coronary lesion (3 out of 3 cases) or when the endoprosthesis was implanted in a saphenous vein graft (2 out of 4 cases) and the only case of reocclusion occurred on a stent implanted in a coronary artery responsible for previous myocardial infarction. In the 21 patients in whom the stenosis had been totally covered by the stent there were no cases of restenosis.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

[Malignant fibrous histiocytoma of the right ventricle and pulmonary artery. Apropos of a case. Review of the literature]. / Histiocytome fibreux malin ventriculaire droit et de l'artère pulmonaire. A propos d'un cas. Revue de la littérature.

The authors report a case of malignant cardiac fibrohistiocytoma involving the right ventricular infundibulum and the pulmonary artery and responsible for a pseudo-thromboembolic right heart failure syndrome. Following discovery of the tumour mass on ultrasonography and catheterisation, wide excision of the pulmonary artery, pulmonary valve and the roof of the infundibulum as far as the middle part of the ventricle was performed under cardio-pulmonary by-pass. Reconstruction was performed with a valveless woven Dacron tube. The postoperative course was uncomplicated and the patient was still alive after 18 months. Histology revealed malignant fibrohistiocytoma. The authors also present a review of the literature of these rare tumours of the right-sided cavities (5 cases reported).

[Pheochromocytoma: how to prevent a fatal course? A case report and review of the literature]. / Le phéochromocytome: comment prévenir une évolution fatale? A propos d'un cas avec revue de la littérature.

The authors report on one case of a female patient with adrenal pheochromocytoma which progressed rapidly, resulting in death. Stress is therefore laid on the very serious nature of this disease and the necessity of rapid detection and treatment. A diagnostic and therapeutic strategy can be established from the review of the literature, based on numerous reliable methods which are currently available.

[Enoximone/dobutamine comparison in chronic congestive cardiac insufficiency with low cardiac output]. / Comparaison énoximone/dobutamine dans l'insuffisance cardiaque congestive chronique décompensée en bas débit.

In severe chronic congestive cardiac failure the physician has the choice of two families of positive inotropic agents, the direct sympathomimetics and the phosphodiesterase inhibitors. The aim of the study was to compare the efficacy and tolerance of enoximone and dobutamine in this indication. Twenty patients with severe chronic cardiac failure with a cardiac index of less than 2.2 l/min/m2 and pulmonary capillary pressure of over 20 mmHg were randomised into two groups in an open trial. One group received enoximone 50 micrograms/kg/min for 30 minutes then 10 micrograms/kg/min and the other received dobutamine 10 micrograms/kg/min. The two groups were comparable. Results were analysed 12 hours after starting therapy, well after the loading dose of enoximone and before the appearance of tolerance to dobutamine. Neither drug caused a significant change in heart rate or mean blood pressure. The pressure-rate product did not increase significantly with enoximone (+9.2% NS) in contrast with the dobutamine group in which a significant elevation was observed (+23.5%, p less than 0.05). The cardiac index increased with enoximone (+61.0%, p less than 0.01) and with dobutamine (+32.1%, p less than 0.02). This resulted mainly from an increase in the systolic index (+45.5%, p less than 0.05 with enoximone and +30.1%, p less than 0.05 with dobutamine). Pulmonary capillary pressure and total systemic resistance decreased with enoximone (-29.1%, p less than 0.001 and -36.7%, p less than 0.05 respectively) and with dobutamine (-23.4%, p less than 0.001 and -20.7%, p less than 0.05 respectively).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

[Early reocclusion after in situ coronary desobstruction either with streptokinase or angioplasty during the acute phase of myocardial infarction]. / Réocclusion précoce après désobstruction coronarienne in situ soit par streptokinase soit par angioplastie à la phase aiguë de l'infarctus du myocarde.

The aim of this study was to assess the incidence of early reocclusion after therapeutic reperfusion of coronary arteries in acute myocardial infarction. Seventy four patients underwent intracoronary thrombolysis and 133 patients had immediate coronary angioplasty. The success rates were 70 per cent and 86 per cent respectively (p less than 0.01) and the degree of residual stenosis was 77 +/- 13 percent and 25 +/- 15 per cent respectively (p less than 0.001). The patients in whom coronary reperfusion was successful, 52 after in situ thrombolysis, 48 after angioplasty alone, and 66 after combined angioplasty and intravenous thrombolysis, underwent coronary arteriography 24 to 36 hours later. Reocclusion was asymptomatic in 46 per cent of cases (13/28) and its prevalence was 16.9 per cent: 25.5 per cent for the right coronary compared with 12.8 per cent for the left anterior descending (p less than 0.05) and 11.7 per cent for the left circumflex artery; reocclusion occurred in 8.6 per cent of patients treated before the 3rd hour compared with 22.9 per cent of patients receiving treatment after the 3rd hour (p less than 0.05). The incidence of reocclusion was 17.3 per cent after intracoronary thrombolysis and 16.7 per cent after angioplasty (angioplasty alone 18.7 per cent; associated with thrombolysis 15.2%). The degree of residual stenosis was nil after intracoronary thrombolysis and 16.3 per cent after angioplasty when the stenosis was insignificant, and 20.5 per cent and 18.8 per cent respectively with stenotic lesions greater than 50 per cent.

[Malignant fibrous histiocytoma of the right ventricle and pulmonary artery. Apropos of a case. Review of the literature]. / Histiocytome fibreux malin ventriculaire droit et de l'artère pulmonaire. A propos d'un cas. Revue de la littérature.

The authors report a case of malignant cardiac fibrohistiocytoma involving the right ventricular infundibulum and the pulmonary artery and responsible for a pseudo-thromboembolic right heart failure syndrome. Following discovery of the tumour mass on ultrasonography and catheterisation, wide excision of the pulmonary artery, pulmonary valve and the roof of the infundibulum as far as the middle part of the ventricle was performed under cardio-pulmonary by-pass. Reconstruction was performed with a valveless woven Dacron tube. The postoperative course was uncomplicated and the patient was still alive after 18 months. Histology revealed malignant fibrohistiocytoma. The authors also present a review of the literature of these rare tumours of the right-sided cavities (5 cases reported).

[Emboligenic calcification of posterointernal chordae of the mitral valve. Apropos of a surgically treated case]. / Calcifications emboligènes des cordages postéro-internes de la valve mitrale. A propos d'un cas opéré.

We report the case of a 74-year old man who experienced two transient cerebral ischaemic accidents at 24 days' interval, showing that the isolated calcifications on chordae of the mitral valve posterior leaflet responsible for these accidents were exceptionally malformed. Two-dimensional echocardiography was the key examination, as it revealed a left intraventricular mass beneath the smaller mitral valve leaflet. Having excluded other cardiac causes of cerebral ischaemic accident, and faced with the recurrent character of these accidents, we decided to operate. Surgery confirmed the diagnosis. It consisted of resection of the calcified and ulcerated mass, combined with repair of the smaller mitral valve leaflet. Isolated calcifications of the mitral valve chordae are an exceptional cause of embolic accidents of cardiac origin.