Blood pressure control in a registry of clinical practice, PINNACLEBRAZIL REGISTRY

INTRODUCTION: The prevalence of hypertension is estimated to be nearly 50% among Brazilian adults. Achieving an adequate control of this CVD risk factor is challenging but truly relevant on a public health perspective, as this is the top ranking cause of all deaths globally. PURPOSE: We aimed to describe crude and simple metrics of blood pressure management (including its control), as based on current guidelinederived recommendations, after one year of the clinical practice registry METHODS: Patients with documented Hypertension were included by using electronic case report form based on the ACC PINNACLE Registry. The registry has been enrolling patients from general practitioners and specialists. The main goal of the PINNACLE program is to improve the quality of care in "real world" clinical practice. Patients data were evaluated after 01 year of follow-up on regular clinical appointments and the differences on clinical practice were evaluated RESULTS: Currently, PINNACLEBrazil has enrolled 7598 patients, with 87% of diagnosed hypertension. Percentage of patients with a diagnosis of hypertension who had a blood pressure measurement <140/90 mmHg was 47.9%(baseline) and 57.3% (followup). Percentage of patients who had a blood pressure < 140/90 mm Hg, or who had a blood pressure >= 140/90 mm Hg and were prescribed >= 2 antihypertensive medications were 67.1% on baseline and 71.2% after 1 year. CONCLUSION: The preliminary data of PINNACLE Registry in Brazil shows that a significant proportion of hypertensive patients (nearly half) have not presented with adequate control of blood pressure levels and, moreover, a large proportion have not been treated with recommended combination of 02 or more antihypertensive medications to reach targeted BP levels the quality of care was improving after 01 year of registry. (AU)

Problemática do manuseio cardiológico do indivíduo idoso / Problems in elderly cardiologic treatment control

É amplo o espectro das peculiaridades das condiçSes cardiovasculares na crescente populaçÝo idosa. O envelhecimento pode modificar tanto mecanismos íntimos da funçÝo celular como o efeito dos procedimentos terapêuticos. Assim este capítulo tem a finalidade de apresentar as principais características diagnósticas e terapêuticas em cardiogeriatria, considerando a sua aplicabilidade imediata na atividade assistencial. A propedêutica geriátrica, em espeical, se caracteriza pela maior dificuldade na obtençÝo e na interpretaçÝo de dados, devido à influência de fatores como alteraçSes próprias da idade, coexistência de múltiplos processos patológicos e manifestaçSes atípicas das doenças. As alteraçSes próprias do envelhecimento podem até modificar o conceito de normalidade; é sabido, por exemplo, que se pode encontrar hipofonese das bulhas cardíacas por simples modificaçSes do arcabouço torácico. Habitual coexistência de doenças modifica o raciocínio clínico básico de atribuir a uma só afecçÝo os achados clínicos. ManifestaçSes atípicas das doenças sÝo bem exemplificadas pela possibilidade da ausência de febre na vigência do processo infeccioso, como na endocardite infecciosa, ou na falta da clássica hiperatividade no hipertireoidismo apático. A terapêutica geriátrica também exibe particularidades importantes. As medidas nÝo-farmacológicas devem ser sempre consideradas preeminentes e, se possível, previamente ao tratamento medicamentoso. Tentar-se-á a modificaçÝo de hábitos nocivos evitando, entretanto, causar prejuízo à qualidade de vida do indivíduo idoso. A prescriçÝo de medicamentos deve obedecer a importantes princípios gerais ...

[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.