Aberrant migration and surgical removal of a heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) from the femoral artery of a cat.

A cat was evaluated for an acute-onset of right pelvic limb paresis. Thoracic radiographs revealed normal cardiac size and tortuous pulmonary arteries. Abdominal ultrasound identified a heartworm (HW) extending from the caudal abdominal aorta into the right external iliac artery and right femoral artery. The cat was HW-antigen positive. Echocardiography revealed a HW within the right branch of the main pulmonary artery and evidence of pulmonary hypertension. An agitated-saline contrast echocardiogram revealed a small right to left intracardiac shunt at the level of the atria. Surgical removal of the HW was performed with no substantial postoperative complications. There was return of blood flow and improved motor function to the limb. The cat remains mildly paretic on the affected limb with no other clinical signs.

Arterial stiffness as determinant of increased amino terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide levels in individuals with and without cardiovascular disease--the Rotterdam Study.

OBJECTIVE: Large artery stiffening has adverse effects on cardiac structure and function and, therefore, may be associated with elevated circulating levels of amino-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP). METHODS: In a large community-dwelling older population (n = 6211, mean age 69.2 years), serum NT-proBNP, brachial pulse pressure (PP) and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV) were measured. RESULTS: In individuals without cardiovascular disease (CVD), median NT-proBNP was 6.7 pmol/l in men (n = 2073) and 10.1 pmol/l in women (n = 3085) (P < 0.001). In these individuals, indices of arterial stiffness correlated with NT-proBNP with beta-coefficients for brachial PP and cfPWV of 0.315 and 0.255 in men and 0.233 and 0.232 in women (all P < 0.001). After multivariable adjustment (age, weight, height, mean arterial pressure, heart rate, smoking, diabetes, estimated glomerular filtration rate, total and high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol and use of lipid-lowering and antihypertensive medication), these associations remained significant for brachial PP and cfPWV in men and for brachial PP in women. In multivariable-adjusted models, brachial PP explained 20.3% and cfPWV 10.7% of the variation of NT-proBNP in men and, respectively, 10.8 and 9.4% in women. In patients with prevalent CVD, indices of arterial stiffness and NT-proBNP were unrelated in multivariable-adjusted models. CONCLUSION: Our findings show that arterial stiffness is independently associated with elevated NT-proBNP levels in individuals without prevalent CVD. The association between vascular stiffness and NT-proBNP is stronger in men than in women and absent in individuals with prevalent CVD.

True ablation of atheromatous plaques with laser energy. A phase I safety study.

A laser system coupling pulsed dye laser to a 2-mm fiberoptic catheter with incorporated angioscope has been developed for recanalization of occluded arteries. Nine patients with superficial femoral artery occlusions of 4.5 to 49 cm in length were operated on and the recanalized artery harvested for pathologic examination. There were two arterial perforations. The ease of recanalization was determined by plaque composition. Heavily calcified and yellow fibro-fatty lesions were rapidly removed. Smooth white fibrous lesions resisted laser ablation. Direct angioscopy often disclosed discontinuous areas of occlusion that were more susceptible to recanalization. These were not seen on preoperative arteriograms. Microscopic examination of the specimens showed a central core of ablation. There was no evidence of acute damage to the vessel wall, with intact internal elastic lamina demonstrated in the recanalized segments. It appears that fibrous lesions will require a different laser for ablation; however, the delivery/angioscope systems function satisfactorily.

Ischaemic syndrome of the lower limb produced by a hydatic cyst.

The development of two hydatid cysts following two primary inseminations near each other, one in the wall of the femoral artery and the other in the adductor muscles, resulted in an ischaemic syndrome in the affected limb. This raised interesting problems of diagnosis and pathology especially since the second cyst presented three and a half years later.