Left ventricular aneurysmectomy in a young female with pseudoaneurysm of unknown etiology.

A left ventricular pseudoaneurysm is formed when there is free wall rupture of the myocardial wall with discontinuity and roof covered by pericardium mural thrombus or fibrous tissue without any myocardium. A left ventricular pseudoaneurysm is a rare and life-threatening event. We report a young 22-year-old female with unknown etiology of a pseudoaneurysm, who was previously managed as a psychiatric case and for musculoskeletal pain. On subsequent investigation and confirmation with cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, aneurysmectomy was done. This is a rare case in a young 22-year-old woman with a ventricular pseudoaneurysm of unknown etiology. Considering the high risk for rupture of a ventricular pseudoaneurysm, surgical resection was mandatory with no complications intra- and post-procedure.

Clinical, Angiographic Characteristics and In-Hospital Outcomes of Smoker and Nonsmoker Patients After Primary Percutaneous Coronary Intervention.

BACKGROUND: Smoking is a well-established cardiac risk factor there is dearth of Local data regarding clinical and angiographic characteristics of smoker patients. OBJECTIVES: This study was planned to assess the differences in the clinical characteristics, angiographic characteristics, and in-hospital outcomes of smokers and nonsmokers after primary percutaneous coronary intervention at a tertiary care hospital in Karachi, Pakistan. METHODS: We included patients between 40 and 80 years of age diagnosed with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction who underwent primary percutaneous coronary intervention from July 1, 2017, to March 31, 2018. Clinical and angiographic characteristics and in-hospital outcomes were obtained from the cases submitted to the National Cardiovascular Data Registry's CathPCI (Catheterization-Percutaneous Coronary Intervention) Registry from our site. RESULTS: A total of 3,255 patients were included in this study. Smokers consist of 25.1% (817) of the total sample. A high majority of smokers were male, 98.8% (807), and smokers were relatively younger as compared to nonsmokers with a mean age of 52.89 ± 10.59 versus 55.98 ± 11.24 years; p < 0.001. Smokers had higher post-procedure TIMI (Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction) flow grade III: 97.8% (794) versus 95.53% (2,329); p = 0.037, and they had a relatively low mortality rate: 2.69% (22) versus 3.16% (77); p = 0.502. CONCLUSIONS: Smokers were predominantly male and around 3 years younger than nonsmokers. Diabetes mellitus and hypertension were less common among smokers and single-vessel disease was the more common angiographic finding for smokers as compared to 3-vessel disease for nonsmokers. No statistically significant differences in in-hospital outcomes were observed. ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction in smokers despite younger age and the low atherosclerotic risk profile, in our region, emphasize the need for nicotine addiction management and smoking cessation campaigns at large and for pre-discharge counseling.

Clinical and procedural predictors and short-term survival of the patients with no reflow phenomenon after primary percutaneous coronary intervention.

OBJECTIVES: In the present study, we analysed the incidence of no-reflow phenomenon, its clinical and procedural predictors, and associated in-hospital outcomes for the patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). BACKGROUND: No-reflow phenomenon after primary PCI is a procedural complication associated with adverse post-procedure outcomes. METHODS: Data for this study were extracted from global registry, NCDR®, the site of National Institute of Cardiovascular Disease (NICVD), Karachi from July 2017 to March 2018. The demographic, clinical, and procedural characteristics, and in-hospital outcomes were analysed for the patients with and without no-reflow after primary PCI. RESULTS: Of total of 3255 patients, no-reflow phenomenon was found in 132 (4.1%) patients and it was associated with significantly higher in-hospitality mortality (6.8% vs. 2.9%; p = 0.01), cerebrovascular accident (1.5% vs. 0%; p < 0.001), post procedure bleeding (2.3% vs. 0.5%; p = 0.009), and cardiogenic shock (3.8% vs. 1.2%; p = 0.011). The multivariate analysis showed advanced age [odds ratio = 1.63, 95% confidence interval 1.09-2.44, p = 0.018], diabetes [1.66, 1.14-2.42, p = 0.009], prior history of CABG [8.70, 1.45-52.04, p = 0.018], low pre-procedure TIMI flow grade [2.04, 1.3-3.21, p = 0.002], longer length of target lesion [1.51, 1.06-2.16, p = 0.023], and 10 fold raised troponin I [1.55, 1.08-2.23, p = 0.018] were the independent predictors of no-reflow. CONCLUSIONS: In this selected group of patients, the no-reflow phenomenon after primary percutaneous coronary intervention is not that uncommon. It is associated with an increased risk of adverse post-procedure hospital course including mortality. Pathophysiology of the no-reflow phenomenon is complex and opaque, however, it can be predicted based on certain clinical and procedural characteristics.

Measurement of interatrial septal thickness by echocardiography in patients with moderate to severe rheumatic mitral stenosis undergoing percutaneous balloon mitral valvuloplasty.

BACKGROUND: Longstanding severe rheumatic mitral stenosis (MS) is associated with changes in the atrial chamber dimensions. It is not known whether there is an increased thickness of the inter-atrial septum (IAS) in patients with severe rheumatic mitral stenosis. The objective of this study was to evaluate pre-procedural IAS thickness by echocardiography in patients with moderate to severe rheumatic mitral stenosis undergoing percutaneous balloon mitral valvuloplasty (PBMV). METHODS: The thickness of the IAS was measured by transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) in 86 patients between 14 and 65 years of age. Patients with moderate to severe rheumatic mitral stenosis undergoing percutaneous mitral balloon valvuloplasty (PMBV) at the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD), Karachi were recruited for this study. IAS thickness was measured by TEE using standard views and 3 different phases of cardiac cycles were evaluated. RESULTS: Out of 86 patients, almost three fourths (73.3%) were between 14 and 29 years of age and two thirds (62.8%) were females. Mean IAS thickness was 2.56 (SD 0.92) mm at anterior region (AR), 1.89 (SD 0.75) mm at fossa ovalis (FO), and 2.95 (SD 0.97) mm at posterior region (PR). None of the demographic and clinical groups showed any statistically significant difference in IAS thickness. CONCLUSIONS: Inter-atrial septum (IAS) thickness measurement does not change in the presence of moderate to severe rheumatic mitral stenosis as compared to the reported normal values of IAS thickness in cadaveric hearts.