Clinical outcomes of implantable cardioverter-defibrillator therapy in noncompaction cardiomyopathy: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

A subgroup of patients with noncompaction cardiomyopathy (NCCM) is at increased risk of ventricular arrhythmias and sudden cardiac death (SCD). In selected patients with NCCM, implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) therapy could be advantageous for preventing SCD. Currently, there is no complete overview of outcome and complications after ICD therapy in patients with NCCM. This study sought to present an overview using pooled data of currently available studies. Embase, MEDLINE, Web of Science, and Cochrane databases were searched and returned 915 studies. After a thorough examination, 12 studies on outcome and complications after ICD therapy in patients with NCCM were included. There were 275 patients (mean age 38.6 years; 47% women) with NCCM and ICD implantation. Most of the patients received an ICD for primary prevention (66%). Pooled analysis demonstrates that the appropriate ICD intervention rate was 11.95 per 100 person-years and the inappropriate ICD intervention rate was 4.8 per 100 person-years. The cardiac mortality rate was 2.37 per 100 person-years. ICD-related complications occurred in 10% of the patients, including lead malfunction and revision (4%), lead displacement (3%), infection (2%), and pneumothorax (2%). Patients with NCCM who are at increased risk of SCD may significantly benefit from ICD therapy, with a high appropriate ICD therapy rate of 11.95 per 100 person-years and a low cardiac mortality rate of 2.37 per 100 person-years. Inappropriate therapy rate of 4.8 per 100 person-years and ICD-related complications were not infrequent and may lead to patient morbidity.

Meta-Analysis of Clinical Outcome After Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator Implantation in Patients With Brugada Syndrome.

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to summarize the clinical outcome of implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) therapy in patients with Brugada syndrome. BACKGROUND: Brugada syndrome is characterized by cardiac conduction abnormalities and a high risk of ventricular arrhythmias that may result in sudden cardiac death. A complete overview of clinical outcome, appropriate and inappropriate interventions, and complications after ICD therapy in patients with Brugada syndrome is lacking. METHODS: The online MEDLINE database was searched for published reports and yielded 828 studies on outcome and complications after ICD therapy in patients with Brugada syndrome. After careful evaluation, 22 studies including a total of 1,539 patients were included in the meta-analysis. RESULTS: In total, 1,539 patients (mean age 45 years, 18% women) underwent ICD implantation for primary (79%) or secondary (21%) prevention of sudden cardiac death. During a mean follow-up of 4.9 years, the appropriate and inappropriate ICD intervention rates were 3.1 and 3.3 per 100 person-years, respectively. The cardiac mortality rate was 0.03 per 100 person-years and noncardiac mortality rate was 0.3 per 100 person-years. ICD-related complications per 100 person-years consisted of lead malfunction (1.6), psychological complication (1.3), infection (0.6), lead dislocation (0.4), and any complication (0.6). CONCLUSIONS: Patients with Brugada syndrome judged to be at high risk for ventricular arrhythmia may significantly benefit from ICD therapy, which is associated with an appropriate ICD intervention rate of 3.1 per 100 person-years and low cardiac and noncardiac mortality rates. Inappropriate ICD interventions and ICD-related complications may lead to considerable morbidity.

Cytokines as Early Markers of Colorectal Anastomotic Leakage: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Purpose. Colorectal anastomotic leakage (CAL) is one of the most severe complications after colorectal surgery. This meta-analysis evaluates whether systemic or peritoneal inflammatory cytokines may contribute to early detection of CAL. Methods. Systematic literature search was performed in the acknowledged medical databases according to the PRISMA guidelines to identify studies evaluating systemic and peritoneal levels of TNF, IL-1ß, IL-6, and IL-10 for early detection of CAL. Means and standard deviations of systemic and peritoneal cytokine levels were extracted, respectively, for patients with and without CAL. The meta-analysis of the mean differences was carried out for each postoperative day using Review Manager. Results. Seven articles were included. The meta-analysis was performed with 5 articles evaluating peritoneal cytokine levels. Peritoneal levels of IL-6 were significantly higher in patients with CAL compared to patients without CAL on postoperative days 1, 2, and 3 (P < 0.05). Similar results were found for peritoneal levels of TNF but on postoperative days 3, 4, and 5 (P < 0.05). The articles regarding systemic cytokine levels did not report any significant difference accordingly. Conclusion. Increased postoperative levels of peritoneal IL-6 and TNF are significantly associated with CAL and may contribute to its early detection.

Clinical endpoint, early detection, and differential diagnosis of postoperative ileus: a systematic review of the literature.

BACKGROUND: This systematic review summarizes evidence regarding clinical endpoints, early detection, and differential diagnosis of postoperative ileus (POI). METHODS: Using MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane, and Web-of-Science, we identified 2,084 articles. Risk of bias and level of evidence (LOE) of the included articles were determined, and relevant results were summarized. RESULTS: Eleven articles were included, most of which with substantial risks of bias. Bowel motility studies revealed that defecation together with solid food tolerance is the most representative clinical endpoint of POI (LOE: 2b); other clinical signs (e.g. bowel sounds, passage of flatus) did not correlate with a full recovery of bowel motility. Inflammatory parameters including interleukin (IL)-6, IL-1, and TNF-α might assist in an early detection of prolonged POI (LOE: 4). Clinical manifestations (e.g. nausea, vomiting, abdominal distension, bowel sounds, flatus) and X-ray examinations provided limited aid to the differential diagnosis of POI, while CT with Gastrografin had the best specificity and sensitivity (both 100%; LOE: 1c). CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative defecation together with tolerance of solid food intake seems to be the best clinical endpoint of POI. CT has the best differential diagnostic value between POI and other complications. Prospective studies with a high LOE are in great need.