Global and Regional Longitudinal Strain Reduction in Breast Cancer Patients After First Chemotherapy Cycle With Fluorouracil, Adriamycin, and Cyclophosphamide Regimen.

BACKGROUND: Chemotherapy with fluorouracil, adriamycin, and cyclophosphamide (FAC) regimen in breast cancer patients may cause myocardial injury and necrosis, thereby attenuating global and regional longitudinal strain (GLS and RLS). It is unclear whether the first chemotherapy cycle would cause GLS and RLS reduction and which segment would be most affected by the chemotherapy. The purpose of the study was to investigate the effect of the first chemotherapy cycle on GLS and RLS reduction. METHODS: This was a prospective single-center cohort study of patients with breast cancer who underwent the first chemotherapy cycle with a FAC regiment. The GLS and RLS were measured using speckle tracking echocardiography and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) measured with Simpson's biplane. The echocardiography was performed before and 3 weeks after the first chemotherapy cycle. We compared the value of GLS, RLS, and LVEF before and after chemotherapy using paired t-test analysis. RESULTS: Thirty-six breast cancer patients were enrolled in the study. The GLS and RLS were reduced significantly at 3 weeks compared to baseline. The RLS of the basal anteroseptal, basal anterolateral, mid anterolateral, mid inferolateral, and all apical segments declined significantly from baseline. The largest RLS decline was detected in the apicoanterior segment. The post-chemotherapy GLS but not LVEF was significantly lower than that before treatment. CONCLUSION: The GLS and RLS of patients who underwent first cycle chemotherapy with FAC declined significantly than that before treatment, especially at the apicoanterior segment. LVEF was not altered after first cycle chemotherapy.

May Measurement Month 2017: an analysis of the blood pressure screening campaign results in Indonesia-South-East Asia and Australasia.

Elevated blood pressure (BP) is a growing burden worldwide, leading to over 10 million deaths each year. Our previous primary health surveys in 2013 and 2018 show that 25.8% to 34.1% of adults have raised BP, which is associated with cardiovascular, cerebrovascular, and renovascular morbidity and mortality. May Measurement Month (MMM) is a global initiative aimed at raising awareness of high BP and to act as a temporary solution to the lack of screening programmes worldwide. An opportunistic cross-sectional survey of volunteers aged ≥18 was carried out in May 2017. Blood pressure measurement, the definition of hypertension and statistical analysis followed the standard MMM protocol. We recruited 292 sites in all 34 provinces in Indonesia, and screened in public areas and offices as well as health centres. A total of 69 307 individuals were screened. After multiple imputation, 23 892 (34.5%) had hypertension. Of individuals not receiving antihypertensive medication, 20.0% were hypertensive. Among individuals receiving antihypertensive medication, 7885 (62.8%) had uncontrolled BP. MMM17 was the largest standardized screening campaign for BP measurement in our country. The proportion of individuals identified with hypertension and the percentage of those with uncontrolled BP on medication provide evidence of the substantial challenges in managing hypertension in the community. These results suggest that opportunistic screening can identify significant numbers of individuals with raised BP.