Temporal relationship of allergic rhinitis with asthma and other co-morbidities in a Mediterranean country: A retrospective study in a tertiary reference allergy clinic

Background: Allergic rhinitis is a global health problem which causes major illness and represents a risk factor for asthma. The primary aim of the study was to record the clinical pattern of allergic rhinitis and its temporal relation with asthma in a Greek population. Methods: Three-hundred and sixteen subjects with documented diagnosis of allergic rhinitis in a two-year period were included in this study. All participants completed a standardised questionnaire with full retrospective epidemiological data for rhinitis; in addition, serum IgE measurement and skin prick tests with 22 common inhalant allergens were carried out, while spirometry was performed in subjects with self-reported or doctor-diagnosed asthma. All subjects with at least one positive skin test were included in study analysis. Results: One-hundred and sixty five out of 316 patients (49.1%) stated self reported-asthma while in 63/316 (19.9%) asthma was documented with spirometry. One hundred out of 165 (60.6%) had rhinitis as first clinical manifestation while in 24/165 (14.5%) asthma symptoms appeared first; the remaining 31/165 (24.9%) reported simultaneous onset of upper and lower airways' symptoms. About 68.5% were sensitised to seasonal allergens exclusively, while 50% were sensitised to ≥1 of Parietaria, grasses sp., Olea eur. The duration of rhinitis in the subpopulation of patients with self-reported asthma (n=165) was significantly higher compared with non-asthmatics (mean=3.22 years, p<0.001). Survival analysis for the estimation of asthma onset showed that the mean time interval with rhinitis only is 16.6 years (median 12 years, incidence 0.0596). Conclusions: The unique environmental conditions and the aerobiology of each area clearly affect the clinical features of respiratory allergy

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Should we measure routinely oxidised and atherogenic dense low-density lipoproteins in subjects with type 2 diabetes?

Beyond low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-cholesterol concentrations, in recent years, several clinical studies have shown that both oxidised and small, dense LDL have a strong predictive role for the presence of vascular atherosclerosis. These two lipid parameters seem to have a synergistic impact on cardiovascular risk, with a greater importance in patients at higher-risk, such as those with type-2 diabetes. Increased levels of oxidised and small, dense LDL levels are a feature of diabetic dyslipidaemia, and small, dense LDL have been shown to be a good predictor of future cardiovascular events, at both univariate and multivariate analyses. On the other hand, although the association of oxidised LDL with surrogate markers of atherosclerosis is consistent, the correlation with hard clinical end points seems to be smaller. Yet, measurement of these two lipid parameters has not been widely used in daily practice because of the limited availability of clinical data and methodological problems: lack of availability of easy, cheap and reproducible essays for measurement of oxidised and, particularly, small, dense LDL has reduced their assessment in large clinical end-points trials. However, on the basis of available data, the therapeutic modulation of small, dense LDL is significantly associated with reduced cardiovascular risk, even after adjustment for confounding factors. In conclusion, the routine measurement of oxidised and small, dense LDL in patients with type-2 diabetes cannot be recommended in daily clinical practice so far; yet, their measurement is strongly encouraged to better understand their role on the cardiovascular risk of patients with type-2 diabetes.

Temporal relationship of allergic rhinitis with asthma and other co-morbidities in a Mediterranean country: a retrospective study in a tertiary reference allergy clinic.

BACKGROUND: Allergic rhinitis is a global health problem which causes major illness and represents a risk factor for asthma. The primary aim of the study was to record the clinical pattern of allergic rhinitis and its temporal relation with asthma in a Greek population. METHODS: Three-hundred and sixteen subjects with documented diagnosis of allergic rhinitis in a two-year period were included in this study. All participants completed a standardised questionnaire with full retrospective epidemiological data for rhinitis; in addition, serum IgE measurement and skin prick tests with 22 common inhalant allergens were carried out, while spirometry was performed in subjects with self-reported or doctor-diagnosed asthma. All subjects with at least one positive skin test were included in study analysis. RESULTS: One-hundred and sixty five out of 316 patients (49.1%) stated self reported-asthma while in 63/316 (19.9%) asthma was documented with spirometry. One hundred out of 165 (60.6%) had rhinitis as first clinical manifestation while in 24/165 (14.5%) asthma symptoms appeared first; the remaining 31/165 (24.9%) reported simultaneous onset of upper and lower airways' symptoms. About 68.5% were sensitised to seasonal allergens exclusively, while 50% were sensitised to ≥ 1 of Parietaria, grasses sp., Olea eur. The duration of rhinitis in the subpopulation of patients with self-reported asthma (n=165) was significantly higher compared with non-asthmatics (mean=3.22 years, p<0.001). Survival analysis for the estimation of asthma onset showed that the mean time interval with rhinitis only is 16.6 years (median 12 years, incidence 0.0596). CONCLUSIONS: The unique environmental conditions and the aerobiology of each area clearly affect the clinical features of respiratory allergy.

Mitral regurgitation protects from left atrial thrombogenesis in patients with mitral valve disease and atrial fibrillation.

The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that mitral regurgitation (MR) has a protective effect on the development of left atrial thrombus (LAT) in patients with rheumatic heart disease and atrial fibrillation (AF). The study population consisted of 48 anticoagulated patients (mean age = 57.1 +/- 10 years). Predominant mitral stenosis (MS) was present in 14 patients, predominant MR in 14, and a mechanical valve in 20. All patients underwent detailed transesophageal echocardiography. Severity of MR was based on measurements of the MR jet by color flow mapping. Patients were divided into two groups: (a) those with MR > or = 3+ (n = 12, 25%), and (b) those without significant MR (n = 36, 75%). A LAT was found in six patients (12.5%), who also had spontaneous echo contrast (SEC), while another group of 30 patients (62.5%) had SEC only. LAT and/or SEC were present in 2/12 patients (16.6%) with significant MR versus 34/36 patients (94.4%) without significant MR (P < 0.001). In addition to the absence of significant MR, left atrial diameter (LAD) > 60 mm, and severity of MS were also related to the presence of thrombus and/or SEC. Significant MR had a protective effect against thromboembolism, although this effect was abolished if LAD > 60 mm was present. In conclusion, in patients with mitral valve disease and AF, significant MR protects against LAT formation and systemic embolization. This protective effect was lost when LAD was > 60 mm.

Low plasma ascorbic acid independently predicts the presence of an unstable coronary syndrome.

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to investigate the relations between plasma antioxidant status, extent of atherosclerosis and activity of coronary artery disease. BACKGROUND: Previous studies indicate that increased antioxidant intake is associated with decreased coronary disease risk, but the underlying mechanisms remain controversial. METHODS: Plasma samples were obtained from 149 patients undergoing cardiac catheterization (65 with stable angina, 84 with unstable angina or a myocardial infarction within 2 weeks). Twelve plasma antioxidant/oxidant markers were measured and correlated with the extent of atherosclerosis and the presence of an unstable coronary syndrome. RESULTS: By multiple linear regression analysis, age (p < 0.001), diabetes mellitus (p < 0.001), male gender (p < 0.001) and hypercholesterolemia (p = 0.02) were independent predictors of the extent of atherosclerosis. No antioxidant/oxidant marker correlated with the extent of atherosclerosis. However, lower plasma ascorbic acid concentration predicted the presence of an unstable coronary syndrome by multiple logistic regression (odds ratio [OR] 0.59, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.40 to 0.89, p = 0.01). The severity of atherosclerosis also predicted the presence of an unstable coronary syndrome (OR 1.7, 95% CI 1.14 to 2.47, p = 0.008) when all patients were considered. When only patients with significant coronary disease were considered (at least one stenosis >50%), ascorbic acid concentration (OR 0.56, 95% CI 0.37 to 0.85, p = 0.008) and total plasma thiols (OR 0.52, 95% CI 0.34 to 0.80, p = 0.004) predicted the presence of an unstable coronary syndrome, whereas the extent of atherosclerosis did not. CONCLUSIONS: These data are consistent with the hypothesis that the beneficial effects of antioxidants in coronary artery disease may result, in part, by an influence on lesion activity rather than a reduction in the overall extent of fixed disease.

Ascorbic acid reverses endothelial vasomotor dysfunction in patients with coronary artery disease.

BACKGROUND: In the setting of atherosclerosis, endothelial vasomotor function is abnormal. Increased oxidative stress has been implicated as one potential mechanism for this observation. We therefore hypothesized that an antioxidant, ascorbic acid, would improve endothelium-dependent arterial dilation in patients with coronary artery disease. METHODS AND RESULTS: Brachial artery endothelium-dependent dilation in response to hyperemia was assessed by high-resolution vascular ultrasound before and 2 hours after oral administration of either 2 g ascorbic acid or placebo in a total of 46 patients with documented coronary artery disease. Plasma ascorbic acid concentration increased 2.5-fold 2 hours after treatment (46+/-8 to 114+/-11 micromol/L, P=.001). In the prospectively defined group of patients with an abnormal baseline response (<5% dilation), ascorbic acid produced marked improvement in dilation (2.0+/-0.6% to 9.7+/-2.0%), whereas placebo had no effect (1.1+/-1.5% to 1.7+/-1.5%, P=.003 for ascorbic acid versus placebo). Ascorbic acid had no effect on hyperemic flow or arterial dilation to sublingual nitroglycerin. CONCLUSIONS: Ascorbic acid reverses endothelial vasomotor dysfunction in the brachial circulation of patients with coronary artery disease. These findings suggest that increased oxidative stress contributes to endothelial dysfunction in patients with atherosclerosis and that endothelial dysfunction may respond to antioxidant therapy.

Doppler echocardiographic study of pulmonary venous flow in mitral stenosis and early after mitral valve replacement.

The aim of the study was Doppler echocardiographic assessment of the effect of mitral stenosis (MS) on pulmonary venous flow (PVF), and of any changes occurring after mitral valve replacement. Fifty patients with MS (22 in atrial fibrillation (AF)) and 28 healthy subjects (control group) underwent transthoracic echocardiographic evaluation of PVF. Fourteen of the 22 patients in AF were submitted in addition to transesophageal echo study before and after mitral valve replacement. Pulmonary wedge pressure was measured in 18 patients. Patients in sinus rhythm (SR) and more than mild MS showed significantly decreased peak velocity and flow velocity time integral of the systolic forward PVF. This finding was more exaggerated in MS with AF. Concerning diastolic forward PVF, patients in SR showed significantly decreased peak velocity and velocity time integral, irrelevant of the degree of MS, while patients with AF exhibited adequate signs of flow. In all patients duration, deceleration time (D-DT) and pressure half-time (D-PHT) of the diastolic forward PVF were significantly increased. The last two parameters correlated with the corresponding variables of mitral flow and with echocardiographically determined mitral valve area and the D-DT of the pulmonary wedge pressure. Concerning reversed PVF, patients with more than mild MS exhibited significantly increased peak velocity and velocity time integral. After mitral valve replacement, a significant increase of diastolic forward peak velocity and velocity time of the PVF were detected. The duration of diastolic forward peak velocity of PVF, D-DT and D-PHT decreased. The systolic forward phase did not change significntly after the valve replacement.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Mitral regurgitation from papillary muscle rupture: role of transesophageal echocardiography.

A case of a 61 year old male with lateral myocardial infarction, congestive heart failure and fever of days is presented. The exact etiology of this patient's heart failure was established with the application of transesophageal echocardiography. The transthoracic two-dimensional and Doppler echo showed a mobile echogenic density attached to the tip of the anterior mitral leaflet accompanied by moderate mitral regurgitation. Transesophageal echocardiography attributed this echogenic density to a ruptured head of the anterolateral papillary muscle, resulting in severe mitral regurgitation. Cardiac catheterization confirmed the severe mitral regurgitation and uncovered significant stenotic lesions of the coronary arteries. The resultant surgical treatment for the replacement of the mitral valve and coronary artery by-pass confirmed the rupture of the head of the anterolateral papillary muscle. It is suggested that transesophageal echocardiography is particularly capable of providing a definitive and prompt diagnosis of papillary muscle rupture.

Clinical implications of left atrial spontaneous echo contrast in mitral valve disease.

The aim of this study was to investigate the factors related to the presence of left atrial spontaneous echo contrast in mitral valve disease, and to ascertain whether it is a predictor of thromboembolism. One hundred and one patients (47 men, 54 women) with a mean age of 57.04 +/- 10.6 years who underwent transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography were included in the study. Forty-five (44.5%) had isolated or predominant mitral valve stenosis, 12 (11.9%) predominant mitral insufficiency and 44 (43.6%) had had previous mitral valve replacement. Left atrial spontaneous echo contrast was detected by transesophageal echocardiography in 58 patients, while the transthoracic approach detected it in only 15 (14.9%) (P < 0.0001). An atrial thrombus was found in six cases, with a history of recent systemic embolism in three of them. There was no thrombus in the left atria of a further nine patients, despite definitive histories of recent systemic embolism. The finding of left atrial spontaneous echo contrast was related to the presence of atrial fibrillation or enlarged left atrium, the severity of mitral stenosis and the absence of significant mitral insufficiency. Anticoagulant therapy was not significantly associated with spontaneous left atrial echo contrast, but a stepwise linear regression analysis showed that its presence was the only independent predictor of thromboembolism (p < 0.0001). We conclude that left atrial spontaneous echo contrast in mitral valve disease can be discovered mainly by transesophageal echocardiography, and is correlated with factors which are associated with low left atrial blood flow velocity such as atrial fibrillation, enlarged left atrium, mitral stenosis of increased severity and the absence of significant mitral insufficiency.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)