Incidence of silent myocardial ischaemia in patients with cerebral ischaemia.

In order to assess the incidence of silent myocardial ischaemia, 190 consecutive patients with cerebral ischaemia and without symptoms or electrocardiographic signs of ischaemic heart disease, underwent a maximal exercise treadmill test. Patients with a positive exercise test were submitted to exercise thallium myocardial scintigraphy. Results were compared with those obtained in a control group of 113 healthy subjects submitted to the same study protocol. An adequate exercise test was obtained in 140 patients with cerebral ischaemia. The exercise test was positive in 36 cases (26%). The end points were exhaustion in 24 patients, ST segment depression greater than or equal to 3 mm in seven and systolic blood pressure greater than or equal to 240 mmHg in five. The exercise thallium myocardial scintigraphy was normal in three and abnormal in 33: reversible perfusion defects were detected in 26 cases and fixed defects in seven. In the control group, matched for age and sex, the exercise test was positive in only seven cases (6%; P less than 0.01); the exercise myocardial scintigraphy was normal in five and abnormal in two subjects. In conclusion, in a remarkable proportion of middle-aged patients with cerebral ischaemia, silent myocardial ischaemia can be detected by means of noninvasive cardiologic investigations.

Torsade de pointes and ventricular flutter-fibrillation following spontaneous cerebral subarachnoid hemorrhage.

Five cases (3.8%) in a series of 132 patients with spontaneous subarachnoid hemorrhage, studied by 24-hour Holter monitoring, presented with ventricular tachycardia of torsade de pointes variety. In all cases, the arrhythmias were observed within 24 hours after the bleeding. The QTc interval was prolonged more than 0.55 sec, and hypokalemia of less than 3.5 mEq/liter was present in all patients. The clinical status was not significant. Torsade de pointes occurred in comatose patients (3 cases) as well as in alert patients (2 cases). The arrhythmia was reversed by therapy in 3 patients, one of whom survived while 2 died due to cerebral damage. Our observations confirm the presence of life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias in the acute phase of subarachnoid hemorrhage. Continuous electrocardiographic monitoring is therefore advisable in view of its potential role in alerting to the need for treatment.

Effort angina pectoris without electrocardiographic changes in coronary disease patients: correlations between scintigraphic and coronary angiographic findings.

The absence of electrocardiographic changes during angina is an unusual occurrence. In 15 male patients with exercise-induced angina, the electrocardiogram failed to show the usual ischemic ST-T changes. The exercise thallium-201 myocardial imaging was employed as indicator of the ischemia and the results were correlated with coronary angiographic findings. The exercise thallium-201 myocardial imaging showed an exercise-induced reversible defect in 14 patients and a fixed defect in the remaining 1. Out of 15 patients, 13 had defects involving the infero-apical, posterior and postero-lateral segments. The coronary angiography, performed in all patients but 2, showed single-vessel coronary artery disease in 8 patients and double-vessel disease in 5. A significant circumflex or right coronary artery stenosis was found in all cases except 1; 2 patients had a coexistent left anterior descending coronary artery stenosis and 1 an isolated stenosis of this vessel. It is concluded that the myocardial scintigraphy is useful to assess the ischemic myocardial origin of chest pain in the absence of ST-T changes. The silence of the electrocardiogram might be due to the production of ischemia in not well explored areas, such as the inferior and posterior myocardial segments, and possibly to a smaller extension of ischemia.

[Cardiopathy and acute cerebrovascular insufficiency. Prospective study with two-dimensional echocardiography]. / Cardiopatie ed insufficienza cerebrovascolare acuta. Studio prospettico con ecocardiografia bidimensionale.

Many cardiac disorders can cause acute cerebrovascular insufficiency. The spectrum of potentially embolic cardiac conditions is wide; early recognition may determine a definite change in the management and prognosis of patients. In recent years the relevance of echocardiography in the screening of patients with cerebral ischemia has been emphasized. In order to identify potentially embolic cardiac conditions, 180 consecutive non selected patients with cerebrovascular insufficiency, underwent a clinical cardiological evaluation and an echocardiogram. The study population included 132 men and 48 women; the mean age was 51.7 years (range 19 to 72 years). A technically adequate echocardiogram was obtained in 153 patients. In 131 patients echocardiography was negative; cardiac lesions were detected in 22 patients (14.4%): mitral stenosis in 2, calcified aortic stenosis in 1, valvular endocarditis vegetations in 3, dilatative cardiomyopathy in 2, hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in 4, mitral valve prolapse in 4, regional left ventricular diskynesia in 5, mitral anulus calcification in 1. Patients were divided into 3 groups according to the results of cerebral angiography: 68 patients with normal angiography (Group I), 54 patients with atheromasic lesions on cerebral angiography (Group II), 31 patients in whom cerebral angiography was not performed (Group III). A higher incidence of cardiac diseases was found in the patients of Group I. The lack of lesions on cerebral angiography and the presence of embolic high-risk cardiac conditions strengthened a causal relationship of the cardiac disorder with cerebrovascular insufficiency in 10 of the 23 patients. In the mean follow-up period of 18 months of these 10 patients who underwent cardiac surgery or anticoagulation, no further attacks of cerebrovascular insufficiency were observed.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Comparative efficacy of nicardipine, a new calcium antagonist, versus nifedipine in stable effort angina.

The relative efficacy of nicardipine and nifedipine was examined in a double-blind placebo-controlled randomized crossover trial. We studied 12 patients with chronic effort angina involving reproducible angina and greater than or equal to 1.5 mm of ST-segment depression on exercise treadmill test performed before and after a 1-week control period of single-blind placebo administration. Subsequently, indistinguishably prepared nicardipine 20 mg, nifedipine 10 mg, or placebo, four times a day, was administered in a randomized double-blind crossover fashion for 3 weeks (total study period 9 weeks). Exercise treadmill test was performed at the end of each 3-week period. Both nicardipine and nifedipine significantly reduced the frequency of anginal attacks and nitroglycerin consumption. Compared with placebo both drugs caused a comparable increase of the duration of exercise, of the time to angina and to the appearance of 1.5 mm ST-segment depression (P less than 0.05 placebo versus nicardipine; P less than 0.01 placebo versus nifedipine respectively). No significant side effects were observed with either drug. We conclude that nicardipine and nifedipine produce similar hemodynamic and clinical effects in patients with stable effort angina.

Comparative efficacy of nicardipine, a new calcium antagonist, versus nifedipine in effort stable angina.

The relative efficacy of nicardipine and nifedipine was examined in a double-blind randomized trial. We studied 12 patients with chronic effort angina who had reproducible chest pain and greater than or equal to 1.5 mm of ST-segment depression on treadmill exercise testing performed before and after 1-week control period of single-blind placebo administration. Subsequently over a 9-week period, nicardipine 20 mg or nifedipine 10 mg or an identical placebo four times a day, was administered in a randomized double-blind crossover fashion. Treadmill exercise testing was performed at the end of each 3-week period. Both nicardipine and nifedipine reduced the frequency of anginal attacks and trinitrate consumption. Compared with placebo both drugs caused a comparable increase of the total duration of exercise (p less than 0.05 placebo versus nicardipine; p less than 0.01 placebo versus nifedipine) and of the time to the onset of angina (p less than 0.05 placebo versus nicardipine; p less than 0.01 placebo versus nifedipine) and to the appearance of 1.5 mm ST depression (p less than 0.05 placebo versus nicardipine; p less than 0.01 placebo versus nifedipine). Moreover 4 patients no longer had angina with either drug and only 1 patient with placebo. Both drugs increased resting heart rate and reduced systolic blood pressure at resting (p less than 0.01) and submaximal exercise (p less than 0.01). Peak heart rate, systolic blood pressure and rate-pressure product were similar with placebo, nicardipine and nifedipine. No important side effects were observed with either drug. We conclude that nicardipine and nifedipine produce similar haemodynamic and clinical effects in patients with stable angina.

[Cardiac arrhythmias associated with subarachnoid hemorrhage. Prospective study with dynamic electrocardiography]. / Aritmie cardiache associate ad emorragia subaracnoidea. Studio prospettico con elettrocardiografia dinamica.

Electrocardiographic abnormalities associated with intracranial diseases, especially subarachnoid hemorrhage, are well known, while there is hardly mention of cardiac arrhythmias in the neurological and cardiological literature. In order to assess the incidence of arrhythmias 52 consecutive patients with subarachnoid hemorrhage secondary to ruptured aneurysm were investigated with 24-hour Holter recordings. Bradyarrhythmias and tachyarrhythmias were found in 46 patients (88%); premature ventricular beats in 25 pts (12 of these in 3rd-5th Lown classes), ventricular tachycardia in 2, premature supraventricular beats in 14, paroxysmal atrial fibrillation in 1, sinoatrial blocks and arrests in 18, atrioventricular dissociation in 2 and idioventricular rythm in 2. Moreover in 5 pts ST segment changes were found, suggestive of transitory acute myocardial ischemia. The presence and severity of arrhythmias were correlated with the time elapsed from the episode of bleeding, with the QT interval, and with the hemorrhage extent. Our results indicate an high incidence of arrhythmias in subarachnoid hemorrhage, sometimes serious mainly in early stage. Continuous electrocardiographic monitoring is therefore extremely useful and provides data for therapeutic consideration.

[Evaluation of the effects of a new calcium antagonist, diltiazem, in patients with stable effort angina and a therapeutic comparison with nifedipine]. / Valutazione dell'efficacia di un nuovo calcioantagonista, diltiazem, in pazienti con angina stabile da sforzo e comparazione terapeutica con la nifedipina.

The comparative efficacy of diltiazem, a new calcium-antagonist drug, and nifedipine were evaluated with computerized treadmill exercise test in 12 patients with stable effort angina. The drugs were administered in a random single-blind fashion in divided doses (diltiazem 60 mg three times daily and nifedipine 10 mg four times daily) over 3 weeks. Maximal exercise tests were performed before and at the end of each 3-week treatment period. Both diltiazem and nifedipine increased the total duration of exercise (p less than 0.001) and the time to appearance of 1.5 mm of ST depression (p less than 0.001). Both drugs reduced resting systolic and diastolic blood pressure; however the effect was greater with nifedipine. Nifedipine, but not diltiazem, caused a significant increase of resting heart rate (p less than 0.05). Both drugs blunted the blood pressure and heart rate response to exercise: nifedipine had a greater effect on the former (p less than 0.001), diltiazem on the latter (p less than 0.05). The rate-pressure product was significantly reduced at rest (p less than 0.01) and submaximal (p less than 0.001), but not maximal exercise with both drugs. The reduction of rate-pressure product is possible as the mechanism by which calcium-antagonist drugs enhance the duration of exercise in the coronary patients. Our results documented a comparable therapeutic efficacy of the two drugs, but side effects were more common with nifedipine.

[Different cardiovascular and hormonal consequences of A-V fistula in uremic patients (author's transl)]. / Differenti conseguenze cardiovascolari ed ormonali della fistola A-V in pazienti uremici.

The Authors studied 11 uremic patients for whom it was necessary to make an arterio-venous (A-V) fistula for dialysis purposes. Before and after creation of the fistula, the following parameters were determined: arterial pressure (PA) heart rate (HR), peripheral vascular resistances (PVR), renin, adrenalin and nor-adrenalin blood levels. The patients were divided in two groups according to the increase of the systolic output (SO) and o the cardiac index (CI) after the fistula (1st group of 5 patients: less than 30% increase of these values as compared to those before the fistula; 2nd group: more than 30% increase. By using Wilcoxon distribution free test it was possible to demonstrate the existence of a different condition, statistically significant in the two groups. In the 1st group of older patients (P < 0.05) where the systolic pressure values were greater (P < 0.05) and the indexes of the mechanical events of the left ventricle were altered, there was an increase of heart rate (P < 0.05), a moderate reduction of PVR (P < 0.01) and a very small increase of the systolic output and cardiac index (P < 0.01). Furthermore, in the 1st group, a left ventricular hypertrophy was observed, except in one case whereas this condition was constantly absent in the patients of the 2nd group. Patients of the 1st group had high nor-adrenalin blood levels, which did not change after the significantly after the creation of the fistula. In conclusion, an A-V fistula provokes two different hemodynamic behaviours which are related to age, pressure values, myocardial performance, presence of a left ventricular hypertrophy, PVR variations, and renin and nor-adrenalin blood levels.