Effect of cardiac resynchronization therapy on septal perfusion and septal thickening: Association with left ventricular function, reverse remodelling and dyssynchrony.

BACKGROUND: We evaluated the effect of cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) on septal perfusion and thickening at 6 months post implantation assessed on Tc99m-MIBI Gated myocardial perfusion SPECT (GMPS).We also studied the association of change in septal perfusion and thickening with primary outcome defined as at least one [improvement in ≥1NYHA class, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) by ≥ 5%, reduction of end-systolic volume (ESV) by ≥ 15%, and improvement ≥ 5 points in Minnesota living with heart failure questionnaire (MLHFQ)]. METHOD: One hundred and five patients underwent clinical and GMPS evaluation before and at 6 months post CRT. RESULT: Post CRT there was significant improvement in mean normalized septal perfusion uptake and in septal thickening (P value = 0.001, both). There was no significant relation between improvement in septal perfusion and primary outcome. However, improvement in septal thickening was statistically significant with favorable primary outcome (P = 0.001).There was no significant correlation between improvement of septal perfusion and improvement in LVEF, reduction in End diastolic volume (EDV), ESV, and Left ventricular Dyssynchrony (LVD). But, there was significant correlation between improvement of septal thickening and these parameters. CONCLUSION: Improvement in septal thickening was associated with reverse remodeling, improvement in LVEF, and reduction of LVD.

Fatal pulmonary embolism in hospitalized patients. Clinical diagnosis versus pathological confirmation.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the incidence of fatal pulmonary embolism (FPE), the accuracy of clinical diagnosis, and the profile of patients who suffered an FPE in a tertiary University Hospital. METHODS: Analysis of the records of 3,890 autopsies performed at the Department of General Pathology from January 1980 to December 1990. RESULTS: Among the 3,980 autopsies, 109 were cases of clinically suspected FPE; of these, 28 cases of FPE were confirmed. FPE accounted for 114 deaths, with clinical suspicion in 28 cases. The incidence of FPE was 2.86%. No difference in sex distribution was noted. Patients in the 6th decade of life were most affected. The following conditions-were more commonly related to FPE: neoplasias (20%) and heart failure (18.5%). The conditions most commonly misdiagnosed as FPE were pulmonary edema (16%), pneumonia (15%) and myocardial infarction (10%). The clinical diagnosis of FPE showed a sensitivity of 25.6%, a specificity of 97.9%, and an accuracy of 95.6%. CONCLUSION: The diagnosis of pulmonary embolism made on clinical grounds still has considerable limitations.