Infective endocarditis caused by Neisseria elongata on a native tricuspid valve and confirmed by DNA sequencing.

Neisseria elongata, a common oral bacterium, has been recognized as a cause of infections such as infective endocarditis, septicemia, and osteomyelitis. Neisseria-induced infective endocarditis, although infrequently reported, typically arises after dental procedures. Without antibiotic therapy, its complications can be severe. We report the case of a 27-year-old man who presented with fever, severe dyspnea, and a leg abscess from cellulitis. An echocardiogram showed a vegetation-like echogenic structure on the septal leaflet of the patient's native tricuspid valve, and an insignificant Gerbode defect. Three blood cultures grew gram-negative, antibiotic-susceptible coccobacilli that were confirmed to be N. elongata. Subsequent DNA sequencing conclusively isolated N. elongata subsp nitroreducens as the organism responsible for the infective endocarditis. The patient recovered after 21 days of antibiotic therapy. In addition to the patient's unusual case, we discuss the nature and isolation of N. elongata and its subspecies.

One-year clinical outcomes in invasive treatment strategies for acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction complicated by cardiogenic shock in elderly patients.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the clinical outcomes of an invasive strategy for elderly (aged ≥ 75 years) patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) complicated by cardiogenic shock (CS). METHODS: Data on 366 of 409 elderly CS patients from a total of 6,132 acute STEMI cases enrolled in the Korea Acute Myocardial Infarction Registry between January 2008 and June 2011, were collected and analyzed. In-hospital deaths and the 1-month and 1-year survival rates free from major adverse cardiac events (MACE; defined as all cause death, myocardial infarction, and target vessel revascularization) were reported for the patients who had undergone invasive (n = 310) and conservative (n = 56) treatment strategies. RESULTS: The baseline clinical characteristics were not significantly different between the two groups. There were fewer in-hospital deaths in the invasive treatment strategy group (23.5% vs. 46.4%, P < 0.001). In addition, the 1-year MACE-free survival rate after invasive treatment was significantly lower compared with the conservative treatment (51% vs. 66%, P = 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: In elderly patients with acute STEMI complicated by CS, the outcomes of invasive strategy are similar to those in younger patients at the 1-year follow-up.

Cardiac magnetic resonance-derived right ventricular outflow tract systolic flow acceleration: a novel index of right ventricular function and prognosis in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension.

To validate the right ventricular outflow tract systolic flow acceleration (RVOTACC; peak flow velocity/time-to-peak velocity) measured by phase-contrast (PC)-cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) as a novel index of right ventricular (RV) function, and to investigate its clinical implications in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Thirty (38% male, 43 ± 15 years old) out of 55 consecutive patients who were initially diagnosed with PAH at the referral center were prospectively enrolled between March 2009 and July 2010 and were followed for PAH-related cardiovascular events for 2 years. The invasively measured maximum dP/dt (dP/dtmax) was used as an index of RV contractility. The PC-CMR-derived RVOTACC was compared with well-known prognostic parameters. The PC-CMR-derived RVOTACC correlated strongly with the dP/dtmax and estimated RV function more accurately than the CMR-derived RV ejection fraction. The CMR-derived RVOTACC level (HR = 0.87, 95% CI 0.78-0.98, p = 0.038) could be another powerful prognostic index compared with the functional capacity (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.88, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.78-0.97, p = 0.035) and REVEAL Registry risk score (HR = 0.83, CI 0.56-0.95, p = 0.012). Furthermore, receiver-operating characteristic analysis identified ≥0.4 m/s2 as the optimal RVOTACC cut-off for predicting subsequent cardiovascular events. PC-CMR-derived RVOTACC is a promising non-invasively measured index of RV function and prognosis in patients with PAH.

Successful embolectomy of a migrated thrombolytic free-floating massive thrombus resulting in a pulmonary thromboembolism.

The optimal treatment for free-floating massive right heart thrombi remains uncertain. However, they appear to increase the risk of mortality compared to the existence of a solitary pulmonary thromboembolism. Thrombolytic therapy has been shown to be effective in most patients, resulting in complete resolution of the massive thrombus and clinical improvement. We report the echocardiographic disappearance of a free-floating right heart thrombus after thrombolysis, however, the thrombus migrated and resulted in pulmonary thromboembolism. It was successfully removed with surgery.