Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

The Crux Of The Heart –– The Closest Approach Of The Right Atrium To The Left Ventricle, Lynn Erickson, David Krum, Hannah Samuel, Anwer Dhala, Jasbir Sra

Jasbir Sra, MD, FACC, Program Director

Background: Accessory pathways, the source of atrioventricular reentry tachycardia, occasionally connect the left ventricle to the right atrium. This is possible because, in some patients, a portion of the right atrium abuts the left ventricle on the posterior wall of the heart, near the mid-coronary sinus. This anatomic region is known as the “crux” of the heart. These accessory pathways can be difficult to ablate because of the unusual and unexpected substrate. While the presence of these accessory pathways is described in the literature, the prevalence of the underlying anatomic substrate is not currently known.

Purpose: To measure the closest …

Predicting Outcomes In Patients With Atrial Fibrillation And Acute Mesenteric Ischemia, Sanjay Bhandari, Geetanjali Dang, Muhammad Shahreyar, Ahmad Hanif, Vijayadershan Muppidi, Atul Bhatia, Jasbir Sra, A. Jamil Tajik, Arshad Jahangir

Jasbir Sra, MD, FACC, Program Director

Purpose Outcomes in patients with atrial fibrillation who develop acute mesenteric ischemia, and the impact of anticoagulation on complications, are not defined. Methods Patients admitted with acute mesenteric ischemia in the National Inpatient Sample from 2007, with and without atrial fibrillation, were compared for in-hospital outcomes using multivariate regression, and the impact of prior anticoagulation determined. Results Of 48,872 patients with acute mesenteric ischemia, 8,306 had atrial fibrillation, with 680 patients also on anticoagulation. Atrial fibrillation patients were more likely to be older and have hypertension, heart failure, or chronic lung or renal disease. After adjusting for potential confounders, atrial …

Predictors Of Mortality In Patients With Transient Severe Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction, Kanwar Y. Singh, Firas Zahwe, Bilal Omery, Crystal Platz, Wassim Ballany, Robyn Shearer, Tadele Mengesha, M. Eyman Mortada, Jasbir Sra, Indrajit Choudhuri

Jasbir Sra, MD, FACC, Program Director

Background: About 20% of patients who develop left ventricular (LV) systolic dysfunction will have improvement in ejection fraction (LVEF) over time. This patient cohort is generally excluded from large sudden death trials and, hence, understudied.

Purpose: To evaluate the predictors of mortality in patients with severe LV systolic dysfunction who have improvement in LVEF during follow-up.

Methods: Patients who had transient LV systolic dysfunction from 2010 to 2014 within the Aurora Health Care system and who had LVEF improve to ≥ 40%, irrespective of implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) implant, were studied. Predictors of mortality were identified using Cox proportional hazards model. …

Atrial Fibrillation And Stroke In Elderly Patients, Geetanjali Dang, Imaan Jahangir, Jasbir Sra, A. Jamil Tajik, Arshad Jahangir

Jasbir Sra, MD, FACC, Program Director

The increasing prevalence of stroke, with an estimated annual cost of $71.5 billion, has made it a major health problem that increases disability and death, particularly in patients with atrial fibrillation. Although advanced age and atrial fibrillation are recognized as strong risk factors for stroke, the basis for this susceptibility are not well defined. Aging or associated diseases are accompanied by changes in rheostatic, humoral, metabolic and hemodynamic factors that may contribute more to stroke predisposition than rhythm abnormality alone. Several thromboembolism-predisposing clinical characteristics and serum biomarkers with prognostic significance have been identified in patients with atrial fibrillation. Although anticoagulation …