Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Epidemiology And Characteristics Of Surgical Intervention For Infective Endocarditis: A Population-Based Study In The Past Two Decades (2000 – 2019) In Hong Kong, Hang-Long Li, Yi-Kei Tse, Cong Chen, Si-Dong Cai, Meng-Qi Su, Mei-Zhen Wu, Qing-Wen Ren, Jia-Yi Huang, Si-Yeung Yu, Yap-Hang Chan, Hung-Fat Tse, Kai-Hang Yiu

Journal of the Hong Kong College of Cardiology

Background

The ‘inflamm-ageing’ phenomenon may worsen the prognosis of heart diseases including infective endocarditis (IE), while surgery may reduce inflammatory burden by direct removal of bacterial vegetation. This study aims to characterize the epidemiological and clinical features of surgical intervention for IE in Hong Kong in the past two decades.

Methods

All patients with incident IE from 2000-2019 in a territory-wide database were identified. We studied the trends in age-specific incidence of IE and identified the most significant contributors to 1-year all-cause death using the population attributable fraction (PAF). A propensity score approach was used to evaluate the benefits of …

Indicators Of Cardiac Autonomic Dysfunction Associated With Chronic Hyperglycemia: Implications On Vascular Surrogates And Heart Failure, Yap-Hang Chan, Bernard Man-Yung Cheung, Hung-Fat Tse

Journal of the Hong Kong College of Cardiology

Background: Limited data exist on the role of chronic hyperglycemia-related cardiac autonomic dysfunction in incident heart failure (HF). We investigated the relations of resting heart rate (HR) and PR interval with chronic hyperglycemia, and effects on new-onset HF.

Methods: We prospectively studied 550 patients with prior coronary disease, ischemic stroke and/ or type 2 diabetes. Incident HF was ascertained. Heart rate-PR interval dissociation was defined as counter-physiological co-occurrence of increased PR interval (>mean; 173.3ms) and increased resting HR (>mean; 64.4 beats/min).

Results: Over 63 ±11 months, 6.7% patients developed new-onset HF. Resting HR³75bpm was independently predictive of new-onset …

Clinical Features And Prognosis Of Chinese Childhood Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension-Related Gene Mutation Carriers, Zhuoyuan Xu, Hongsheng Zhang, Chen Zhang, Qiangqiang Li, Hong Gu

Journal of the Hong Kong College of Cardiology

Background: The impact of PAH-related gene mutations on the clinical phenotype are not yet fully understood, especially in childhood.

Methods: Retrospective study of 114 pediatric Chinese Han population whose onset of PAH was between 3 months and 18 years of age with IPAH were performed. Whole exome sequencing results, clinical characteristics, treatments and outcomes were recorded in all patients.

Results: Thirty-one BMPR2, nine ACVRL1 and 33 other PAH-related gene mutation carriers were detected in this cohort. The median age at diagnosis of PAH was 5.9 (3.4,10.3) years. 54 (47.4%) patients were female. 80 patients including 59 mutation carriers underwent right …

Understanding The Genotypes And Phenotypes Relationship: Progress Toward A Precision Medicine Approach In Pediatric Pulmonary Hypertension, Kin Shing Lun

Journal of the Hong Kong College of Cardiology

No abstract provided.

One Step Forward Or Two Steps Back?, Toni G. Hains

Journal of Perioperative Nursing

The Surgical Assistant Working Group (SAWG) draft report has been released, which proposes to allow nurses in the surgical assistant role to access a patient rebate from the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS). This will address some of the issues affecting access to surgery in Australia. While an initial read of the report has buoyed the spirits of those closely involved, it is with circumspection that we venture forward.

Research To Accelerate Practice Change In Geriatric Emergency Medicine, Susan Hastings

Journal of Geriatric Emergency Medicine

This is the Keynote Address for the First American Geriatrics Society Geriatric Emergency Department Special Interest Group

Evaluation Of Respiratory Function Using Blood Gas Parameters In Yucatan Minipigs Following Spinal Cord Injury, Jackson Gallagher, Monique Morgan, Chase Knibbe, Destiny Gibson, Maxwell Boakye

The Cardinal Edge

There are approximately 17,810 new spinal cord injuries (SCI) in the U.S. each year [1]. Physical damage to the spinal cord has the potential to interfere with normal motor, sensory, and/or autonomic function, such as impairment of the respiratory system. In fact, respiratory insufficiency is the number one cause of mortality and morbidity after SCI. The more rostral the injury, the more likely there will be disruption to normal ventilation (generally rostral to T6) [2]. To conduct relevant preclinical research, it has been shown that large animal models, such as the Yucatan minipig, have a better success rate of translating …

Pulmonary Hypertension With “Normal” Pulmonary Vascular Resistance, Marwan F. Jumean, Sriram Nathan, Maria Patarroyo Aponte

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

Abstracts not available for Perspectives.

Role Of Veno-Arterial Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation In Left Ventricular Conditioning After Lung Transplantation, Emily A. Ingebretson

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

End-stage pulmonary hypertension alters intracardiac pressures, leading to distention and failure of the right ventricle, leftward shifting of the intraventricular septum, and, thus, underfilling of the left ventricle (LV). Following the resolution of severely elevated pulmonary vascular resistance with bilateral lung transplantation, the LV is exposed to relatively high filling pressures from a potentially hypertrophic right ventricle pushing blood through normalized pulmonary vascular resistance. Veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (V-A ECMO) may be a valuable tool to provide a more gradual exposure of the LV to the newly available preload in the immediate postoperative phase of transplantation, thereby reducing the likelihood …

Scai Shock Stage Classification: What Is Missing From The Latest Update?, Biykem Bozkurt

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

The revised Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions classifications reflect graduation of severity within each stage and pathway by which patients progress or recover. However, they are limited regarding the following: their predictive role to guide therapy; escalation of therapy or referral; variability in diagnostic criteria and interpretation; presence of other disease modifiers and confounders; variability of etiology and reversibility of cause; response to therapy and trajectory to be taken into risk stratification; magnitude and phenotypes of end-organ damage. Thus, we need a modified risk score to predict the necessity to escalate therapy and consider advanced therapies, such as mechanical …

Should All Shock Centers Offer Ecpr? Balancing Futility, Cost Effectiveness, And Hope, Michael Mooney

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

There are over 400,000 out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA) in the United States annually. Of those, 50% are refractory cardiac arrest, defined as the lack of return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) after 30 minutes of appropriate cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) in the absence of hypothermia. Extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (ECPR) has been increasingly used given its potential to improve survival and offer improved neurological outcomes.

Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome And Mechanical Circulatory Support Devices, Mircea R. Mihu, Aly El-Banayosy

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

Systemic inflammatory response syndrome is an increased inflammatory state affecting the whole body. Mechanical circulatory support (MCS) is a temporary or permanent form of extracorporeal support that may have an associated complication of an exacerbated inflammatory response to the extracorporeal circuit. This brief review will focus on understanding the complex pathophysiology of inflammatory response to MCS, factors that influence the extent of the inflammatory response, the inflammatory response and outcomes as well as potential therapeutic strategies.

Role Of Hypothermia In Cardiogenic Shock, Filio Billia

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

While patient management in the intensive care unit has undoubtedly improved over the last 20 years, many questions remain. Neurological prognostication has become very important and aided in improving survival outcomes over time. The limited number of randomized control trials and limitations from currently completed studies leave the field with little certainty regarding targeted temperature management. In addition, implementing hypothermia can use multiple methods and protocols that impact the interpretation and comparison of results.

Management Of Severe Aortic Stenosis In Cardiogenic Shock: Early Percutaneous Mechanical Circulatory Support Or Emergent Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement?, Sandeep Nathan

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

Aortic stenosis (AS) affects an estimated 1.5 million patients in the United States, with 250,000 patients or more suffering severe, symptomatic aortic stenosis. A subset of these patients also have unrevascularized coronary artery disease and left ventricular dysfunction, representing an extreme risk population of AS patients. Cardiogenic shock (CS) complicates a small minority of AS presentations and/or patients referred for transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) but is responsible in these cases for a disproportionately high rate of morbidity and mortality. Indeed, CS results in a 4-fold increase in TAVR mortality, proportional to shock severity and largely independent of procedural complications. …

A Case Of Inferior Myocardial Infarction Complicated By Ventricular Septal Rupture Leading To Cardiogenic Shock: Tandem Heart To The Rescue!, Shehab Al-Ansari, Sachin Kumar, Angelo Nascimbene, Manish K. Patel, Igor D. Gregoric

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

Ventricular septal rupture (VSR) is a rare but life-threatening complication of acute myocardial infarction. We present a case of VSR-related refractory cardiogenic shock that was successfully managed with TandemHeart® followed by surgical repair.

Early Unloading In Venoarterial Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation Shock: When, How, Where, And Why?, Benedikt Schrage

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

As extracorporeal membrane oxygenation increases the left ventricular afterload, a successful treatment plan should include strategies to address this issue. One promising approach to do so is the addition of a second device for active left ventricular unloading. However, this relatively new approach is currently only based on retrospective data. This article summarizes the current perspectives on this approach, provides recommendations for its application, and highlights the need for randomized data on this topic.

Microcirculation Versus Macrocirculation In Cardiogenic Shock, Christian Jung

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

Macro- and microcirculation are important parameters in cardiogenic shock. Microcirculation is relevant for monitoring organ function and prognosis. Serum lactate might be the best daily life parameter to assess microcirculation, and the crude 8-hour value can be used for outcome prediction. Any treatment should consider the consequences of microcirculation and macrocirculation.

Hemodynamics Of Prolonged Percutaneous Mechanical Circulatory Support – When Vasodilatation Sets, Holger Thiele

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

Hemodynamics play an important role in cardiogenic shock assessment for prognosis estimation and for phenotyping cardiogenic shock. This is best done by pulmonary artery catheters. In general, at the beginning of cardiogenic shock, patients have vasoconstriction, which over time may lead to vasodilation. This is often triggered by percutaneous mechanical circulatory support. This review will elucidate the hemodynamics and the factors that possibly lead to vasodilation in patients with mechanical circulatory support.

Society For Improving Medical Professional Learning Collaborative: What’S It All About?, Joseph B. Zwischenberger, Katherine Breetz, Daniel Cooper

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

The Society for Improving Medical Professional Learning (SIMPL) Collaborative is a non-profit, educational, quality improvement consortium focused on developing tools, curricula, and policies to improve physician training. The goal is to provide educators and learners with convenient, reliable, and valid evaluation tools for frequent, real-time workplace assessment and feedback. The SIMPL Operating Room application provides this platform. It was developed to provide high-quality, time-sensitive, procedural feedback. Its objective is to facilitate intra-rotation corrections.

SIMPL is available to all residency programs and has matured to include over 175 residency programs, involving 19 different specialties, 4000 trainees, 5000 attendings, and 354,800 evaluations …

Houston Shock: A Practical Scoring System Incorporating Cardiogenic Shock Dynamic Changes, Marwan F. Jumean, Sriram Nathan, Igor D. Gregoric, Biswajit Kar

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

Cardiogenic shock has an unacceptably high mortality rate and additional tools are needed to improve outcomes. The Society of Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI) shock severity classification has provided a unified definition of shock severity that has proven to be reproducible and predictive of survival. However, cardiogenic shock assessment goes beyond standardizing its severity, and a uniform and practical approach to comprehensive assessment that may guide therapy in a dynamic state is currently lacking.

Since cardiogenic shock is a rapidly evolving pathophysiological catastrophe, we propose a new assessment tool – the Houston SHOCK Score – which incorporates dynamic changes. The …

Associations Between Cannabis, Psychosis, And Schizophrenia In Adolescents, Lauren Moment

Academic Leadership Journal in Student Research

The effects of cannabis use on the brain, mind, and body have been studied for decades. The developing brain, particularly the adolescent and young adult brain, undergoes critical development that makes it especially susceptible to the effects of cannabis use. Among the adverse effects of cannabis use in adolescence and young adulthood, psychosis and psychotic disorders (e.g., schizophrenia) have been examined. The association of cannabis use with schizophrenia was first elucidated in a Swedish study of army conscripts. Specifically, conscripts reported their cannabis use exposure and were followed longitudinally to assess the emergence of schizophrenia. The authors found that those …

Journal Of Shock And Hemodynamics, Vol 1., Iss. 1 (Print Version)

Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics

The print version of Volume I, Issue I of the Journal of Shock and Hemodynamics was published in September 2022. The PDF of the print version is downloadable here.

Liver Disease In Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander People, Yasmina Tashkent, John K. Olynyk, Alan J. Wigg

Journal of the Australian Indigenous HealthInfoNet

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have a substantially higher prevalence of liver disease than non-Indigenous Australians. Cirrhosis and its complications were the sixth leading cause of mortality for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in 2020. Liver disease has been estimated to be the third leading cause of the mortality gap between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non-Indigenous people due to chronic disease, accounting for 11% of this gap. While current trends show reducing mortality rates for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people for conditions including circulatory disease, diabetes and kidney disease, there are no data to suggest …

Emergency Medicine Journal Club, Dave Gibbs, Dylan Norton, Kyle Barbour

Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery

In this column, we provide a brief review of important papers recently published that relate to the field of Emergency Medicine. The goal is to provide the busy clinician a bullet-like summary of the study, focusing on the research question, methods, results, limitations and bottom line interpretation.

An Unexpected Case Of Herpes Simplex Virus Esophagitis Presenting Amidst Corticosteroid Therapy For An Acute Copd Exacerbation: A Case Report, Aqeel Khanani, Kayvan Mirhadi

Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery

Herpes simplex virus (HSV) is prevalent worldwide, with a recent report by the World Health Organization estimating that 3.7 billion individuals under the age of 50 have been infected by the virus. After the initial infection, HSV-1 enters a latent phase with the potential for intermittent reactivation, often secondary to episodes of infection, stress, or immunosuppression. Per current literature review, esophageal involvement in the form of herpes simplex virus esophagitis (HSVE) is more commonly associated with immunocompromised patients, such as transplant recipients and HIV-positive individuals. The patient discussed in this report is a 79-year-old female with a past medical history …

A Case Of Intractable Hyperhidrosis In Spinal Cord Injury: Role Of Stellate Ganglion Block, Soun Sheen, Hemant Kalia, Victoria Kung

Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery

Objective:

Autonomic dysreflexia (AD) in spinal cord injury (SCI) can present as hyperhidrosis due to sudomotor dysfunction. Hyperhidrosis can also occur without an identifiable etiology. There are no standard treatment guidelines for refractory hyperhidrosis in the setting of persistent noxious stimulation. Stellate ganglion blockade may prevent hyperhidrosis by inhibiting profound sympathetic surge and vasoconstriction.

Case:

58-year-old female with C7 ASIA-A quadriplegia was admitted to the hospital for episodes of profuse sweating in the setting of autonomic dysreflexia secondary to underlying T7-8 discitis. Despite conservative treatment of discitis, patient continued experience 50-60 episodes of profuse sweating daily. Stellate ganglion block was …

Decreasing Unnecessary Laboratory Testing In Medical Critical Care, Nirajan Adhikari, Kriti Suwal, Sushmita Khadka, Binita Dahal, Litty Thomas, Chandrakala Dadeboyina, Sri Senapathi, James Walsh

Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery

The overuse of laboratory testing is common in the intensive care unit (ICU) which leads to an increased cost of care and an increased potential for harm to the patient. There is no evidence that obtaining daily laboratory tests helps to reduce mortality or morbidity in critical care patients. We conduced a retrospective study where chart review was performed to assess the frequency of unnecessary laboratory testing followed by a quality improvement initiative. With our study we were successful at reducing the inappropriate laboratory testing and improving the appropriate laboratory testing through our study.

Cancer Patient Beliefs And Attitudes Regarding Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy, Nedal Darwish, Delaney C. Stuhr, Haily M. Datz, Halima Bakillah, Tenzin Tseky, Mohamed Manaa, Serge Dauphin

Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery

The development and widespread use of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have advanced the field of oncology in a short period of time. Despite this, patient perception regarding this new medication class has not been adequately assessed, which may affect treatment decisions and adherence. The Belief about Medicines Questionnaire (BMQ) is a validated survey composed of 18 questions which analyzes patient’s beliefs about the necessity of prescribed medication and concern about the potential adverse events caused by the medication. General medication overuse and harm are also determined. This is the first study to utilize the BMQ for patients on ICI therapy.

Short-Term Pain Outcomes In Robotic Versus Manual Total Hip Arthroplasty, Brienne Paradis Oms3, Andrea M. Bodine Md

Advances in Clinical Medical Research and Healthcare Delivery

Background: Four-hundred-fifty-thousand patients annually undergo total hip arthroplasty (THA) in the United States. THA has been shown to alleviate pain, restore function, and improve quality of life. Manual implant postoperative complications have led to a need for more advanced technology. Robotic assisted THA has the potential for greater accuracy in component positioning compared to manual. Comparing robotic and manual THA, significant differences have been shown in hip-specific functional outcomes, component positioning, complications, and patient-centered outcomes. The effects of these techniques on differences from baseline pain have yet to be investigated.

Methods: A retrospective review of the Berkshire Medical Center electronic …

Transcatheter Atrial Septal Defect Closure Before Versus After Adulthood, Mohamed Saber Hafez, Mohamed Ibrahim Abdelrahman El-Sayed, Maiy Hamdy El Sayed

Journal of the Saudi Heart Association

Objectives: To evaluate the long term outcome of patients who underwent percutaneous transcatheter closure of secundum atrial septal defects during teenage life versus adulthood. Methods: The study included 100 patients with secundum type ASD who were treated by transcatheter closure of their defects 2-5 years before enrollment. The study population was subdivided into 2 equal groups: group 1 who underwent transcatheter closure during teenage life (13-19 years) and group 2 who underwent transcatheter closure after the age of 30 years. The two groups were compared according to resting 12 lead ECG, 24 hour Holter ECG and transthoracic echocardiographic findings (Right …