Diseases Commons^™

Prevalence Of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (Copd) In China In 1990 And 2010., Kit Yee Chan, Xue Li, Wanjing Chen, Peige Song, Nuen Wing Katy Wong, Adrienne N Poon, Weiyan Jian, Ireneous N Soyiri, Simon Cousens, Davies Adeloye, Aziz Sheikh, Harry Campbell, Igor Rudan, Global Health Epidemiology Research Group (Gherg).

Medicine Faculty Publications

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is set to become the third most frequent cause of death and also the third largest cause of global morbidity by 2020. In China, where the population is aging rapidly, COPD has become one of the leading causes of disability and a large economic burden. An epidemiological assessment of the COPD in China is required, with a focus on the number of cases living with disease, main determinants of the disease and time trends.

Methods: We systematically searched large Chinese bibliographic databases and English databases to identify spirometry-based epidemiological studies of the prevalence of …

Influence Of Dietary Salt Knowledge, Perceptions, And Beliefs On Consumption Choices After Stroke In Uganda, Martin N. Kaddumukasa, Elly Katabira, Martha Sajatovic, Svetlana Pundik, Mark Kaddumukasa, Larry B. Goldstein

Neurology Faculty Publications

Background

Previous research on Uganda's poststroke population revealed that their level of dietary salt knowledge did not lead to healthier consumption choices.

Purpose

Identify barriers and motivators for healthy dietary behaviors and evaluate the understanding of widely accepted salt regulation mechanisms among poststroke patients in Uganda.

Methods

Convergent parallel mixed methods triangulation design comprised a cross-sectional survey (n = 81) and 8 focus group discussions with 7-10 poststroke participants in each group. We assessed participant characteristics and obtained insights into their salt consumption attitudes, perceptions, and knowledge. Qualitative responses were analyzed using an inductive approach with thematic analytic procedures. Relationships …

Recurrent Biatrial Myxoma In A 41-Year-Old Woman After Left Atrial Myxoma Resection, Xiaoming Jia, Anjali Kohli, Jane Jarjour, Chung-Jiah Justin Chen, Brendan Gilmore, Rashed Tabbaa, Edward Lee Poythress

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

Bilateral recurrence of atrial myxoma has been reported only a few times. We describe the case of a 41-year-old woman who had undergone left atrial myxoma resection and presented 9 years later with myxomas in both atria. The patient underwent successful resection of both masses with resolution of symptoms. We discuss the phenomenon of recurrent biatrial myxoma.

Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy In Down Syndrome And Sporadic And Autosomal-Dominant Alzheimer's Disease, María Carmona-Iragui, Mircea Balasa, Bessy Benejam, Daniel Alcolea, Susana Fernández, Laura Videla, Isabel Sala, María Belén Sánchez-Saudinós, Estrella Morenas-Rodriguez, Roser Ribosa-Nogué, Ignacio Illán-Gala, Sofía Gonzalez-Ortiz, Jordi Clarimón, Frederick A. Schmitt, David K. Powell, Beatriz Bosch, Albert Lladó, Michael S. Rafii, Elizabeth Head, José Luis Molinuevo, Rafael Blesa, Sebastián Videla, Alberto Lleó, Raquel Sánchez-Valle, Juan Fortea

Sanders-Brown Center on Aging Faculty Publications

Introduction—We aimed to investigate if cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) is more frequent in genetically determined than in sporadic early-onset forms of Alzheimer's disease (AD) (early-onset AD [EOAD]).

Methods—Neuroimaging features of CAA, APOE, and cerebrospinal fluid-Aβ40 levels were studied in subjects with Down syndrome (DS, n = 117), autosomal-dominant AD (ADAD, n = 29), sporadic EOAD (n = 42), and healthy controls (n = 68).

Results—CAA was present in 31%, 38%, and 12% of cognitively impaired DS, symptomatic ADAD, and sporadic EOAD subjects and in 13% and 4% of cognitively unimpaired DS individuals and healthy controls, respectively. …

Ufm1 Founder Mutation In The Roma Population Causes Recessive Variant Of H-Abc., Eline M C Hamilton, Enrico Bertini, Luba Kalaydjieva, Bharti Morar, Dana Dojčáková, Adeline Vanderver, Recessive H-Abc Research Group.

Neurology Faculty Publications

OBJECTIVE: To identify the gene defect in patients with hypomyelination with atrophy of the basal ganglia and cerebellum (H-ABC) who are negative for TUBB4A mutations.

METHODS: We performed homozygosity mapping and whole exome sequencing (WES) to detect the disease-causing variant. We used a Taqman assay for population screening. We developed a luciferase reporter construct to investigate the effect of the promoter mutation on expression.

RESULTS: Sixteen patients from 14 families from different countries fulfilling the MRI criteria for H-ABC exhibited a similar, severe clinical phenotype, including lack of development and a severe epileptic encephalopathy. The majority of patients had a …

Randomized Phase Ii Study Comparing Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation Alone To Prophylactic Cranial Irradiation And Consolidative Extracranial Irradiation For Extensive-Disease Small Cell Lung Cancer (Ed Sclc): Nrg Oncology Rtog 0937, Elizabeth M. Gore, Chen Hu, Alexander Y. Sun, Daniel F. Grimm, Suresh S. Ramalingam, Neal E. Dunlap, Kristin A. Higgins, Maria Werner-Wasik, Aaron M. Allen, Puneeth Iyengar, Gregory M. M. Videtic, Russell K. Hales, Ronald C. Mcgarry, James J. Urbanic, Anthony T. Pu, Candice A. Johnstone, Volker W. Stieber, Rebecca Paulus, Jeffrey D. Bradley

Radiation Medicine Faculty Publications

Introduction—RTOG-0937 is a randomized phase-II trial evaluating 1-year OS with PCI or PCI plus consolidative radiation therapy (cRT) to intra-thoracic disease and extracranial metastases for ED-SCLC.

Methods—Patients with 1–4 extracranial metastases were eligible after CR or PR to chemotherapy. Randomization was to PCI or PCI+cRT to the thorax and metastases. Original stratification included PR vs CR after chemotherapy and 1 vs 2–4 metastases; age < 65 vs ≥ 65 was added after an observed imbalance. PCI was 25GY/10 fractions. cRT was 45GY/15 fractions. To detect an OS improvement from 30% to 45% with a 34% hazard reduction (HR=0·66) under a 0.1 type-1 error (1-sided) and 80% power, 154 patients were required.

Results—Ninety-seven patients were randomized between March, 2010 and February, 2015. Eleven patients were ineligible (nine PCI, two PCI+cRT), leaving 42 randomized to PCI and 44 to PCI+cRT. At planned interim analysis the study …

Increased Birth Weight Is Associated With Altered Gene Expression In Neonatal Foreskin, Leryn J. Reynolds, Rebecca I. Pollack, Richard J. Charnigo, Cetewayo S. Rashid, Arnold J. Stromberg, Shu Shen, John O'Brien, Kevin J. Pearson

Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences Faculty Publications

Elevated birth weight is linked to glucose intolerance and obesity health-related complications later in life. No studies have examined if infant birth weight is associated with gene expression markers of obesity and inflammation in a tissue that comes directly from the infant following birth. We evaluated the association between birth weight and gene expression on fetal programming of obesity. Foreskin samples were collected following circumcision, and gene expression analyzed comparing the 15% greatest birth weight infants (n = 7) v. the remainder of the cohort (n = 40). Multivariate linear regression models were fit to relate expression levels on differentially …

Strategies To Improve Control Of Blood A1c In Diabetics, Jennifer Aronson, Leanne Bellino, Elizabeth Eisenhardt, Diane Bryant, Haley Pelletier, Internal Medicine Team, Adult Outpatient Clinic

MaineHealth Maine Medical Center

A1c monitoring is an important aspect of controlling the health of a diabetic patient. An adult internal medicine clinic noted that the percentage of their diabetic patients who had an A1c higher than 9 or no reading within the past year exceeded the national average. As a result, operational excellence methods were implemented with the overall goal to reduce their percentage to 18% or less.

A root cause analysis identified several deficiencies to includelack of essential equipment, variations in

staff education and the absence of daily reminders.

Post KPI implementations, an overall decrease in the percentage of patients with poorly …

Echocardiographic Classification And Surgical Approaches To Double-Outlet Right Ventricle For Great Arteries Arising Almost Exclusively From The Right Ventricle, Kun-Jing Pang, Hong Meng, Sheng-Shou Hu, Hao Wang, David Hsi, Zhong-Dong Hua, Xiang-Bin Pan, Shou-Jun Li

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

Selecting an appropriate surgical approach for double-outlet right ventricle (DORV), a complex congenital cardiac malformation with many anatomic variations, is difficult. Therefore, we determined the feasibility of using an echocardiographic classification system, which describes the anatomic variations in more precise terms than the current system does, to determine whether it could help direct surgical plans. Our system includes 8 DORV subtypes, categorized according to 3 factors: the relative positions of the great arteries (normal or abnormal), the relationship between the great arteries and the ventricular septal defect (committed or noncommitted), and the presence or absence of right ventricular outflow tract …

Higher Mineralized Bone Volume Is Associated With A Lower Plain X-Ray Vascular Calcification Score In Hemodialysis Patients, Teresa Adragao, Anibal Ferreira, Joao M. Frazao, Ana Luisa Papoila, Iola Pinto, Marie-Claude Monier-Faugere, Hartmut H. Malluche

Internal Medicine Faculty Publications

Background and objectives

In dialysis patients, there is an increasing evidence that altered bone metabolism is associated with cardiovascular calcifications. The main objective of this study was to analyse, in hemodialysis patients, the relationships between bone turnover, mineralization and volume, evaluated in bone biopsies, with a plain X-ray vascular calcification score.

Design, setting, participants and measurements

In a cross-sectional study, bone biopsies and evaluation of vascular calcifications were performed in fifty hemodialysis patients. Cancellous bone volume, mineralized bone volume, osteoid volume, activation frequency, bone formation rate/bone surface, osteoid thickness and mineralization lag time were determined by histomorphometry. Vascular calcifications were …

Plasma Cross-Gestational Sphingolipidomic Analyses Reveal Potential First Trimester Biomarkers Of Preeclampsia, Aneta Dobierzewska, Sony Soman, Sebastian E Illanes, Andrew J. Morris

Saha Cardiovascular Research Center Faculty Publications

Introduction

Preeclampsia (PE) is a gestational disorder, manifested in the second half of pregnancy by maternal hypertension, proteinuria and generalized edema. PE is a major cause of maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality, accounting for nearly 40% of all premature births worldwide. Bioactive sphingolipids are emerging as key molecules involved in etiopathogenesis of PE, characterized by maternal angiogenic imbalance and symptoms of metabolic syndrome. The aim of this study was to compare the cross-gestational profile of circulating bioactive sphingolipids in maternal plasma from preeclamptic (PE) versus normotensive control (CTL) subjects with the goal of identifying sphingolipids as candidate first trimester …

Seroprevalence Of Poliovirus Antibodies In The Kansas City Metropolitan Area, 2012-2013., Gregory S. Wallace, Barbara A. Pahud, William C. Weldon, Aaron T. Curns, M Steven Oberste, Christopher J. Harrison

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

No indigenous cases of poliomyelitis have occurred in the US since 1979; however the risk of importation persists until global eradication is achieved. The seropositivity rate for different age cohorts with exposures to different poliovirus vaccine types and wild virus in the US are not presently known. A convenience sample was conducted in the Kansas City metropolitan area during 2012-2103 with approximately 100 participants enrolled for each of 5 age cohorts categorized based on vaccine policy changes over time in the US. Immunization records for poliovirus vaccination were required for participants90.7%, 94.4%, and 83.3%, for types 1, 2, and 3, …

Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation In A Patient With Unicuspid Aortic Valve, Angelo Nascimbene, Pranav Loyalka, Igor D Gregoric, Ricardo Bellera, Maan Malahfji, Marija Petrovic, Biswajit Kar

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) in patients with bicuspid aortic valves has been successfully performed, but there is a lack of published experience in percutaneous treatment of patients with unicuspid valves and severe aortic stenosis. We describe a case of TAVR in such a patient.

A 31-year-old woman with Turner syndrome—who had undergone coarctation repair via subclavian flap at age 7 days and an aortic valvotomy at age 6 weeks—presented with severe symptomatic aortic stenosis. She was deemed inoperable because of her severe pulmonary hypertension and numerous comorbidities; consequently, a 20-mm Edwards Sapien 3 Transcatheter Heart Valve was offered for …

The Burden Of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases In Adults, Jerika Lam, Jeff Goad

Pharmacy Faculty Articles and Research

"The CDC reports that a low trend for influenza, human papilloma virus (HPV), pneumococcal, hepatitis B (for health care providers), and herpes zoster vaccinations continues to persist among adults.4 These poor vaccination rates could be attributed to gaps in insurance coverage, personal beliefs, and disparities in access to vaccines. As a result, the burden of vaccine-preventable diseases translates into significant social, public health, and economic costs within our society."

Cpt1a Methylation Is Associated With Plasma Adiponectin, S. Aslibekyan, A. N. Do, H. Xu, S. Li, M. R. Irvin, D Zhi, H. K. Tiwari, D. M. Absher, A. R. Shuldiner, T. Zhang, W. Chen, K. Tanner, C. Hong, B. D. Mitchell, G. Berenson, Donna K. Arnett

Epidemiology and Environmental Health Faculty Publications

Background and Aims—Adiponectin, an adipose-secreted protein that has been linked to insulin sensitivity, plasma lipids, and inflammatory patterns, is an established biomarker for metabolic health. Despite clinical relevance and high heritability, the determinants of plasma adiponectin levels remain poorly understood.

Methods and Results—We conducted the first epigenome-wide cross-sectional study of adiponectin levels using methylation data on 368,051 cytosine-phosphate-guanine (CpG) sites in CD4+ T-cells from the Genetics of Lipid Lowering Drugs and Diet Network (GOLDN, n= 991). We fit linear mixed models, adjusting for age, sex, study site, T-cell purity, and family. We have identified a positive association (regression …

Clinical Risk Factors For Infective Endocarditis In Staphylococcus Aureus Bacteremia, Vincent Bryan D Salvador, Bikash Chapagain, Astha Joshi, Debra J Brennessel

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

Crucial to the management of staphylococcal bacteremia is an accurate evaluation of associated endocarditis, which has both therapeutic and prognostic implications. Because the clinical presentation of endocarditis can be nonspecific, the judicious use of echocardiography is important in distinguishing patients at high risk of developing endocarditis. In the presence of high-risk clinical features, an early transesophageal echocardiogram is warranted without prior transthoracic echocardiography.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical risk factors for staphylococcal infective endocarditis that might warrant earlier transesophageal echocardiography and to describe the incidence of endocarditis in cases of methicillin-resistant and methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus …

Family Strategies To Support Siblings Of Pediatric Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant Patients., Taylor E. White, Kristopher A. Hendershot, Margie D. Dixon, Wendy Pelletier, Ann Haight, Kristin Stegenga, Melissa A. Alderfer, Lydia Cox, Jeffrey M. Switchenko, Pamela Hinds, Rebecca D. Pentz

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

OBJECTIVE: To describe the strategies families report using to address the needs and concerns of siblings of children, adolescents, and young adults undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT).

METHODS: A secondary semantic analysis was conducted of 86 qualitative interviews with family members of children, adolescents, and young adults undergoing HSCT at 4 HSCT centers and supplemented with a primary analysis of 38 additional targeted qualitative interviews (23 family members, 15 health care professionals) conducted at the primary center. Analyses focused on sibling issues and the strategies families use to address these issues.

RESULTS: The sibling issues identified included: (1) feeling …

Surrogate Pregnancy After Prenatal Diagnosis Of Spina Bifida., Lynnette J. Mazur, Mary Kay Kisthardt, Helen H. Kim, Laura M. Rosas, John Lantos

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Some pregnancies today involve infertile individuals or couples who contract with a fertile woman to carry a pregnancy for them. The woman who carries the pregnancy is referred to as a "gestational carrier." The use of such arrangements is increasing. Most of the time, these arrangements play out as planned; sometimes, however, problems arise. This article discusses a case in which a fetal diagnosis of spina bifida led the infertile couple to request that the gestational carrier terminate the pregnancy, and the gestational carrier did not wish to do so. Experts in the medical and legal issues surrounding surrogacy discuss …

Reliability And Validity Of The Hd-Pro-Triadtm, A Health-Related Quality Of Life Measure Designed To Assess The Symptom Triad Of Huntington's Disease., Nicholas R Boileau, Julie C Stout, Janes S Paulsen, David Cella, Michael K Mccormack, Martha A Nance, Samuel Frank, Jin-Shei Lai, Noelle E Carlozzi

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Departmental Research

BACKGROUND: Huntington's disease (HD), is a neurodegenerative disorder that is associated with cognitive, behavioral, and motor impairments that diminish health related quality of life (HRQOL). The HD-PRO-TRIADTM is a quality of life measure that assesses health concerns specific to individuals with HD. Preliminary psychometric characterization was limited to a convenience sample of HD participants who completed measures at home so clinician-ratings were unavailable.

OBJECTIVES: The current study evaluates the reliability and validity of the HD-PRO-TRIADTM in a well-characterized sample of individuals with HD.

METHODS: Four-hundred and eighty-two individuals with HD (n = 192 prodromal, n = 193 early, and n …

Reduced Microrna-503 Expression Augments Lung Fibroblast Vegf Production In Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, Jun Ikari, Amy J. Nelson, Jannah Obaid, Alvaro Giron-Martinez, Kumiko Ikari, Fumihiko Makino, Shunichiro Iwasawa, Yoko Gunji, Maha Farid, Xingqi Wang, Hesham Basma, Dawn Demeo, Carol Feghali-Bostwick, Olaf Holz, Klaus Rabe, Xiangde Liu, Stephen I. Rennard

Journal Articles: Pulmonary & Critical Care Med

Alterations in microRNA (miRNA) expression may contribute to COPD pathogenesis. In COPD, lung fibroblast repair functions are altered in multiple ways, including extracellular mediator release. Our prior study revealed miR-503 expression is decreased in COPD lung fibroblasts, although the exact role played by miR-503 is undetermined. The current study examined a role of miR-503 in cytokine, growth factor and fibronectin production by lung fibroblasts from patients with and without COPD. Primary adult lung fibroblasts were isolated from patients with or without COPD. MiR-503 expression and interleukin (IL)-6, -8, PGE2, HGF, KGF, VEGF and fibronectin release were examined with or without …

Variability In Objective And Subjective Measures Affects Baseline Values In Studies Of Patients With Copd, Wayne H. Anderson, Jae Wook Ha, David J. Couper, Wanda K. O'Neal, R. Graham Barr, Eugene R. Bleecker, Elizabeth E. Carretta, Christopher B. Cooper, Claire M. Doerschuk, M. Bradley Drummond, Meilan K. Han, Nadia N. Hansel, Victor Kim, Eric C. Kleerup, Fernando J. Martinez, Stephen I. Rennard, Donald Tashkin, Prescott G. Woodruff, Robert Paine, Jeffrey L. Curtis, Richard W. Kanner, Spiromics Research Group

Journal Articles: Pulmonary & Critical Care Med

RATIONALE: Understanding the reliability and repeatability of clinical measurements used in the diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of disease progression is of critical importance across all disciplines of clinical practice and in clinical trials to assess therapeutic efficacy and safety.

OBJECTIVES: Our goal is to understand normal variability for assessing true changes in health status and to more accurately utilize this data to differentiate disease characteristics and outcomes.

METHODS: Our study is the first study designed entirely to establish the repeatability of a large number of instruments utilized for the clinical assessment of COPD in the same subjects over the same …

The Distinct Metabolic Phenotype Of Lung Squamous Cell Carcinoma Defines Selective Vulnerability To Glycolytic Inhibition, Justin Goodwin, Michael L. Neugent, Shin Yup Lee, Joshua H. Choe, Hyunsung Choi, Dana M. R. Jenkins, Robin J. Ruthenborg, Maddox W. Robinson, Ji Yun Jeong, Masaki Wake, Hajime Abe, Norihiko Takeda, Hiroko Endo, Masahiro Inoue, Zhenyu Xuan, Hyuntae Yoo, Min Chen, Jung-Mo Ahn, John D. Minna, Kristi L. Helke, Pankaj K. Singh, David B. Shackelford, Jung-Whan Kim

Journal Articles: Eppley Institute

Adenocarcinoma (ADC) and squamous cell carcinoma (SqCC) are the two predominant subtypes of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and are distinct in their histological, molecular and clinical presentation. However, metabolic signatures specific to individual NSCLC subtypes remain unknown. Here, we perform an integrative analysis of human NSCLC tumour samples, patient-derived xenografts, murine model of NSCLC, NSCLC cell lines and The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) and reveal a markedly elevated expression of the GLUT1 glucose transporter in lung SqCC, which augments glucose uptake and glycolytic flux. We show that a critical reliance on glycolysis renders lung SqCC vulnerable to glycolytic inhibition, …

Body Mass Index Change In Gastrointestinal Cancer And Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease Is Associated With Dedicator Of Cytokinesis 1, Merry-Lynn Noelle Mcdonald, Sungho Won, Manuel Mattheisen, Peter J. Castaldi, Michael H. Cho, Erica Rutten, Megan Hardin, Wai-Ki Yip, Stephen I. Rennard, David A. Lomas, Emiel F.M. Wouters, Alvar Agusti, Richard Casaburi, Christoph P. Lange, George O'Connor, Craig P. Hersh, Edwin K. Silverman

Journal Articles: Pulmonary & Critical Care Med

BACKGROUND: There have been a number of candidate gene association studies of cancer cachexia-related traits, but no genome-wide association study (GWAS) has been published to date. Cachexia presents in patients with a number of complex traits, including both cancer and COPD. The objective of the current investigation was to search for a shared genetic aetiology for change in body mass index (ΔBMI) among cancer and COPD by using GWAS data in the Framingham Heart Study.

METHODS: A linear mixed effects model accounting for age, sex, and change in smoking status was used to calculate ΔBMI in participants over 40 years …

Network-Based Analysis Reveals Novel Gene Signatures In Peripheral Blood Of Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, Ma'en Obeidat, Yunlong Nie, Virginia Chen, Casey P. Shannon, Anand Kumar Andiappan, Bernett Lee, Olaf Rotzschke, Peter J. Castaldi, Craig P. Hersh, Nick Fishbane, Raymond T. Ng, Bruce Mcmanus, Bruce E. Miller, Stephen I. Rennard, Peter D. Paré, Don D. Sin

Journal Articles: Pulmonary & Critical Care Med

BACKGROUND: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is currently the third leading cause of death and there is a huge unmet clinical need to identify disease biomarkers in peripheral blood. Compared to gene level differential expression approaches to identify gene signatures, network analyses provide a biologically intuitive approach which leverages the co-expression patterns in the transcriptome to identify modules of co-expressed genes.

METHODS: A weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) was applied to peripheral blood transcriptome from 238 COPD subjects to discover co-expressed gene modules. We then determined the relationship between these modules and forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV …

Orthogonal Decomposition Of Left Ventricular Remodeling In Myocardial Infarction, Xingyu Zhang, Pau Medrano-Gracia, Bharath Ambale-Venkatesh, David A. Bluemke, Brett R. Cowan, J. Paul Finn, Alan H. Kadish

Office of the President Publications and Research

BACKGROUND: Left ventricular size and shape are important for quantifying cardiac remodeling in response to cardiovascular disease. Geometric remodeling indices have been shown to have prognostic value in predicting adverse events in the clinical literature, but these often describe interrelated shape changes. We developed a novel method for deriving orthogonal remodeling components directly from any (moderately independent) set of clinical remodeling indices.

RESULTS: Six clinical remodeling indices (end-diastolic volume index, sphericity, relative wall thickness, ejection fraction, apical conicity, and longitudinal shortening) were evaluated using cardiac magnetic resonance images of 300 patients with myocardial infarction, and 1991 asymptomatic subjects, obtained from …

Relationship Between Hospital Procedure Volume And Complications Following Congenital Cardiac Catheterization: A Report From The Improving Pediatric And Adult Congenital Treatment (Impact) Registry., Natalie Jayaram, John A. Spertus, Michael L. O'Byrne, Paul S. Chan, Kevin F. Kennedy, Lisa Bergersen, Andrew C. Glatz

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: The association between institutional volume and outcomes has been demonstrated for cardiac catheterization among adults, but less is known about this relationship for patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) undergoing cardiac catheterization.

METHODS: Within the IMPACT registry, we identified all catheterizations between January 2011 and March 2015. Hierarchical logistic regression, adjusted for patient and procedural characteristics, was used to determine the association between annual catheterization lab volume and occurrence of a major adverse event (MAE).

RESULTS: Of 56,453 catheterizations at 77 hospitals, an MAE occurred in 1014 (1.8%) of cases. In unadjusted analysis, a MAE occurred in 2.8% (123/4460) …

"Eyeing" The Cause Of Heart Failure: Visible Telltale Clues, Herbert L Fred, Manoj Thangam

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

No abstract provided.

Endovascular Treatment Of Superior Vena Cava Syndrome Via Balloon-In-Balloon Catheter Technique With A Palmaz Stent, Wassim Shatila, Abdelkader Almanfi, Mehran Massumi, Kathryn G Dougherty, Dhaval R Parekh, Neil E Strickman

The Texas Heart Institute Journal

Superior vena cava syndrome is a well-known disease entity that carries substantial rates of morbidity and mortality. Although most cases of superior vena cava syndrome are secondary to a malignant process, additional causes (such as mediastinal fibrosis, pacemaker lead implantation, or central venous catheter placement) have been reported. Multiple treatment options include percutaneous transluminal angioplasty, stent implantation, thrombolysis, mechanical thrombectomy, and venous grafting. We present a case of superior vena cava syndrome in a symptomatic 30-year-old woman who obtained complete relief of obstruction and marked symptomatic improvement through venoplasty and stenting, aided by our use of a balloon-in-balloon catheter system.

Mir-155 Expression And Correlation With Clinical Outcome In Pediatric Aml: A Report From Children's Oncology Group., Ranjani Ramamurthy, Maya Hughes, Valerie Morris, Hamid Bolouri, Robert B. Gerbing, Yi-Cheng Wang, Michael R. Loken, Susana C. Raimondi, Betsy A. Hirsch, A S. Gamis, Vivian G. Oehler, Todd A. Alonzo, Soheil Meshinchi

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: Aberrant expression of microRNA-155 (miR-155) has been implicated in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and associated with clinical outcome.

PROCEDURE: We evaluated miR-155 expression in 198 children with normal karyotype AML (NK-AML) enrolled in Children's Oncology Group (COG) AML trial AAML0531 and correlated miR-155 expression levels with disease characteristics and clinical outcome. Patients were divided into quartiles (Q1-Q4) based on miR-155 expression level, and disease characteristics were then evaluated and correlated with miR-155 expression.

RESULTS: MiR-155 expression varied over 4-log10-fold range relative to its expression in normal marrow with a median expression level of 0.825 (range 0.043-25.630) for the entire …

Progress Toward Eliminating Mother To Child Transmission Of Hiv In Kenya: Review Of Treatment Guideline Uptake And Pediatric Transmission At Four Government Hospitals Between 2010 And 2012., Sarah Finocchario-Kessler, Kristine F. Clark, Samoel Khamadi, Brad J. Gautney, Vincent Okoth, Kathy Goggin, Hitsystem Study Team

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

We analyzed prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) data from a retrospective cohort of n = 1365 HIV+ mothers who enrolled their HIV-exposed infants in early infant diagnosis services in four Kenyan government hospitals from 2010 to 2012. Less than 15 and 20 % of mother-infant pairs were provided with regimens that met WHO Option A and B/B+ guidelines, respectively. Annually, the gestational age at treatment initiation decreased, while uptake of Option B/B+ increased (all p's < 0.001). Pediatric HIV infection was halved (8.6-4.3 %), yet varied significantly by hospital. In multivariable analyses, HIV-exposed infants who received no PMTCT (AOR 4.6 [2.49, 8.62], p < 0.001), mixed foods (AOR 5.0 [2.77, 9.02], p < 0.001), and care at one of the four hospitals (AOR 3.0 [1.51, 5.92], p = 0.002) were more likely to be HIV-infected. While the administration and uptake of WHO PMTCT guidelines is improving, an expanded focus on retention and medication adherence will further reduce pediatric HIV transmission.