Published in European heart journal
Randomized clinical trials initially used heart failure (HF) patients with low left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) to select study populations with high risk to enhance statistical power. However, this use of LVEF in clinical trials has led to oversimplification of the scientific view of a complex syndrome. Descriptive terms such as 'HFrEF' (...
Published in Scientific Reports
Natural and active shear wave elastography (SWE) are potential ultrasound-based techniques to non-invasively assess myocardial stiffness, which could improve current diagnosis of heart failure. This study aims to bridge the knowledge gap between both techniques and discuss their respective impacts on cardiac stiffness evaluation. We recorded the me...
Published in Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases
BackgroundAortic root dilatation and—dissection and mitral valve prolapse are established cardiovascular manifestations in Marfan syndrome (MFS). Heart failure and arrhythmic sudden cardiac death have emerged as additional causes of morbidity and mortality.MethodsTo characterize myocardial dysfunction and arrhythmia in MFS we conducted a prospectiv...
A index of non-invasive myocardial work (MWI) can account for pressure during the assessment of cardiac function, potentially separating the influence of loading conditions from the influence of the underlying tissue remodelling. The aim is to assess LV function accounted for loading and explore hypertensive MWI distribution by comparing healthy in...
Shear wave speed measurements can potentially be used to noninvasively measure myocardial stiffness to assess the myocardial function. Several studies showed the feasibility of tracking natural mechanical waves induced by aortic valve closure in the interventricular septum, but different echocardiographic views have been used. This article systemat...
Complete left bundle branch block (cLBBB) is associated with increased cardiovascular mortality and heart failure. On the contrary, the clinical relevance of incomplete left bundle branch block (iLBBB) is less known. This study investigated the profile and outcome of iLBBB patients and assessed the risk of progression to cLBBB. Patients diagnosed w...
Introduction: Despite right ventricular (RV) dysfunction being a major concern in Senning patients, long-term follow-up data is lacking. This study aimed (1) at evaluating regional (base-mid-apex) RV and left ventricular (LV) function using Colour-Doppler myocardial imaging over a 15-year follow-up period and (2) at comparing results with matched c...
Basal septal hypertrophy (BSH) is commonly seen in patients with systemic hypertension and has been associated with increased afterload. The impact of localized hypertrophy on left ventricular (LV) and left atrial (LA) function is still unclear. Our aim is to investigate if BSH is a marker of a more pronounced impact of hypertension on cardiac func...
BACKGROUND: The necessity of neurohumoral blockers in patients with heart failure who demonstrate normalized ejection fractions after cardiac resynchronization therapy remains unclear. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to investigate the feasibility and safety of neurohumoral blocker withdrawal in patients with normalized ejection fractions aft...
Published in BMC Veterinary Research
BackgroundAortic regurgitation (AR) may lead to left ventricular (LV) dilatation, cardiac arrhythmias and heart failure. Close follow-up of horses with AR is therefore paramount to detect onset of cardiac decompensation. The aim of this study was to examine whether two-dimensional speckle tracking (2DST) can be used to detect altered myocardial fun...
