A dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, in fulfillment of the degree of Master of Science in Medicine, 2014 / The earliest possible initiation of reperfusion therapy is necessary to reduce morbidity and mortality from acute STEMI. Therefore improving the time to thrombolysis where percutaneous coronary interventional facilities are limited or do not exist is critical. The most effective system would integrate three key components to deliver continuous patient care, including: 1) from time of call for help through to emergency response; 2) transportation to and admission to hospital; 3) assessment and initiation of thrombolytic therapy. The purpose of this prospective study is: to develop a chest pain awareness education programme appropriate for the South African context; to assess safe initiation of thrombolytic therapy by emergency care practitioners for STEMI; and to compare the performance of emergency care practitioner thrombolysis with historical control data.

O exercício é hoje reconhecidamente um fator de proteção para morbidade e mortalidade cardiovascular. Apesar de extensos dados de estudos epidemiológicos e de intervenção, os mecanismos subjacentes cardioprotetores do exercício ainda não estão bem elucidados. Alguns autores acreditam que o treinamento físico induz o desenvolvimento de células miocárdicas mais resistentes a agressões externas e maior vascularização. Além disso, o exercício parece exercer grande influência sobre o sistema imunológico. O entendimento dos mecanismos através dos quais o exercício influencia o desfecho clínico do infarto agudo do miocárdio (IM) pode trazer uma melhor compreensão das diferentes evoluções clínicas de indivíduos aparentemente semelhantes. O estudo de quais moléculas e sistemas estão envolvidas nessa cardioproteção e de como medeiam e integram a resposta miocárdica ao estresse pode influenciar futuras terapias. O objetivo do presente trabalho é testar a hipótese de que a ocorrência de IM em animais previamente treinados é acompanhada de melhor função ventricular pós-IM, maior vascularização, em associação com menor expressão de marcadores inflamatórios e moduladores do metabolismo, e menos apoptose. Materiais e Métodos: Sessões de 60 min/dia, 05 dias/semana, por 08 semanas foram aplicadas no grupo exercício. Após este período os animais exercitados e sedentários foram randomizados para cirurgia de IM através da ligadura da artéria coronária esquerda (EI e SI, respectivamente), ou cirurgia controle (ES e SS, respectivamente), seguido de um período de sedentarismo de 04 semanas. A função ventricular esquerda foi obtida através da ecocardiografia, bem como o tamanho do infarto. A técnica de imunohistoquímica foi utilizada para detecção de PPAR-&#945;, PPAR-&#947;, TNF-&#945;, NF-kB, e &#945;-actina, e os resultados foram quantificados através de um sistema de análise de imagens automática por detecção de cores. A técnica de TUNEL foi utilizada para marcação de apoptose. Foram estudadas três regiões do coração: infarto (I), peri-infarto (P), e miocárdio sem infarto (M). Resultados: a mortalidade relacionada ao infarto foi maior no grupo sedentário em relação ao exercitado (25% vs 12%; P<0,05), sem diferença em relação a tamanho de IM. Comparado ao grupo EI, SI exibiu menor fração de encurtamento, maior taxa de apoptose, e aumento dos marcadores inflamatórios NF-kB e TNF-&#945; em I. O grupo SI mostrou correlações negativas entre quantidades de: a) PPAR-&#945; em M vs TNF-&#945; em I (R:-0,826, P=0,005); b) PPAR-&#945; vs NF-kB em I (R: -0,576, P=0,02) e em P (R:-0,505, P=0,03); c) TNF-&#945; em I e PPAR-alpha e PPAR-&#947; em M (R:-0,826, P=0,005 e R:-0,786, P=0,02); d) NF-kB em I e PPAR-&#945; em M (R:- 0,576, P=0,01) e e) NF-kB em P e PPAR-&#945; em M (R:-0,505, P=0,03). Houve correlação positiva entre NF-kB e PPAR-&#947; em P (R: 0,596, P=0,02). A densidade arteriolar não diferiu entre os dois grupos infartados, porém no grupo EI houve correlação negativa entre a densidade arteriolar em I e PPAR-&#947; em P (R: - 0,76, P=0,02). O número de células apoptóticas por campo (mediana) em SI e EI foi, respectivamente, 3,97 e 1,90 em I; 3,67 e 1,57 em P; e 1,41 e 1,13 em M. Houve menor número de células em apoptose em M em relação a I e P (P < 0,001) no grupo SI. Em EI, o número de células em apoptose/campo não diferiu entre as regiões estudadas. O número de células em apoptose por campo foi maior em SI comparado a EI em I (3,97 ± 0,61 vs 1,90 ± 1,82; P < 0,05) e em P (3,67 ± 0,73 vs 1,57 ± 1,07; P < 0,01). Conclusão: Os achados do presente trabalho suportam a hipótese de que a ocorrência de IM em animais previamente treinados é acompanhada de menor inflamação, menores taxas de apoptose, melhor função ventricular e possivelmente melhor interrelação entre moduladores do metabolismo energético e do sistema imunológico. / Exercise is a well recognized protective factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. In spite of extensive data from epidemiologic studies and intervention, the subjacent cardioprotective mechanisms of exercise are still non clear. Some authors believe that the physical training induces development of more resistant myocardial fibers against external injuries and increased vascularization. Also, exercise seems to influence the modulation of the immune system. The understanding of mechanisms by which the exercise acts in the acute myocardial infarction (MI) progression may bring a better comprehension of different clinical outcome in apparently similar individuals. The knowledge of which molecules and systems are involved in this cardioprotection and how they mediate and integrate the stress myocardial response may help future therapies. The objective of the present work is to test the hypothesis that the occurrence of MI in previously trained animals is associated with a better post MI ventricular function, major vascularization, in association with lower expression of inflammatory markers and of metabolic modulators, and less apoptosis. Material and Methods: Sessions of 60 min/day, 05 days/week, for 08 weeks were applied in the exercised group. After this period, the exercised and sedentary animals were randomized to surgery for myocardial infarction, through the ligature of left coronary artery (EI and SI, respectively), or control surgery (ES and SS, respectively), followed by a 04 week sedentary period. The left ventricular function was obtained by the echocardiography as also the infarct size. Immunohistochemistry was used for detection of PPAR-&#945;, PPAR-&#947;, TNF-&#945;, NF-kB, ad &#945;-actin, and the results were quantified in an image analysis system by automatic collor detection. TUNEL technique was used for detection of apoptosis. Three regions of the heart were studied: infarcted (I), peri-infarcted (P), and non infarcted myocardium (M). Results: Infarction-related mortality was higher in SI comparing to EI group (25% vs 12%; P < 0.05), without differences in MI size. Compared to EI, SI group exhibited lower shortening fraction, higher apoptosis rate and higher local levels of inflammatory markers, such as NF-kB and TNF-&#945; at I. SI group showed negative correlations between the quantities of PPARs and inflammatory cytokines: a) PPAR-&#945; at M vs TNF-&#945; at I (R:-0.826, P=0.005); b) PPAR-&#945; vs NF-kB at I (R: -0.576, P=0.02) and P (R:-0.505, P=0.03); c) TNF-&#945; at I vs PPAR-&#945; and PPAR-&#947; at M (R:-0.826, P=0.005 e R:-0.786, P=0.02); d) NF-kB at I vs PPAR-&#945; at M (R:-0.576, P=0.01); and e) NF-kB at P vs PPAR-&#945; at M (R:-0.505, P=0.03). There was a positive correlation between NF-kB vs PPAR-&#947; at P (R: 0.596, P=0.02). The arteriolar density did not differ between the two infarcted groups. However, the exercised infarcted group showed a negative correlation between the arteriolar density at I and PPAR-&#947; at P (R:-0.76, P=0.02). Conclusion: These findings support the hypothesis that the occurrence of MI in previously trained animals is followed by lower local inflammatory markers, better ventricular function, and possibly a better interrelationship between modulators of the energetic metabolism and of the immune system.

A literatura mostra um número substancial de trabalhos que descrevem a influência do treinamento físico sobre o remodelamento ventricular em pacientes no contexto do pós-infarto agudo do miocárdio (IAM). Entretanto, essas publicações têm apresentado resultados conflitantes. O presente estudo teve como objetivo avaliar os efeitos do treinamento físico aeróbico de moderada intensidade, realizado em pacientes pós-IAM, sobre o remodelamento ventricular, e sua correlação com a ativação neuro-humoral. Foram avaliados 14 pacientes, de ambos os gêneros, idade média de 55,1 ± 10,8 anos, acometidos por um único IAM de parede anterior, divididos em dois grupos: grupo treinado (GT) (n=07) e grupo controle (GC) (n=07). O período de seguimento para esse estudo foi de 12 semanas. Antes e após o período de seguimento, os pacientes realizaram exames laboratoriais, avaliação antropométrica, coleta da freqüência cardíaca (FC) de repouso, teste cardiopulmonar e ressonância magnética cardíaca. O GT realizou treinamento físico aeróbico supervisionado em esteira ergométrica, três vezes por semana, com intensidade definida pela FC atingida no limiar de anaerobiose ventilatório. A análise estatística foi realizada através do teste não paramétrico da Soma de Postos de Wilcoxon (análise intragrupo) e teste não paramétrico de Mann-Whitney (análise intergrupo), com nível de significância de 5%. Não houve alteração estatisticamente significante no peso, índice de massa corporal, perfil lipídico e glicemia de jejum pré e pós-intervenção tanto no GC quanto no GT. Houve redução estatisticamente significante da FC de repouso no GT, sem alteração no GC. Observou-se aumento estatisticamente significante do consumo de oxigênio no limiar de anaerobiose e no pico do esforço, bem como, no incremento do pulso de oxigênio apenas no GT. Houve redução estatisticamente significante do volume diastólico final, e tendência a significância no volume sistólico final do GC. Não se observou mudanças estatisticamente significantes nos volumes cavitários pré e pós-intervenção no GT. Não houve mudança estatisticamente significante na fração de ejeção tanto no GT quanto no GC. Houve redução estatisticamente significativa do fragmento N-terminal do proBNP na condição basal e no pico do esforço tanto no GT quanto no GC. Concluímos que o treinamento físico aeróbico, de moderada intensidade, propiciou um aumento da aptidão física e cardiorrespiratória, manutenção dos volumes cavitários e da função cardíaca, e comportamento satisfatório do status neuro-humoral no GT durante o período do estudo. / The literature shows a substantial number of studies describing the influence of physical training on ventricular remodeling in patients in the context of post-acute myocardial infarction (AMI). However, these publications have produced conflicting results. The present study was to evaluate the effects of aerobic physical training of moderate intensity, performed in patients after MI on ventricular remodeling, and its correlation with neurohumoral activation. We evaluated 14 patients of both genders, mean age 55.1 ± 10.8 years, affected by a single anterior wall AMI were divided into two groups: trained group (TG) (n = 07) and control group ( CG) (n = 07). The follow-up period for this study was 12 weeks. Before and after follow-up period, patients underwent laboratory tests, anthropometric measurements, collection of heart rate (HR) at rest, cardiopulmonary exercise testing and cardiac MRI. The TG performed supervised aerobic exercise training on a treadmill three times a week, with intensity defined by HR reached at ventilatory anaerobic threshold. Statistical analysis was performed using the nonparametric Wilcoxon Sum of stations (intragroup analysis) and nonparametric Mann-Whitney test (intergroup analysis), with a significance level of 5%. There was no statistically significant change in weight, body mass index, lipid profile and fasting glucose and post-intervention in both the CG and TG. There was a statistically significant reduction in resting HR in TG, no change in CG. There was a statistically significant increase in oxygen uptake in the anaerobic threshold and peak effort, as well as an increase in oxygen pulse only in the TG. There was a statistically significant reduction in end-diastolic volume, and a tendency to significance in end-systolic volume of the CG. There was no statistically significant changes in cavity volume before and after intervention in TG. There was no statistically significant change in ejection fraction in both the TG and GC. There was a statistically significant reduction of the N-terminal fragment of proBNP at baseline and at peak exercise in both the TG and CG. We conclude that aerobic exercise training of moderate intensity, provided an increase in cardiorespiratory fitness and, maintenance of the cavity volume and cardiac function, and satisfactory performance of the neuro-humoral status in TG during the study period.

Anfang der 90er Jahre entwickelten sich neue pharmakologische Behandlungsstrategien des akuten Myokardinfarktes durch GP IIb/IIIa- Rezeptorantagonisten. Der optimale Zeitpunkt der Administration und die Wahl des Therapieregimes ist Diskussionsstoff. Ziel dieses Konzeptes ist es, mit der Verlagerung des Therapiebeginns in die Prähospitalphase die Zeit bis zur Reperfusion des Infarktareals zu minimieren. Die Schaffung einer Hotline zum Kardiologen bietet dem Notarzt fachlichen Rat. Bestehen keine logistischen Hindernisse innerhalb von 60 Minuten wird eine Herzkatheteruntersuchung, bei Überschreiten wird die Kombinationslysetherapie mit interventioneller Versorgung des Infarktgefäßes binnen 24 Stunden durchgeführt. Ziel der Datenanalyse war nachzuweisen, ob die Sterblichkeit von bis zu 15% im Vergleich zu Registerstudien gleicher Konzeption niedriger und die Krankenhausverweildauer von 12 Tagen kürzer ist. Im Erfassungszeitraum wurden 347 Patienten, davon 254 Männer (73%) und 93 Frauen (27%) behandelt. Das Alter im Median betrug 62 Jahre. 57 (16%) Patienten wurden prähospital lysiert, 81 (20%) inhospital. 218 (63%) wurden mittels primärer interventioneller Therapie behandelt. Die Aufenthaltsdauer im Krankenhaus aller Patienten betrug 6 Tage. Der Aufenthalt im Median auf der Intensivstation betrug in der Gruppe der lysierten Patienten 1,0 Tage (prähospital 0,8 vs inhospital 1,3 Tage), in der primären Herzkathetergruppe 0,9 Tage. 8 MACE traten auf. Die Kankenhausmortalität betrug 6,3 %, in der Gruppe der mittels Lyse behandelten Patienten 9,3% (prähospital 12,3%, inhospital 6,9%) und in der primär interventionell versorgten Gruppe 4,6%. Die Mortalität der initial hämodynamisch stabilen Patienten lag unter 3%. Die 180 Tage Mortalität betrug gesamt 10,8%, in der Lyse Gruppe 11,7% (prähospital 14,0% vs. inhospital 9,9%) und 9,2% in der interventionell behandelten Gruppe. Zu keinem Zeitpunkt bestanden signifikante Unterschiede. Die aggressive Therapie des akuten Myokardinfarkts beinhaltet diesen Daten zufolge kein Risiko für die Patienten und zeigt im Vergleich zu Registerstudien ähnlicher Konzeption eine niedrigere Krankenhaussterblichkeit und eine kürzere Krankenhausverweildauer. Diese Arbeit ist der Erinnerung an meinem geschätzten Freund und Kollegen Oberarzt Dr. med. Torsten Thieme gewidmet, der viel zu früh verstorben ist. / In the early 90’s a new class of agents blocking the GPIIb/IIIa-receptors on the platelet surface was developed capable of speeding up pharmacological reopening of infarct related arteries. The optimal time of administration remains subject of discussion. Despite these advantages hospital mortality in great registries is still more than 15% and hospital stay 12 days. By January 1st, 1999 a hotline between ambulance car and the interventional cardiologist was instituted. In each case management with either immediate PCI under GPIIb/IIIa-inhibition or half dose thrombolytics and full dose GPIIb/IIIa-inhibitors, if possible, started out of hospital. The approach was to see if the mortality was lower and the hospital stay shorter than in comparable registries. During September 1999 – December 2001 347 patients aged 26 to 92 years (60 plus minus 13) were treated. Median age was 62 years. There were 93 female (27%) and 254 male patients (73%). 57 (16%) patients received out of hospital thrombolysis, 81 (20%) were treated inhospital and 218 (63%) patients underwent primary cardiac catheterization. Overall inhospital median stay was 6.0 days. The median ICU-time for all thrombolysed patient was 1,0 days (prehospital 0,8 vs inhospital 1,3 days) and in the interventionally treated group 0,9 days. In all patients .8 MACE events occurred. Overall hospital mortality was 6,3 %, in the group of thrombolysed patients 9,3% (prehospital 12,3%, inhospital 6,9%). Shock excluded mortality was below 3%. 346/347 patients reached 180 days of follow-up. 180 days mortality overall was 10,8%, for the thrombolysed group 11,7% (prehospital 14,0% vs. inhospital 9,9%) and 9,2% in the interventionally treated group. There was no statistical significant difference. The time optimized individualized treatment assignment to pharmacological therapy followed by routine facilitated PCI within 24 hours is an approach that is more aggressive than currently recommended in the guidelines, but seems to offer further improvements of outcome with no further riscs for patients with AMI in comparison to other registries. This work is published in memory of my beloved friend and colleague Torsten Thieme, MD, who died much to young.

INTRODUÇÃO: A principal manifestação clínica da doença aterosclerótica é o infarto agudo do miocárdio, caracterizada como emergência médica, que necessita de diagnóstico correto, rápido, preciso e terapia eficaz. Os estudos de transcriptoma e proteoma possibilitam obter informações que nos permite compreender de forma mais abrangente a evolução fisiopatológica das doenças, sendo as cardiovasculares particularmente favorecidas por terem etiologia multifatorial e sem dúvida multigênica, portanto a utilização destas ferramentas num modelo de doença aguda pode auxiliar, de forma singular, na obtenção de novas informações, tais como novos marcadores precoces de injúria. OBJETIVO: Identificar novos biomarcadores de doenças cardiovasculares através da análise do perfil de expressão de RNAm de células do sangue periférico e proteínas plasmáticas de pacientes com SCA. CASUÍSTICA E MÉTODOS: É um estudo caso-controle de pacientes com SCA recrutados no Pronto-Socorro do Instituto Dante Pazzanese de Cardiologia. Foram recrutados 84 indivíduos com Síndrome Coronariana Aguda (SCA), 47 indivíduos sem doença cardiovascular (grupo controle), de ambos os sexos com idade entre 30 a 65 anos, atendidos no Instituto Dante Pazzanese do Estado de São Paulo - Brasil. A avaliação de expressão gênica global de 10 pacientes e 6 controles (pareados) durante as primeiras 48 h após o IAM foi realizada através dos microarranjos de DNA (sistema Affymetrix) e a análise de plasma por separação em sistema de microarranjos (ProteinChip®), seguida da identificação e quantificação por espectrometria de massa, em sistema SELDI-TOF/MS. Os resultados de microarranjo de DNA foram validados tecnicamente (a partir das mesmas amostras processadas por microarranjo de DNA) e, posteriormente validados biologicamente (a partir das outras amostras não processadas por microarranjo de DNA) através da PCR em tempo real. RESULTADOS: Foram observados ao total 599 genes diferentemente expressos nas primeiras 48 h após IAM. Trinta e três genes foram selecionados e submetidos à validação técnica, sendo que destes, 20 genes foram submetidos à validação biológica através da PCR em tempo real. Os validados foram: ALOX15, AREG, BCL2A1, BCL2L1, CA1, COX7B, ECDHC3,KCNE1, IL18R1, IRS2, MYL4, MMP9 e TREML4. Na análise, foram identificados 479 espectros de proteínas plasmáticas diferentemente expressos em relação ao controle, destes destacam-se 16 possíveis proteínas correspondentes ao peso molecular entre 6386.5 Da e 17807,7 Da. CONCLUSÃO: Os resultados desses estudos sugerem novos marcadores para avaliação da síndrome coronariana aguda e provavelmente com valor prognóstico importante. / BACKGROUND: The main clinical manifestation of atherosclerosis is the acute myocardial infarction (AMI), which is a medical emergency that requires prompt diagnosis and efficient therapy. The transcriptomic and proteomic approaches are both powerful tools for the study of AMI and may be instrumental to identify news biomarkers involved in the inflammatory and apoptotic process of cardiovascular diseases. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to determine the gene expression of RNAm and protein in blood cells following an AMI to identify new biomarkers. PATIENTS AND METHODS: For this study eighty four patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and forty seven control individuals were selected among patients of the Instituto Dante Pazzanese, São Paulo state, Brazil. A global gene expression profile by GeneChip® Exon 1.0 ST Array (Affymetrix) and proteomic plasma profile by ProteinChip® Biomarker System and SELDI-TOF/MS were evaluated for ten patients from the ACS group and six from the control group. These patients were followed up for the first 48 h following the AMI. The genes differently expressed by microarray analysis were submitted to technical (same casuistic) and biologic (new casuistic) validation by PCR real time. RESULTS: 599 genes were differentially expressed at the first 48 h after AMI. Thirty-three genes were selected and submitted to the technical validation, and 20 were subjected to biological validation by real time PCR afterwards. The validated ones were: ALOX15, Areg, BCL2A1, BCL2L1, CA1, COX7B, ECDHC3, KCNE1, IL18R1, IRS2, MYL4, MMP9 and TREML4. At proteomic analysis, 479 peaks of plasma proteins differentially expressed were identified. 16 peaks were considered as high potentially biomarkers. Their molecular weight was between 6386.5 Da and 17807.7 Da. CONCLUSION: Results from this study were able to identify changes in gene and protein profiles in the plasma, and suggest new markers for evaluation of acute coronary syndrome and probably with important prognostic value.

Introdução: O Edema Agudo dos Pulmões Cardiogênico (EAP) é uma condição clínica caracterizada por alta morbidade e mortalidade apesar dos avanços na terapia médica. Relatos de casos sugerem que a Apneia Obstrutiva do Sono (AOS) pode contribuir para desencadear episódios de EAP. No entanto, não existem estudos que avaliaram o impacto da AOS em pacientes com EAP. O objetivo desse estudo foi o de avaliar o impacto da AOS em eventos cardiovasculares após a recuperação de um evento confirmado de EAP. Métodos: No período de Janeiro de 2013 a Janeiro de 2015, recrutamos casos consecutivos de EAP nas Unidades de Emergências de três centros terciários de Cardiologia. Foram excluídos pacientes que não atenderam os critérios clínicos para EAP, pacientes que morreram antes de estudo do sono ou se recusaram a participar do protocolo. Após o tratamento de rotina para EAP e estabilização clínica (~30 dias), todos os pacientes com EAP confirmado foram convidados a realizar a monitorização portátil do sono. A AOS foi definida por um índice de apneia e hipopneia (IAH) >= 15 eventos/hora, excluindo-se casos com apneia predominantemente do tipo central. Realizamos o seguimento dos pacientes em busca de eventos cardiovasculares adotando critérios padronizados. O objetivo primário foi identificar a recorrência do EAP em pacientes com e sem AOS. Objetivos secundários incluíram incidência do infarto agudo do miocárdio (IAM), o óbito total e cardiovascular bem como identificar o período de ocorrência do EAP em pacientes com e sem AOS. Análise de regressão de Cox foi obtida para identificar preditores independentes de eventos. Um valor de p < 0,05 foi considerado estatisticamente significante. Resultados: Avaliamos inicialmente 255 pacientes adultos com suspeita clínica de EAP. Após as exclusões, foram estudados 104 pacientes com diagnóstico confirmado de EAP. A monitorização do sono ocorreu 31±7 dias após o episódio de EAP. A frequência da AOS nestes pacientes foi de 61% (64 pacientes). Destes, apenas 3 pacientes (3%) tinham conhecimento prévio da AOS e nenhum estava sobre tratamento específico para a AOS. Pacientes com e sem AOS não apresentaram diferenças de idade, sexo, índice de massa corpórea e fração de ejeção do ventrículo esquerdo. O seguimento médio foi de 12 ± 7meses. Trinta e um pacientes (30%) tiveram recorrência do EAP no seguimento. Em comparação com indivíduos sem AOS, os pacientes com AOS apresentaram maior recorrência do EAP (6 vs. 25 episódios, p=0,01) e maior incidência de IAM (0 vs. 15 episódios, p=0,0004). Todos os óbitos ocorreram no grupo com AOS (p=0,0001), sendo 17 óbitos totais, dos quais 13 por causas cardiovasculares. A AOS foi independentemente associada com maior recorrência de EAP (HR 3,3; IC 95% 1,2-8,8; p=0,01); incidência de IAM: (HR 2,3; IC 95% 1,1-9,5; p=0,002), óbito total (HR 6,5; 95% CI% 1,2-64,0; p=0,005) e óbito cardiovascular (HR 5,4; IC 95% 1,4-48,4; p=0,004). Entre os pacientes com AOS, aqueles que tiveram recorrência de EAP ou foram à óbito tiveram maior IAH e mais episódios de EAP cujo início dos sintomas ocorreram durante o sono. A análise de sobrevida livre de eventos após o estudo do sono mostrou que o grupo com AOS teve pior prognóstico para recorrência de EAP, incidência de IAM e óbitos totais e por causas cardiovasculares do que pacientes sem AOS. Conclusões: A AOS é muito comum, subdiagnosticada e independentemente associada com maior recorrência do EAP e morbimortalidades em pacientes que sobreviveram a um episódio prévio de EAP / Introduction: Acute cardiogenic pulmonary edema (ACPE) is a clinical condition characterized by high morbidity and mortality despite advancements in medical therapy. Case reports suggest that obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) may contribute to trigger ACPE episodes. However, no previous systematic study evaluated the impact of OSA on patients with ACPE. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of OSA on cardiovascular events after ACPE recovery. Methods: From January 2013 to January 2015, we recruited consecutive cases of ACPE from three Emergency Units Cardiology tertiary hospitals. We excluded patients who did not meet criteria for ACPE, died before sleep study or refused to participate in the protocol. After routine treatment for ACPE and clinical stabilization (~ 30 days), all patients with confirmed ACPE were invited to perform a portable sleep monitoring. OSA was defined by an apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) >= 15 events/hour. We excluded patients with predominantly central apnea. We carried out the follow-up searching for cardiovascular events by adopting standardized criteria. The main aim was ACPE recurrence. Secondary aims included incidence of acute myocardial infarction (AMI), total and cardiovascular deaths as well as differences in the period of occurrence of the ACPE in patients with and without OSA. Cox regression analysis was performed to identify independent predictors of events. A p value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: We initially evaluated 255 adult patients with clinical suspicion of ACPE. After exclusions, 104 patients were studied with a confirmed diagnosis of ACPE. The potable sleep monitoring occurred 31 ± 7 days following the ACPE episode. The frequency of OSA in these patients was 61% (64 patients). Of these, only 3 patients (3%) had prior knowledge of OSA diagnosis. None of them was on specific treatment. Patients with and without OSA showed no differences in age, sex, body mass index and left ventricular ejection fraction. The mean follow-up was 12 ± 7 months. Thirty one patients (30%) presented ACPE recurrence during the follow-up. Compared to individuals without OSA, patients with OSA had higher ACPE recurrence (6 vs. 25 episodes, p = 0.01), higher incidence of AMI (0 vs. 15 episodes, p=0.0004). All 17 deaths (13 from cardiovascular causes) occurred in the OSA group (p=0.0001). OSA was independently associated with higher ACPE recurrence (HR 3.3, 95% CI 1.2 to 8.8; p = 0.01); incidence of AMI (HR 2.3, 95% CI 1.1 to 9.5; p=0.02); total mortality (HR 6.5; 95% CI 1.2 to 164; p=0.005) and cardiovascular death (HR 5.4, 95% CI 1.4 to 48.4; p=0.004). Limiting our analysis to OSA patients, those who had ACPE recurrence or death had higher AHI and more ACPE episodes whose onset of symptoms occurred during sleep. Event-free survival analysis after the sleep study showed that OSA patients had a worse prognosis for ACPE recurrence, AMI incidence, total and cardiovascular mortality than patients without OSA. Conclusions: OSA is very common, underdiagnosed and independently associated with ACPE recurrence and morbimortality in patients with a previous ACPE episode

Made available in DSpace on 2016-01-26T12:51:42Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 rosanagobibruetto_dissert.pdf: 1002931 bytes, checksum: 2f0ecd040d0c3d725a801b5ea3e328e6 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-01-23 / The estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) < 60 mL/min/1.73m2 at admission is associated with increased risk of death after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). However, the role of admission eGFR on the incidence and mortality of acute kidney injury (AKI) after AMI has been poorly studied. The aim of this study is to investigate if impaired admission eGFR influences the incidence and mortality of AKI after AMI. A total of 1.012 consecutive AMI patients from a prospective database were analyzed and 828 subjects were included. The diagnostic criteria for AKI was a percent increase in serum creatinine (SCr) &#8805; 50 % from baseline (RIFLE criteria) in the first seven days of hospitalization. Patients were divided into four subgroups: admission eGFR &#8805; 60 mL/min/1.73m2 and no AKI (reference), admission eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73m2 and no AKI, admission eGFR &#8805; 60 mL/min/1.73m2 and AKI, admission eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73m2 and AKI. Impaired eGFR had no impact in the incidence of AKI. On the other hand, impaired admission eGFR had a striking influence on the mortality of AMI associated with AKI. In Cox multivariate analysis, 30 days mortality was significantly higher for eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73m2 and no AKI (adjusted hazard ratio [AHR] 2.00, p=0.020), for eGFR &#8805; 60 mL/min/1.73m2 and AKI (AHR 4.76, p < 0.001) and for eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73m2 and AKI (AHR 6.27, p < 0.001) compared to patients with eGFR &#8805; 60 mL/min/1.73m2 who did not develop AKI. One year mortality was significantly higher only for eGFR < 60 mL/min/1.73m2 and who developed AKI (AHR 3.05; p=0.002) compared with patients with eGFR &#8805; 60 mL/min/1.73m2 without AKI. In conclusion, overlap of low admission eGFR and AKI development was associated with the worst early prognosis after AMI. Remarkably, the long term mortality rate in patients who developed AKI, was only increased in the group with an impaired admission eGFR. / A Taxa de filtração glomerular estimada (TFGe) < 60 mL/min/1,73m2 na admissão hospitalar está associada a risco aumentado de morte em pacientes vítimas de infarto agudo do miocárdio (IAM). No entanto, a possível influência da TFGe à admissão hospitalar na incidência e na mortalidade da lesão renal aguda (LRA) associada a IAM é pouco conhecida. O objetivo deste estudo é investigar se a presença da TFGe diminuída à admissão hospitalar influencia a incidência e a mortalidade associada a LRA após IAM. Foram avaliados 1.012 pacientes consecutivos de um banco de dados prospectivo e 828 pacientes preencheram os critérios de inclusão. O critério diagnóstico de LRA foi o aumento de creatinina sérica (CrS) &#8805; 50% do valor basal (critério RIFLE), durante os primeiros sete dias de internação. Os pacientes foram divididos em quatro grupos após estimar a TFG na admissão: TFGe &#8805; 60 mL/min/1,73m2 e sem LRA (referência); TFGe < 60 mL/min/1,73m2 e sem LRA; TFGe &#8805; 60 mL/min/1,73m2 e que desenvolveram LRA; TFGe < 60 mL/min/1,73m2 e que desenvolveram LRA. A TFGe diminuída na admissão não teve impacto na incidência da LRA. Por outro lado, a TFGe diminuída na admissão foi associada às taxas de mortalidade mais elevadas em pacientes que desenvolveram LRA após IAM. Na análise múltipla de Cox, os grupos que apresentaram associação independente com mortalidade em 30 dias foram: TFGe < 60 mL/min/1,73m2 e sem LRA (hazard ratio ajustada [HRA] 2,00; p=0,020), TFGe &#8805; 60 mL/min/1,73m2 e que desenvolveram LRA (HRA 4,76; p < 0,001) e TFGe < 60 mL/min/1,73m2 com desenvolvimento de LRA (HRA 6,27; p< 0,001) em comparação com pacientes com TFGe &#8805; 60 mL/min/1,73m2 que não desenvolveram LRA. Em um ano, apenas o grupo com TFGe < 60 mL/min/1,73m2 e que desenvolveu LRA apresentou maior mortalidade (HRA 3,05; p=0,002) em comparação aos pacientes com TFGe &#8805; 60 mL/min/1,73m2 e que não desenvolveram LRA. Concluímos que a associação entre TFGe diminuída na admissão e o desenvolvimento de LRA foram associados a um pior prognóstico a curto prazo após o IAM. Entre os pacientes que desenvolveram LRA foi observado aumento na mortalidade a longo prazo somente no grupo com TFGe diminuída na admissão.

<p>The cardiac troponins are the biochemical markers of choice for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and risk prediction in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). In this thesis, the role of early serial cardiac troponin I (cTnI) testing was assessed in fairly unselected patient populations admitted because of chest pain and participating in the FAST II-study (n=197) and the FASTER I-study (n=380). Additionally, the importance of cTnI testing in stable post-ACS patients from the FRISC II-study (n=1092) was studied.</p><p>The analyses in chest pain patients demonstrate that cTnI is very useful for early diagnostic and prognostic assessment. cTnI allowed already 2 hours after admission the reliable exclusion of AMI and the identification of low-risk patients when ECG findings and a renal marker such as cystatin C were added as conjuncts. Other biomarkers such as CK-MB, myoglobin, NT-pro BNP or CRP did not provide superior clinical information. However, myoglobin may be valuable in combination with cTnI results for the early prediction of an impending major AMI when used as input variable for an artificial neural network. Such an approach applying cTnI results only may also furthermore improve the early diagnosis of AMI.</p><p>Persistent cTnI elevation > 0.01 μg/L was detectable using a high-sensitive assay in 26% of the stable post-ACS patients from the FRISC II-study. NT-pro BNP levels at 6 months were the most important variable independently associated to persistent cTnI elevation besides male gender, indicating a relationship between adverse left ventricular remodeling processes and cTnI leakage. Patients with persistent cTnI elevation had a considerable risk for both mortality and AMI during 5 year follow-up. </p><p>These analyses thus, confirm the value of cTnI for early assessment of chest pain patients and provide new and unique evidence regarding the role of cTnI for risk prediction in post-ACS populations.</p>

The cardiac troponins are the biochemical markers of choice for the diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and risk prediction in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). In this thesis, the role of early serial cardiac troponin I (cTnI) testing was assessed in fairly unselected patient populations admitted because of chest pain and participating in the FAST II-study (n=197) and the FASTER I-study (n=380). Additionally, the importance of cTnI testing in stable post-ACS patients from the FRISC II-study (n=1092) was studied. The analyses in chest pain patients demonstrate that cTnI is very useful for early diagnostic and prognostic assessment. cTnI allowed already 2 hours after admission the reliable exclusion of AMI and the identification of low-risk patients when ECG findings and a renal marker such as cystatin C were added as conjuncts. Other biomarkers such as CK-MB, myoglobin, NT-pro BNP or CRP did not provide superior clinical information. However, myoglobin may be valuable in combination with cTnI results for the early prediction of an impending major AMI when used as input variable for an artificial neural network. Such an approach applying cTnI results only may also furthermore improve the early diagnosis of AMI. Persistent cTnI elevation &gt; 0.01 μg/L was detectable using a high-sensitive assay in 26% of the stable post-ACS patients from the FRISC II-study. NT-pro BNP levels at 6 months were the most important variable independently associated to persistent cTnI elevation besides male gender, indicating a relationship between adverse left ventricular remodeling processes and cTnI leakage. Patients with persistent cTnI elevation had a considerable risk for both mortality and AMI during 5 year follow-up. These analyses thus, confirm the value of cTnI for early assessment of chest pain patients and provide new and unique evidence regarding the role of cTnI for risk prediction in post-ACS populations.

The scientific novelty of the study A large number of reports have demonstrated that depressed heart rate variability after myocardial infarction (MI), left ventricular dysfunction and arrhythmias are powerful predictors of mortality. Nevertheless there is a lack of detailed assessment of heart rate variability in the acute period of MI, especially during the first 24 hours, from long-term (24-h) recordings, and the value of different parameters of heart rate variability in predicting dangerous complications of MI was not fully evaluated. The indications of complex and constant monitoring of heart rate variability, left ventricular function, arrhythmias in acute MI are not based on scientific studies as well as their value in predicting the effect of different methods of management, course and outcomes of critical cardiac conditions. Thus, the current study differs from all the earlier studies in that we assessed heart rate variability in the very early period of myocardial infarction (the first and the third day) using long time recordings (24 h), both – time-domain and frequency-domain –methods, and evaluated its changes in relation to arrhythmias and left ventricular function, using not only conventional 2D-echocardiography but also left ventricular long axis function assessment by M-mode and tissue Doppler imaging. The aim of the study The aim of the study was to determine the association between heart rate variability, cardiac arrhythmias and left ventricular... [to full text]