			Home About us Contact

Pattern Compatible (pattern + compatible)

Distribution by Scientific Domains

Medical Sciences	75%

Selected Abstracts

Typical Atrial Flutter Ablation: Conduction Across the Posterior Region of the Inferior Vena Cava Orifice May Mimic Unidirectional Isthmus Block

JOURNAL OF CARDIOVASCULAR ELECTROPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 4 2000
MARCO SCAGLIONE M.D.
Atrial Flutter Mapping. Introduction: The aim of this study was to map the low right atrium before and after radiofrequency ablation of the inferior vena cava-tricuspid annulus (IVC-TA) isthmus in patients with typical atrial flutter (AFI) to better understand the electrophysiologic meaning of incomplete or unidirectional block following the ablation procedure and its relationship with AFI recurrence. Methods and Results: We performed atrial mapping in 12 patients using a "basket" catheter in the IVC orifice, Halo catheter in the right atrium, and multipolar catheters in the coronary sinus (CS) and His region. In patients in sinus rhythm, atrial activation was analyzed during pacing from the CS and low lateral right atrium (KLRA) before and after ablation. Atrial activation propagated across the isthmus and posterior region of the IVC orifice simultaneously before ablation. Mapping during AFI in four patients showed that the crista terminalis was a site of functional block. After ablation, evaluation of Halo catheter recordings in three patients showed apparent unidirectional counterclockwise block, whereas analysis of basket catheter recordings demonstrated complete bidirectional block. The apparent conduction over the isthmus during pacing from proximal CS was due to conduction along the posterior part of the IVC orifice, which activated the LLRA despite complete isthmus block. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that limited endocardial mapping may yield a pattern compatible with unidirectional block in the IVC-TA isthmus, although bidirectional block is present at this anatomic level. [source]

Antimitochondrial antibodies in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection: description of 18 cases and review of the literature

JOURNAL OF VIRAL HEPATITIS, Issue 6 2005
M. Ramos-Casals
Summary., To describe the clinical and immunologic patterns of disease expression of patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and positive antimitochondrial antibodies (AMA). We investigated the presence of AMA in 237 consecutive HCV patients with extrahepatic manifestations from an International Registry. AMA were detected by indirect immunofluorescence in triple rat tissue (liver, stomach and kidney), aceton-fixed criosections and FITC-conjugated rabbit anti-human immunoglobulins. We found positive AMA in 18 (8%) out of 237 HCV patients. All patients were female with a mean age at protocol inclusion of 65.8 years (ranging from 37 to 87 years). Twelve (67%) patients fulfilled classification criteria for systemic autoimmune diseases (SAD), including Sjögren's syndrome (n = 7), systemic sclerosis (n = 3) and systemic lupus erythematosus (n = 2). Fourteen (78%) of the HCV-AMA patients presented at least one of the highly suggestive characteristics of primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC): 9 (50%) had a specific M2 pattern, 6 (33%) had more than twice normal levels of alkaline phosphatase, 5 (28%) had raised IgM levels and 4 (22%) a histological pattern compatible with PBC. Five (28%) patients developed neoplasia after detection of AMA. Seven (39%) patients died, due to neoplasia (n = 4), cirrhotic complications (n = 2) and hepatopulmonary syndrome (n = 1). We describe a subset of HCV patients with positive AMA who presented a broad spectrum of clinical features, including liver, autoimmune and neoplasic manifestations. Two-thirds of these patients presented an associated SAD, mainly Sjögren's syndrome or systemic sclerosis, together with a high frequency of multiple autoantibodies and an increased prevalence of cirrhosis and neoplasia. [source]

Prader-Willi syndrome: is there a recognizable fetal phenotype?

PRENATAL DIAGNOSIS, Issue 9 2008
Nicole Bigi
Abstract Objectives To determine fetal features, which could lead to the diagnosis of Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) during pregnancy. Methods We analyze the ultrasound features, genetic studies and pathologic findings in two cases of PWS diagnosed during pregnancy. Results In the first case, diminished fetal movement, polyhydramnios and oddly positioned hands and feet suggested PWS. Methylation studies confirmed diagnosis and a deletion was detected in the 15q11-q13 region. In the second case, similar ultrasound findings led to prenatal diagnosis of PWS with an abnormal methylation pattern compatible with uniparental disomy. Both fetuses had a characteristic appearance at 28 and 30 weeks' gestation, which included a peculiar position of hands with flexed wrists and dorsi-extended feet with flexed toes. Conclusions The peculiar position of the extremities combined with diminished fetal movement and polyhydramnios seems to be characteristic and should suggest PWS. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source]

The skin as a mirror of the ageing process in the human organism , results of the ageing research in the German National Genome Research Network 2

EXPERIMENTAL DERMATOLOGY, Issue 8 2006
CH. C. Zouboulis
Intrinsic human skin ageing is influenced by the individual genetic predisposition and reflects degradation processes of the body. Hormones are decisively involved in intrinsic ageing with reduced secretion of pituitary, adrenal glands, and gonads, which leads to characteristic body and skin phenotypes. A number of advances were recently made in understanding skin ageing mechanisms and major molecular changes, especiallly of the extracellular matrix, were identified. Gene expression patterns compatible with mitotic misregulation and alterations in intracellular transport and metabolism were identified in fibroblasts of ageing humans and humans with progeria. Age-associated changes of extracellular matrix of the skin correlate well with changes been detected in the extracellular matrix of other organs of the human body. Within the National Genome Research Network 2 (NGFN-2) in Germany, the explorative project ,Genetic etiology of human longevity' targets the identification of age-related molecular pathways. For this purpose, skin models of ageing are used. Expression profiling employing cDNA microarrays from known and novel genes and RT-PCR are employed for gene detection and confirmation. Among the potential candidate genes several interesting target genes have been identified. The evaluation of ageing-associated genes in skin models will facilitate the understanding of global molecular ageing mechanisms in the future. [source]