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Abstract Aims Intestinal oedema is one of the manifestations associated with right‐sided heart failure (HF), which is known to be associated with poorer patient outcomes. We attempted to reveal the association between intestinal oedema and diuretic resistance in hospitalized patients with acute HF. Methods and results Among 213 hospitalized patients with acute HF, abdominal ultrasonography was performed under clinically stable conditions after initial HF treatments. The association among abdominal ultrasonographic parameters, maintenance doses of loop diuretics, and responsiveness to initial loop diuretic treatment was evaluated. Higher mean colon wall thickness (CWT) independently correlated with a higher dose of loop diuretics at enrolment (adjusted β = 0.198, P = 0.0004). Increased mean CWT also correlated with poor response to oral loop diuretics as an initial treatment, whereas it did not correlate with the response to intravenous loop diuretics. Discrimination of non‐responders to initial oral loop diuretics resulted in a sensitivity of 0.772 and a specificity of 0.733 using a mean CWT cut‐off value of ≥3 mm. Conclusions In hospitalized patients with acute HF, a strong correlation was identified among the severity of intestinal oedema, required quantities as maintenance loop diuretic doses, and poor responsiveness to oral loop diuretics at admission.

Abstract Background Prediction of atrioventricular block (AVB) resolution after steroid therapy in patients with cardiac sarcoidosis (CS) is difficult. Methods We identified 24 patients with CS and complete or advanced AVB receiving steroid therapy. AVB resolution was assessed by reviewing surface electrocardiogram and the percentage of ventricular pacing required on subsequent device interrogation reports. Results AVB resolution was noted in eight (33%) patients 1 year after receiving steroid therapy. Univariate Cox regression analysis demonstrated that left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (hazard ratio [HR] 1.07, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.01‐1.14, P = .016), interval from recognized AVB to start of steroid therapy (HR 0.98, 95% CI 0.95‐0.99, P

Abstract Aims This study aimed to evaluate the clinical parameters including late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) of cardiovascular magnetic resonance to predict re‐worsening of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Methods and results We included 138 patients with recent‐onset DCM who had an LVEF 10% from baseline, resulting in LVEF ≧45% after treatment. The patients were divided into three groups: (i) improved (n = 83, 60%), defined as those with sustained LVEF ≧45%; (ii) re‐worsening (n = 39, 28%), those with >5% decrease and LVEF