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Background: Cardiovascular events have been reported in the setting of coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19). It has been hypothesized that systemic inflammation may aggravate arrhythmias or trigger new-onset conduction abnormalities. However, the specific type and distribution of electrocardiographic disturbances in COVID-19 as well as their influence on mortality remain to be fully characterized.Methods: Electrocardiograms (ECGs) were obtained from 186 COVID-19-positive patients at a large tertiary care hospital in Northern Nevada. The following arrhythmias were identified by cardiologists: sinus bradycardia, sinus tachycardia, atrial fibrillation (A-Fib), atrial flutter, multifocal atrial tachycardia (MAT), premature atrial contraction (PAC), premature ventricular contraction (PVC), atrioventricular block (AVB), and right bundle branch block (RBBB). The mean PR interval, QRS duration, and corrected QT interval were documented. Fisher's exact test was used to compare the ECG features of patients who died during the hospitalization with those who survived. The influence of ECG features on mortality was assessed with multivariable logistic regression analysis.Results: A-Fib, atrial flutter, and ST-segment depression were predictive of mortality. In addition, the mean ventricular rate was higher among patients who died as compared to those who survived. The use of therapeutic anticoagulation was associated with reduced odds of death; however, this association did not reach statistical significance.Conclusion: The underlying pathogenesis of COVID-19-associated arrhythmias remains to be established, but we postulate that systemic inflammation and/or hypoxia may induce potentially lethal conduction abnormalities in affected individuals. Longitudinal studies are warranted to evaluate the risk factors, pathogenesis, and management of COVID-19-associated cardiac arrhythmias. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is a lack of research comparing procedural outcomes of surgical ablation (SA) and catheter ablation (CA) among patients with heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) and atrial fibrillation (AF). The main objective was to compare the short‐term procedural outcomes of SA and CA in patients with HFrEF. Methods: We used the national inpatient sample to identify hospitalizations over 18 years with HFrEF hospitalization and AF, and undergoing SA and CA from 2016 to 2017. Furthermore, the clinical outcomes of SA vs CA in AF stratified as nonparoxysmal and paroxysmal were analyzed. Results: A total of 1,770 HFrEF hospitalizations with AF who underwent SA and 1,620 HFrEF hospitalizations with AF who underwent CA were included in the analysis. Hospitalizations with CA had higher baseline comorbidities. The in‐hospital mortality among HFrEF with AF undergoing SA as compared with CA was similar (2.8% vs 1.9%, respectively, adjusted P‐value 0.09). Hospitalizations with SA had a significantly longer length of hospital stay, a higher percentage of postprocedural, and cardiac complications. In HFrEF hospitalizations with nonparoxysmal AF, SA as compared with CA was associated with a higher percentage of in‐hospital mortality (2.4% vs 1%, adjusted P‐value <.05), a longer length of stay, a higher cost of treatment, and a higher percentage of cardiac complications. Conclusion: CA is associated with lower in‐hospital adverse procedural outcomes as compared with SA among HFrEF hospitalizations with AF. Further research with freedom from AF as one of the outcome is needed between two groups for HFrEF. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: We sought to describe the burden of arrhythmias and their impact on in‐hospital outcomes in transgender patients who underwent gender re‐assignment surgery. Methods: The study utilized data from the National Inpatient Sample from January 2012 to September 2015. Results: 16 555 adult transgender patients were included in this study. A total of 610 adults developed arrhythmia out of which atrial fibrillation (N = 475, 2.87%) was the most frequent arrhythmia. In‐hospital mortality increased substantially with arrhythmias. Conclusions: New‐onset arrythmias, while infrequent in the inpatient setting is associated with significantly higher in‐hospital mortality and resource utilization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diffuse large B‐cell lymphoma often presents with extranodal manifestations involving the musculoskeletal system. Shoulder pain is particularly worrisome for malignancy. Individuals presenting with refractory upper extremity complaints should undergo a prompt and thorough evaluation for cancer, as a delay in diagnosis can result in an unfavorable outcome. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]