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We present the final band-merged European Large-Area ISO Survey (ELAIS) Catalogue at 6.7, 15, 90 and 175 μm, and the associated data at U, g′, r′, i′, Z, J, H, K and 20 cm. The origin of the survey, infrared and radio observations, data-reduction and optical identifications are briefly reviewed, and a summary of the area covered and the completeness limit for each infrared band is given. A detailed discussion of the band-merging and optical association strategy is given. The total Catalogue consists of 3762 sources. 23 per cent of the 15-μm sources and 75 per cent of the 6.7-μm sources are stars. For extragalactic sources observed in three or more infrared bands, colour-colour diagrams are presented and discussed in terms of the contributing infrared populations. Spectral energy distributions (SEDs) are shown for selected sources and compared with cirrus, M82 and Arp220 starburst, and active galactic nuclei (AGN) dust torus models. Spectroscopic redshifts are tabulated, where available. For the N1 and N2 areas, the Isaac Newton Telescope ugriz Wide Field Survey permits photometric redshifts to be estimated for galaxies and quasars. These agree well with the spectroscopic redshifts, within the uncertainty of the photometric method [∼ 10 per cent in (1 + z) for galaxies]. The redshift distribution is given for selected ELAIS bands and colour-redshift diagrams are discussed. There is a high proportion of ultraluminous infrared galaxies (log 10 of 1-1000 μm luminosity L ir > 12.22) in the ELAIS Catalogue (14 per cent of 15-μm galaxies with known z), many with Arp220-like SEDs. 10 per cent of the 15-μm sources are genuine optically blank fields to r′ = 24: these must have very high infrared-to-optical ratios and probably have z > 0.6, so are high-luminosity dusty starbursts or Type 2 AGN. Nine hyperluminous infrared galaxies (L ir > 13.22) and nine extremely red objects (EROs) (r - K > 6) are found in the survey. The latter are interpreted as ultraluminous dusty infrared galaxies at z ∼ 1. The large numbers of ultraluminous galaxies imply very strong evolution in the star formation rate between z = 0 and 1. There is also a surprisingly large population of luminous (L ir > 11.5), cool (cirrus-type SEDs) galaxies, with L ir - L opt > 0, implying A v > 1.

We present a new analysis of the ISOCAM 14.3 micron deep survey in a 20x20 square arcmins area in the Lockman Hole. This survey is intermediate between the ultra-deep surveys and the shallow surveys in the ELAIS fields. The data have been analyzed with the method presented by Lari et al. (2001). We have produced a catalogue of 283 sources detected above the 5-sigma threshold, with fluxes in the interval 0.1-8 mJy. The catalogue is 90% complete at 1 mJy. The positional accuracy, estimated from the cross-correlation of infrared and optical sources, is around 1.5 arcsec. The search for the optical counterparts of the sources in the survey is performed on a medium-deep r' band optical image (5-sigma depth of r'=25), making use of the radio detections when available. The photometry has been checked through simulations and by comparing the data with those presented in a shallower and more extended ISOCAM survey in the Lockman Hole, that we have presented in a companion paper. Only 15% of the 14.3 micron sources do not have an optical counterpart down to r'=25 mag. We use the 6.7/14.3 micron colour as a star/galaxy separator, together with a visual inspection of the optical image and an analysis of the observed Spectral Energy Distribution of the ISOCAM sources. The stars in the sample turn out to be only 6% of the sample. We discuss the 14.3 micron counts of extragalactic sources, combining our catalogue with that obtained from the shallower ISOCAM survey. The data in the two surveys are consistent, and our results fully support the claims in previous works for the existence of an evolving population of infrared galaxies, confirming the evident departure from non-evolutionary model predictions., Comment: Version accepted by Astronomy and Astrophysics. Images have been heavily degraded to fill the archive size. A full resolution version can be downloaded at the following link http://dipastro.pd.astro.it/giulia/Deep/1252.ps.gz

We report results from a new analysis of a deep 95-’¦Ìm imaging survey with the photopolarimeter ISOPHOT on-board the Infrared Space Observatory, over a 40 × 40 arcmin2 area within the Lockman Hole. To this end we exploit a newly developed parametric algorithm able to identify and clean spurious signals induced by cosmic rays impacts and by transient effects and non-linearities in the detectors. These results provide us with the currently deepest - to our knowledge - far-infrared (far-IR) image of the extragalactic sky. Within the survey area, we detect 36 sources with signal-to-noise ratio S/N > 3 (corresponding to a flux of 16 mJy), making up a complete flux-limited sample for S95’¦Ìm>= 100 mJy. Reliable sources are detected, with decreasing but well-controlled completeness, down to S95’¦Ìm~= 20 mJy. The source extraction process and the completeness, the photometric and astrometric accuracies of this catalogue have been tested by us with extensive simulations accounting for all the details of the procedure. We estimate source counts down to a flux of ~30 mJy, at which limit we evaluate that 10-20 per cent of the cosmic IR background (CIRB) has been resolved into sources (contributing to the CIRB intensity ~=2.0 × 10-9 W m-2 sr-1). The 95-’¦Ìm galaxy counts reveal a steep slope at S95’¦Ìm

Background — Percutaneous mitral balloon valvuloplasty (PMV) results in good immediate results, particularly in patients with echocardiographic scores (Echo-Sc) ≤8. However, which variables relate to long-term outcome is unclear. Methods and Results — We report the immediate and long-term clinical follow-up (mean, 4.2±3.7 years; range, 0.5 to 15) of 879 patients who underwent 939 PMV procedures. Patients were divided into 2 groups, Echo-Sc ≤8 (n=601) and Echo-Sc >8 (n=278). PMV resulted in an increase in mitral valve area from 1.0±0.3 to 2.0±0.6 cm 2 in patients with Echo-Sc ≤8 and from 0.8±0.3 to 1.6±0.6 cm 2 in patients with Echo-Sc >8 ( P P 8, age, prior surgical commissurotomy, NYHA functional class IV, pre-PMV mitral regurgitation ≥2+, and higher post-PMV pulmonary artery pressure as independent predictors of combined events at long-term follow-up. Conclusions — The immediate and long-term outcome of patients undergoing PMV is multifactorial. The use of the Echo-Sc in conjunction with other clinical and morphological predictors of PMV outcome allows identification of patients who will obtain the best outcome from PMV.

OBJECTIVES The purpose of this study was to determine whether small reference diameter of the culprit coronary artery influences the outcome of an attempted percutaneous revascularization procedure in the current era of interventional cardiology. BACKGROUND Although the interventional strategy is largely determined by the size of the culprit coronary artery, earlier quantitative studies have not shown a worse acute outcome for small reference vessel diameter (≤2.5 mm). METHODS A total of 2,306 patients undergoing percutaneous coronary revascularization was divided in groups with reference diameters ≤2.5 mm (n = 813) or >2.5 mm (n = 1,493). Success and in-hospital major adverse cardiac event (death, Q-wave myocardial infarction and emergency coronary artery bypass graft) rates between both groups were compared. RESULTS Patients with lesions in small vessels were older and presented more frequently with female gender, diabetes mellitus, heart failure, peripheral vascular, multivessel coronary disease and American Heart Association/American College of Cardiology (AHA/ACC) lesion type C (p ≤ 0.01, each). Further, utilization of interventional devices differed markedly. In contrast to stents (18.5% vs. 41.9%) and directional atherectomy (3.7% vs. 13.5%), conventional balloon angioplasty (73% vs. 50%) and rotational atherectomy (16.1% vs. 8.3%) were used more often in smaller vessels (p ≤ 0.0001, each). Success rate was lower in the small vessel group (92% vs. 95%; p = 0.006). Major adverse cardiac events occurred more frequently in small than large vessels (univariate 3.4% vs. 2.0%, p = 0.03; multivariate odds ratio 2.1, p = 0.02), particularly when proximal coronary segments were compared. CONCLUSIONS Lesions in vessels with small reference diameter represent a distinct group with respect to clinical and morphologic characteristics as well as device utilization. These lesions have lower chances of successful percutaneous intervention and carry relatively higher risks, specifically when located in proximal coronary segments.

There is controversy as to whether the double-balloon or Inoue technique of percutaneous mitral balloon valvotomy (PMBV) provides superior immediate and long-term results. This study compares the immediate procedural and long-term outcomes of patients undergoing PMBV using the double-balloon versus the Inoue techniques. Seven hundred thirty-four consecutive patients who underwent PMBV using the double-balloon (n = 621) or Inoue technique (n = 113) were studied. There were no statistically significant differences in baseline clinical and morphologic characteristics between the double-balloon and Inoue patients. The double-balloon technique resulted in superior immediate outcome, as reflected in a larger post-PMBV mitral valve area (1.9 +/- 0.7 vs 1.7 +/- 0.6 cm2; p = 0.005) and a lower incidence of 3+ mitral regurgitation after PMBV (5.4% vs 10.6%; p = 0.05). This superior immediate outcome of the double-balloon technique was observed only in the group of patients with echocardiographic score < or = 8 (post-PMBV mitral valve areas 2.1 +/- 0.7 vs 1.8 +/- 0.6; p = 0.004). Despite the difference in immediate outcome, there were no significant differences in event-free survival at long-term follow-up between the 2 techniques. Our study demonstrates that compared with the Inoue technique, the double-balloon technique results in a larger mitral valve area and less degree of severe mitral regurgitation after PMBV. Despite the difference in immediate outcome between both techniques, there were no significant differences in event-free survival at long-term follow-up.

This study compares the immediate and long-term outcomes of a primary coronary stenting strategy with primary balloon angioplasty with stent bailout in the treatment of patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). One hundred forty-seven consecutive patients who underwent primary balloon angioplasty with stent bailout (n = 94) or primary stenting (n = 53) for AMI were clinically followed for 8.1 +/- 5.7 and 8.5 +/- 4.5 months, respectively. Immediate results, as well as in-hospital and long-term ischemic events (death, reinfarction, and repeat revascularization) were compared between both groups. Angiographic success was 91.5% in the balloon angioplasty group and 94% in the stent group. In-hospital and late follow-up combined ischemic events were 22 of 94 (23%) versus 0 of 53 (0%); p < 0.001 and 33 of 78 (42%) versus 13 of 53 (25%), p = 0.04 for the balloon angioplasty and stent groups, respectively. At 6 months, the cumulative probability of repeat target lesion revascularization was higher in the balloon angioplasty group (47% vs 18%, p = 0.0006) as was the probability of late target revascularization (36% vs 18%, p = 0.046); the cumulative event-free survival after 6 months was significantly lower in the balloon angioplasty group (44% vs 80%, p = 0.0001). This study demonstrates that a primary stent placement strategy in patients with AMI is safe, feasible, and superior to primary balloon angioplasty with stent bailout. Primary stenting results in a larger postprocedural minimal luminal diameter, a lower early and late recurrent ischemic event rate, and a lower incidence of target lesion revascularization at follow-up.

Traditionally, procedural risks associated with conventional balloon coronary angioplasty have been largely attributed to unfavorable lesion morphology. However, factors predicting adverse events in the current practice of percutaneous coronary revascularization are unclear. The present study was undertaken to determine factors predicting major adverse events (death or Q-wave myocardial infarction or emergency bypass surgery) in 3,335 consecutive patients undergoing percutaneous coronary revascularization in the current practice of percutaneous coronary revascularization. During the period of observation, the rate of lesions treated successfully increased from 91% to 95% (P < 0.0001), whereas the rate of major adverse events (MACE) decreased from 3.6% to 1.6% (odds ratio [OR], 0.70 per year). Using multiple stepwise logistic regression analysis, cardiogenic shock (OR, 8.59; confidence interval [CI], 4.27-17.27), renal disease (OR, 3.33; CI, 1.95-5.69), evolving myocardial infarction (OR, 2.80; CI, 1.47-5.31), congestive heart failure (OR, 2.18; CI, 1.23-3.86), total number of lesions treated (OR, 1.28; CI, 1.03-1.59), age (OR, 1.03; CI, 1.01-1.06), and history of prior coronary intervention (OR, 0.51; CI 0.26-0.99) were identified as independent predictors of MACE. In addition, vascular disease (OR, 2. 48; CI 1.37-4.50) and unstable angina pectoris (OR, 0.44; CI 0.25-0. 79) were related to adverse events when patients in cardiogenic shock were excluded from the model. With the exception of most unfavorable lesion morphology (AHA/ACC lesion type C; OR, 2.05; CI, 1.19-3.52), anatomic parameters added no further information. In the present era of device technology, success rates of percutaneous coronary revascularization procedures have increased and remain to be determined by lesion morphology. In contrast, the rate of MACE is declining and best predicted by easily identified patient characteristics.