Search

Introduction: This pilot study explores whether left ventricular global longitudinal strain (LV GLS), measured by two-dimensional (2D) speckle-tracking echocardiography (STE), can predict cardiovascular events in patients with left ventricular systolic dysfunction (LVSD), including those with ischemic and nonischemic dilated cardiomyopathy, postvalve surgery, and chemotherapy recipients, compared to traditional parameters such as left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and wall motion score index (WMSI). Materials and Methods: This retrospective study included 45 patients from a tertiary care center, with global longitudinal strain measurements taken between July 2022 and October 2023. Echocardiographic data, including LV-GLS, LVEF, and WMSI, were collected, alongside monitoring for cardiovascular events such as heart failure hospitalizations, cardiac mortality, and all-cause mortality. Results: In a study involving 45 patients (mean age: 57.9 years, 31.1% females), 17.8% experienced events. Patients with events exhibited significantly lower LV GLS values (P = 0.002), reduced LVEF (P = 0.002), and higher WMSI (P = 0.001). Mortality was higher in patients with LVEF

Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is a common congenital heart disease, presenting with symptoms of increased pulmonary blood flow in infancy and childhood. In adults PDA if it is small detected accidentally because of the continuous murmur or if PDA is large they develop severe pulmonary vascular disease and develop Eisenmenger syndrome. Very few patients with large PDA present with dilated cardiomyopathy without pulmonary hypertension. Herewith, we report a case of large PDA who presented with symptoms of heart failure without pulmonary vascular disease and manage successfully with percutaneous device closure.

Cardiologists frequently encounter intracardiac thrombi in the course of their work. Along with tumor and vegetation, it is one of the most frequent differential diagnoses for intracardiac masses. Cardioembolic stroke patients frequently have intracardiac thrombi in the left ventricle. Although the potential for cerebral emboli persists in a large population of patients with chronic left ventricular (LV) dysfunction, the risk of LV thrombus formation is highest during the first 3 months after acute myocardial infarction. The main risk factors for the development of left atrial thrombi are rheumatic valvular disease, especially mitral stenosis and atrial fibrillation. Right heart chamber thrombi may develop in situ or occur when peripheral venous clots that are on their way to the lungs become stuck, leading to acute pulmonary embolism, and their incidence ranges from 4% to 18%. We are presenting five cases that represent a broad range of clinical circumstances involving intracardiac thrombus. When performed during systole and diastole, echocardiography can detect thrombus as a discrete, echo-dense mass with clearly defined borders that is separate from the endocardium. Since dimensions, shape, regularity or irregularity, and homogeneity are all characteristic features that define the embolic risk and therapeutic management, the morphology and structure of thrombi should be carefully assessed.