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Abstract: Sinus of Valsalva aneurysm is a rare congenital defect and the diagnosis is usually made after it ruptures. Very few cases of non-complicated sinus of Valsalva aneurysm have been published. The anomaly most often involves the right coronary sinus and less frequently the non-coronary sinus. A case with left sinus of Valsalva has not been reported. Since the aortic valve occupies a central position in the base of the heart, rupture of a sinus of Valsalva aneurysm can occur in any of the four heart chambers. Rupture into the pulmonary artery is very rare and is mostly associated with other congenital cardiopathies. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Background: The natural history of atherosclerosis has not clearly been elucidated yet. Some works reported that flogosis plays a role in plaque instability. Why does this inflammatory process start? We investigated the correlation between Chlamydia pneumoniae acute infection and plaque rupture., Methods: We compared blood concentrations of IgM anti-Chlamydia pneumoniae in patients affected by acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and in patients affected by stable angina., Results: Our results showed a minimal statistical difference, with a more positive value in patients with AMI. Subsequently, the group affected by AMI was divided into two subgroups with and without plaque rupture: the subgroup with plaque rupture showed a higher blood concentration of Chlamydia antibodies. This subgroup was also divided into two other subgroups according to blood white cell concentration: the subgroup with normal concentration of white blood cells showed the highest value of Chlamydia antibodies., Conclusions: Chlamydia pneumoniae could play an important role in atherosclerotic plaque instability

Tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy is a recently described disease characterized by chest pain, transient left ventricular dysfunction and specific electrocardiographic changes. The disease takes its name from the typical left apical ballooning observed at left ventriculogram. Tako-tsubo cardiomyopathy was first described by Sato in 1990. Since then sporadic cases were reported by Japanese authors, and only a few European publications are available. We describe 2 cases of patients affected by this syndrome.