Ventricular rate smoothing for atrial fibrillation: a quantitative comparison study.

AIMS: To quantitatively compare the ventricular rate-smoothing (VRS) effects of different ventricular pacing (VP) protocols for atrial fibrillation (AF). METHODS AND RESULTS: Using a recently developed open-source model that can simulate the ventricular response in AF and VP, the performance of fixed-rate pacing and four previously published VRS algorithms were assessed by the mean RR (mRR), the root mean square of successive RR differences (RMSSD), the percentage of ventricular senses (VS%), and the percentage of short RR intervals (sRR%). All pacing protocols cause rate-dependent reduction of RMSSD, VS%, and sRR% with or without shortening of mRR compared to spontaneous AF. Fixed-rate pacing was more sensitive to the intrinsic rate than the VRS algorithms. The performance was generally comparable between different VRS algorithms, although higher mRR and VS% can be achieved at the expense of larger RMSSD and sRR%. CONCLUSION: The effect of VP on ventricular rhythm in AF depends on both intrinsic rate and the aggressiveness of the pacing protocol. Adequate rate control is necessary for effective operation of the VRS algorithm. Choosing VRS algorithm should balance between the beneficial effects of rate regularization and the negative effects of increasing heart rate and percentage of VP.     

椎动脉形态学异常对后循环短暂性脑缺血发作症状持续时间的影响

目的 探讨椎动脉形态学异常对后循环TIA症状持续时间的影响。
方法 回顾性分析2015年10月-2018年3月在中国科学院大学重庆仁济医院神经内科完成头颈部DSA
或CTA的后循环TIA住院患者临床资料，根据症状持续时间分为<10 min组、10～59 min组和≥60 mi n组，
比较椎动脉形态异常各亚型在3组间的差异。通过多因素Logistic回归分析明确椎动脉形态异常与后
循环TIA症状持续时间之间的关系。
结果 共纳入237例患者，其中症状持续时间<10 min组109例（45.99%）、10～59 min组71例（29.96%）
和≥60 min组57例（24.05%）。一般临床资料的比较显示，性别、椎动脉和基底动脉狭窄率≥50%
在3组间差异具有统计学意义（P＜0.05）。椎动脉形态异常中，动脉粥样硬化性椎动脉狭窄（狭窄
率1%～99%）在3组间的差异具有统计学意义（P =0.004），而一侧迂曲、双侧迂曲、一侧优势、一
侧优势合并迂曲和起源异常在3组间差异均无统计学意义；多因素Logi sti c回归分析显示椎动脉
狭窄（OR 2.500，95%CI 1.381～4.525，P =0.002）、基底动脉狭窄率≥50%（OR 12.066，95%CI
1.446～100.668，P =0.021）是TI A症状持续时间延长的独立影响因素。
结论 椎动脉狭窄和基底动脉狭窄率≥50%是影响后循环TIA症状持续时间延长的独立影响因素。     

亚低温对大鼠短暂性脑缺血迟发性神经元死亡的影响

目的 观察亚低温（33℃）对大鼠短暂性脑缺血后神经元的保护作用。方法 32只DS大鼠分为假手术组、常温缺血组和即刻亚低温组，采用尼氏体亚甲蓝特殊染色观察存活神经元、原位细胞凋亡检测法（TUNEL染色）检测及电镜观察脑缺血后大鼠CA1区神经元凋亡情况。结果 与假手术组相比，常温缺血组海马CA1区存活的锥体细胞数目减少（P＜0．01）；与常温缺血组相比，亚低温缺血组海马CA1区存活的锥体细胞数目明显增多（P＜0．01）。亚低温缺血组大鼠海马CA1区TUNEL染色阳性细胞数目明显少于常温缺血组（P＜0．01）。结论 脑缺血后迟发性神经元死亡很可能通过凋亡途径，亚低温对缺血后神经元的保护作用与减少神经元凋亡有关。     

Patients with heart attacks are not valid models for medial temporal lobe amnesia. A neuropsychological and FDG-PET study with consequences for memory research

Equating the condition after cardiac arrest with that of medial temporal damage, and consequently medial temporal lobe amnesia, is questioned on the basis of results from a patient who was studied neuropsychologically as well as with static and dynamic imaging methods (MRI, PET) 6–9 months after a heart attack. The patient manifested severe and persistent anterograde and retrograde amnesia, as well as further cognitive deteriorations. While MRI only indicated non-specific cortical atrophy, PET revealed a severe bilateral affection of the thalamus and of both medial and lateral temporal cortices as well as occipito-parietal hypometabolism. The neuropsychological status indicates that patients with a diagnosis of cardiac arrest may suffer very severe and persistent cognitive deficits; the imaging analyses show that cardiac arrests may lead to quite severe and widespread brain damage which, however, may not be visible with current magnetic resonance imaging technology, but which is clearly apparent from positron emission tomography. These data suggest that patients with a condition after a heart attack may not be valid models for pure hippocampal—or even medial temporal lobe—pathology, as they may suffer much more widespread brain damage.     

Sympathetic skin response and R–R interval variation in chronic uremic patients

Sympathetic skin response (SSR) and R–R interval variation (RRIV) were studied in 36 chronic, nondiabetic uremics to compare with their nerve conduction studies (NCS) and clinical dysautonomia. Abnormal SSR was noted in 5 (13.9%) patients, abnormal RRIV in 14 (38.9%), and abnormal NCS in 26 (72.2%). The patients were classified into three groups: group (GP) 1: “normal,” n = 21 (58.3%), normal RRIV and SSR; GP 2: “isolated parasympathetic dysfunction,” n = 10 (27.8%), abnormal RRIV and normal SSR; and GP 3: “sympathetic sudomotor dysfunction,” n = 5 (13.9%), abnormal SSR. A significant difference in age was found among the three groups (GP 3 > GP 2 > GP 1; P < 0.0001, ANOVA). After controlling the age factor, we still noted a tendency toward increasing NCS disturbances (distal latency and nerve conduction velocity of peroneal nerve; P < 0.05, multiple regression analysis) and frequencies of clinical autonomic symptoms (postural dizziness and impotence; P < 0.05, Mantel–Hanszel test) from GP 1 to GP 3. Patients with abnormal SSR (GP 3) displayed significantly higher frequencies of postural dizziness and impotence, indicating the relationship between an absence of SSR and clinical dysautonomia. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Effects of gender,age, and heart rate on QT intervals in children

The objective of this study was to determine if gender, age, and heart rate affect corrected QT intervals in children. Electrocardiograms were obtained from 781 healthy children 10–18 years of age. Corrected QT intervals were significantly (p < 0.0005) greater for girls than for boys in the entire population and for each age group over 14 years. The corrected QT interval varied inversely with age and directly with heart rate. Hence gender, age, and heart rate should be considered when diagnosing long QT syndrome.     

Sources of unwanted variability in measurement and description of skin surface topography

Background/aims: Quantitative measurement of skin roughness has proved to be a valuable tool in the efficacy-control of external applications, but it suffers from not yielding easily comparable results. The most important sources of inter-observer variability are high-pass filters used to separate roughness and waviness, and low-pass filters which result from the finite resolution of the instrument or from the finite sampling interval of digital measurement. In the present study, the effects of high-pass filters and sampling intervals on the roughness measured were investigated. Methods: Dynamically focusing optical profilometry was used to measure the surfaces of negative replicas of healthy human skin. High-pass cut-off wavelengths and sampling intervals were varied systematically. Results/conclusions: Virtually unbiased estimates for the roughness parameters K, Sk, R_q, and R_a can be obtained using sampling intervals of 40 or even 80 μm. Regarding these roughness parameters, it is far better to do more scans than to shorten the sampling interval. The roughness parameters R_z, R_p, R_t, R_pm, R_max, P_t, on the other hand are very sensitive to the influence of the sampling interval; to achieve satisfying estimates, the sampling interval should be no longer than 2 to 5 urn; as an important parameter’of the measurement, it is worthy of remark and should always be indicated. The way the mean square roughness R_q depends on the cut-off wavelength is not well described by the Sayles-Thomas-relation R_q～λ_c^0.5. If the power-spectrum |h*(v)|² approximates sufficiently to a power law, |h*(v)|²～v^δ, a better estimate is given by R_q～λ_c^γ with γ=-(δ+1)/2. In many cases, γ=1 or R_q～λ_c will suffice.     

Effect of intravenous ketanserin on the human action potential duration at fixed heart rate

Summary In this study any changes in action potential duration or Q-T interval due to acute doses of ketanserin were monitored. The effect of a bolus dose (10 or 20 mg) followed by an infusion (10 or 20 mg over 20 minutes) of ketanserin on the Q-T interval and action potential duration was studied in six patients undergoing routine cardiac catheterization. Action potential duration was measured with a silver-silver chloride electrode catheter while heart rate was kept constant by atrial pacing and reflex effects avoided by -adrenergic blockade. There were some prolongations of the action potential duration but they were not in excess of 40 msec and did not reach statistical significance (control 263±46.0 msec; bolus 269±52.1 msec; infusion 262±53.6 msec; nor were there any significant changes in Q-T interval. Thus acute intravenous doses of ketanserin, in the absence of hypokalaemia or other Q-T interval-prolonging drugs, have no consistent effect on Q-T interval or action potential duration; prolongation of the action potential, when it occurs, is small.