Cardiac tumours: diagnosis and management

Primary cardiac tumours are rare, with an autopsy incidence ranging from 0.001% to 0.030%. Three-quarters of these tumours are benign and nearly half of the benign tumours are myxomas. Metastases to the heart are far more common than primary cardiac tumours. Primary cardiac tumours present with one or more of the symptoms of the classic triad of: cardiac symptoms and signs resulting from intracardiac obstruction; signs of systemic embolisation; and systemic or constitutional symptoms. They are diagnosed by use of transthoracic and transoesophageal echocardiograms, MRI, and CT scan. Whereas surgery is indicated in patients with benign tumours, systemic chemotherapy is indicated in those who have widespread or unresectable malignant disease, and chemotherapy and radiotherapy are usually combined in treatment of patients with primary cardiac lymphomas. The prognosis after surgery is usually excellent in the case of benign tumours but is unfortunately still limited in localised malignant diseases. Patients with sarcomas live for a mean of 3 months to 1 year, and those with lymphomas live up to 5 years if treated, but usually die within 1 month if untreated.     

Inflammatory fibroid polyp of the ileum causing intussusception

Intussusception in adults is a rare cause for intestinal obstruction and is usually secondary to some lesion in the gastrointestinal tract GIT. We report a case of intestinal obstruction due to ileo-colic intussusception; an inflammatory fibroid polyp formed the leading edge of the intussusceptum, which is a rare polypoidal lesion of the GIT.     

Acute renal dysfunction in acetaminophen poisoning

Although acetaminophen (APAP)-associated liver injury is well recognized, there are few reports describing APAP nephrotoxicity, and most of them are single cases. It has also been suggested that N-acetylcysteine (NAC), used to treat the hepatotoxicity, may be harmful to the kidneys. To examine this contention and to determine whether renal involvement in APAP poisoning is at all common, we analyzed the incidence and outcome of acute renal dysfunction in patients hospitalized for APAP overdose reported to our regional poison center over a year. Eleven APAP-poisoned patients had elevated liver function tests; nine of them had azotemia. Those with higher AST levels tended to be younger and to have lower APAP levels on admission. Two patients with acute renal injury died after admission. The other seven patients with renal dysfunction recovered in 2 to 7 days. Six of these received NAC; their mean serum creatinine fell from 3.2 +/- 2.0 versus 1.7 +/- 0.9 mg/dL (p < 0.05). We conclude that acute renal failure is not uncommon in APAP poisoning and appears to be unrelated to the degree of liver injury. NAC therapy did not seem to worsen nephrotoxicity.     

Non malignant tracheo-esophageal fistula: Our experience

Background Non malignant tracheo-esophageal fistula is a rare entity, which is usually post traumatic, post inflammatory or could be a delayed presentation of congenital tracheo-esophageal fistula. Patients and Methods In this retrospective study of seven cases, we aim to document and evaluate the causes, presentation and treatment modalities. Results All the cases underwent surgical intervention, with single stage definitive repair in four cases and two stage repair in three cases. There was no mortality, and minimal morbidity. Conclusions Being a benign disease with fatal complications, early diagnosis and early surgical intervention is the key to successful management of non-malignant tracheo-esophageal fistula.     

Characteristics of the interatrial communication in patients undergoing transcatheter device closure of atrial septal defects for cryptogenic stroke

Background: Prior studies suggest that patent foramen ovale (PFO) diameter >4 mm is associated with a high probability of cryptogenic ischemic stroke (CIS). Methods: We evaluated all patients diagnosed with CIS who underwent closure of intra-atrial communication (IAC) using the Amplatzer atrial septal defect (ASD) occluder in our institution between August 1997 and March 2004. For each IAC, echocardiographic diameters and balloon-stretched diameters were recorded. Stretchability index was calculated as the ratio of stretched diameter to unstretched diameter. Results: Fifty-six patients met the inclusion criteria for this study. There was an inverse logarithmic relationship between unstretched IAC diameter and stretchability index. For the 28 smaller defects, the median IAC diameter was 2 mm, and median stretchability index was 5.58 (range 2.6–15). For the 28 larger defects, median diameter was 6 mm, and median stretchability index was 2.38 (range 1.05–5). The difference in stretchability index between the two groups was significant ( P < 0.0001). Conclusion: Our data bring into question the concept that the diameter of the defect would singularly predict the probability of stroke.     

Disproportionate increase in prevalence of diabetes among patients with congestive heart failure due to systolic dysfunction

BACKGROUND: Despite new therapies, the prevalence of heart failure continues to escalate. The prevalence of diabetes, a risk factor for heart failure, also continues to rise. To further understand the increasing prevalence of heart failure, we compared trends in the prevalence of diabetes among individuals with diagnosed heart failure versus those in the general population. METHODS: Fourteen randomized trials between 1989 and 1999 including subjects with heart failure (n = 34,633) were reviewed. For each trial, the enrollment date was used to estimate the yearly prevalence of diabetes among study participants with heart failure. The prevalence of diabetes in the general population was estimated based on United State's Center for Disease Control statistics from 1989 to 1999. The prevalence of diabetes between heart failure subjects and the general population was compared using a two-sample t-test for independent samples with unequal variances. RESULTS: The prevalence of diabetes increased from 2.6% to 4.0% from 1989 to 1999 in the general U.S. population. Among patients with heart failure, the prevalence of diabetes increased from 13% to 47%. Diabetes prevalence estimates varied significantly (p < 0.001) between the general population and individuals with heart failure during the study period. CONCLUSIONS: The rising prevalence of diabetes may partially explain the growing epidemic of heart failure. Increased efforts targeting diabetes and other cardiovascular risk factors are warranted in attenuating the rising prevalence of heart failure.