Search

OBJETIVO: Determinar as alterações de atividade da enzima conversora de angiotensina (ECA) no coração com infarto do miocárdio (IM) e comparar os efeitos do captopril e losartan em parâmetros morfológicos e funcionais de ratos com IM. MÉTODOS: O IM foi produzido em ratos Wistar por ligadura de ramos da artéria coronária esquerda. Os controles (Con) foram submetidos a uma cirurgia fictícia. Animais com IM e Con foram tratados com captopril (30mg/kg/dia) ou losartan (15mg/kg/dia) e estudados 30 dias após, determinando-se a atividade da ECA nos ventrículos direito (VD) e esquerdo (VE), as alterações hemodinâmicas e as concentrações de hidroxiprolina (OH-Pro) e proteína total no VD e VE. RESULTADOS: A atividade da ECA aumentou no VD (+25%) e VE (+70%) após IM. A maior atividade foi observada na cicatriz fibrótica, onde atingiu cerca de 4,5 vezes a do músculo do VE que sobreviveu ao IM (420±68 vs 94±8nmoles/g/min; P

Background: Central Illustration : Higher Arterial Stiffness Predicts Chronic Kidney Disease in Adults: The ELSA-Brasil Cohort Study., Background: Arterial stiffening can directly affect the kidneys, which are passively perfused by a high flow. However, whether the relation between arterial stiffness and renal function depends on diabetes and hypertension conditions, is a matter of debate., Objective: To investigate the relationship between arterial stiffening by carotid-to-femoral pulse wave velocity (cfPWV) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) incidence in individuals and verify whether this association is present in individuals without hypertension and diabetes., Methods: A longitudinal study of 11,647 participants of the ELSA-Brasil followed up for four years (2008/10-2012/14). Baseline cfPWV was grouped per quartile, according to sex-specific cut-offs. Presence of CKD was ascertained by glomerular filtration rate (eGFR-CKD-EPI) < 60 ml/min/1.73 m2 and/or albumin-to-creatinine ratio ≥ 30 mg/g. Logistic regression models were run for the whole cohort and a subsample free from hypertension and diabetes at baseline, after adjustment for age, sex, race, schooling, smoking, cholesterol/HDL ratio, body mass index, diabetes, use of antihypertensive, systolic blood pressure, heart rate, and cardiovascular disease. Statistical significance was set at 5%., Results: The chance of CKD was 42% (CI 95%: 1.05;1.92) greater among individuals in the upper quartile of cfPWV. Among normotensive, non-diabetic participants, individuals in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th quartiles of cfPWV presented greater chances of developing CKD, as compared to those in the lower quartile, and the magnitude of this association was the greatest for those in the upper quartile (OR: 1.81 CI 95%: 1.14;2.86)., Conclusion: Higher cfPWV increased the chances of CKD and suggests that this effect is even greater in individuals without diabetes and hypertension.

Background: Sedentary behavior has been associated with several cardiometabolic risk factors during childhood. However, little is known about the impact of sedentary behavior on the health and eating habits of physically active children and adolescents., Objective: To evaluate the association between sedentary behavior and cardiometabolic risk factors and eating habits in physically active children and adolescents., Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted, including 516 physically active children and adolescents (10 to 18 years old; both sexes) enrolled in the social project "Estação Conhecimento-Vale" were evaluated. Biochemical and lifestyle variables (questionnaire) were collected. Sedentary behavior was determined indirectly (questionnaire), by using sitting time ≥ 3 hours per day as a cutoff point. A p-value < 0.05 was considered statistically significant for all tests., Results: Sedentary behavior was not associated with overweight/obesity (odds ratio = 0.72 [95% confidence interval (CI): 0.325-1.389]), hypertriglyceridemia (odds ratio = 0.63 [95% CI: 0.306-1.297]), low HDL cholesterol (odds ratio = 0.57 [95% CI: 0.323-1.019]), or high non-HDL cholesterol (odds ratio = 0.63 [95% CI: 0.283-1.389]). However, children and adolescents with sedentary behavior were more likely to regularly consume food in front of the television (odds ratio = 1.96 [95% CI: 1.114-3.456]) and to consume at least one ultra-processed food per day (odds ratio = 2.42 [95% CI: 1.381-4.241]). In addition, they were less likely to consume fruit regularly (odds ratio = 0.52 [95% CI: 0.278-0.967])., Conclusion: There was no association between sedentary behavior and cardiometabolic risk factors in physically active children and adolescents. However, sedentary behavior was associated with inadequate eating habits. Thus, we may suggest that the regular engagement in physical activity may attenuate the deleterious effects of sedentary behavior on the cardiometabolic parameters of children and adolescents.

Background: Blood pressure variability (BPV) is of prognostic value for fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular outcomes., Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the association between within-visit BPV and cardiovascular risk among participants of the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil)., Methods: The present cross-sectional study was carried out using baseline data (2008-2010) of 14,357 ELSA-Brasil participants with no prior history of cardiovascular disease. Within-visit BPV was quantified by the coefficient of variation of three standardized systolic blood pressure (SBP) measurements using an oscillometer. Anthropometric measurements and laboratory tests were also performed. Cardiovascular risk was assessed using the atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease risk estimator (ASCVD) and multivariate logistic regression analysis was employed with a significance level of 5%., Results: Significantly higher cardiovascular risk was determined by increased BPV for both sexes. A significantly higher prevalence of high risk was found in men than women across all quartiles, with the highest difference observed in the fourth quartile of variability (48.3% vs. 17.1%). Comparisons among quartiles in each sex revealed a significantly higher cardiovascular risk for men in the third (OR=1.20; 95%CI: 1.02 - 1.40) and fourth quartiles (OR=1.46; 95%CI: 1.25 -1.71), and for women in the fourth quartile (OR=1.27; 95%CI: 1.03 - 1.57)., Conclusion: Analysis of baseline data of the ELSA-Brasil participants revealed that blood pressure variability was associated with increased cardiovascular risk, especially in men.

Background Orthostatic hypotension (OH) has been neglected in clinical practice, and there are no studies on its prevalence in the Brazilian population. Objective To determine the prevalence of OH and blood pressure (BP) changes after the postural change maneuver in participants of the Longitudinal Study of Adult Health. Methods In this descriptive study of baseline data (N = 14,833 adults, ages 35 - 74 years), participants remained lying down for 20 minutes and subsequently stood up actively. BP measurements were taken while the participants were supine and at 2, 3, and 5 minutes after standing. OH was defined as a reduction of ≥ 20 mmHg in systolic BP and/or a reduction of ≥ 10 mmHg in diastolic BP at 3 minutes, and its prevalence was determined with a 95% confidence interval (CI). The distribution of BP variation after the postural change maneuver was determined in a subsample (N = 8,011) obtained by removing patients with cardiovascular morbidity and/or diabetes. Results The prevalence of OH was 2.0% (95% CI: 1.8 - 2.3), increasing with age. If the criterion applied were a BP reduction during any measurement, the prevalence would increase to 4.3% (95% CI: 4.0 - 4.7). Symptoms (dizziness, scotoma, nausea, etc.) were reported by 19.7% of participants (95% CI: 15.6 - 24.6) with OH and 1.4% (95% CI: 1.2 - 1.6) of participants without OH. The -2 Z-scores of BP variation before and after the postural change maneuver in the subsample were -14.1 mmHg for systolic BP and -5.4 mmHg for diastolic BP. Conclusion Prevalence of OH varies depending on when BP is measured. Current cutoff points may underestimate the actual occurrence of OH in the population. (Arq Bras Cardiol. 2020; 114(6):1040-1048).

Background: Highly active antiretroviral therapy for AIDS is known to increase cardiovascular risk, but the effects of potent antiretroviral agents according to gender are unknown., Objective: The present study evaluated the impact of HIV infection treatment on aortic stiffness according to gender., Methods: From university-affiliated hospitals, we recruited 28 AIDS patients undergoing highly active antiretroviral treatment (HAART), 28 treatment-naïve HIV-infected patients, 44 patients with type 2 diabetes, and 30 controls. Aortic stiffness was determined by measuring pulse wave velocity (PWV) using a validated and non-invasive automatic device., Results: The crude mean PWV values and 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) for HAART, diabetics, and controls were 9.77 m/s (95% CI 9.17-10.36), , 9.00 m/s (95% CI 8.37-9.63), 9.90 m/s (95% CI 9.32-10.49), and 9.28 m/s (95% CI 8.61-9.95), respectively, for men (P-value for trend = 0.14), and 9.61 m/s (95% CI 8.56-10.66), 8.45 m/s (95% CI 7.51-9.39), 9.83 (95% CI 9.21-10.44), and 7.79 m/s (95% CI 6.99-8.58), respectively, for women (P-value for trend <0.001). Post-hoc analysis revealed a significant difference between the mean PWV values in the HAART group and controls in women (P-value <0.01). After adjusting for other potential covariates, including systolic blood pressure and diabetes, these results did not change. The findings indicate that the impact of HAART treatment on aortic stiffness was amplified in women with hypertension, dyslipidemia, and metabolic syndrome., Conclusion: Potent anti-retroviral agents used in the treatment of HIV infection increases aortic stiffness, mainly among women with higher cardiovascular risk.

Background: There is no data concerning the epidemiology of hyperuricemia in Brazilian population-based studies., Objective: To investigate the distribution of serum uric acid and its relationship with demographics and cardiovascular variables., Methods: We studied 1,346 individuals. Hyperuricemia was defined as ≥ 6.8 and ≥ 5.4 mg/dL for men and women, respectively. Metabolic syndrome (MS) was defined with NCEP ATP III criteria., Results: The prevalence of hyperuricemia was 13.2%. The association of serum uric acid (SUA) with cardiovascular risk factors was gender-specific: in women, higher SUA was associated with increasing BMI, even after adjustments for age-systolic blood pressure (SBP). In men, the relationship of SUA with HDLc was mediated by BMI, whereas in women, SUA was similar and dependent on BMI, regardless of glucose levels and presence of hypertension. In men, triglycerides, waist circumference (WC) and SBP explained 11%, 4% and 1% of SUA variability, respectively. In women, WC and triglycerides explained 9% and 1% of SUA variability, respectively. Compared to the first quartile, men and women in the fourth quartile had a 3.29 fold and 4.18 fold increase of MS risk, respectively. Women had almost three fold higher prevalence of diabetes mellitus. Normotensive men with MS presented higher SUA, regardless of BMI., Conclusion: Our results seem to justify the need for gender-based evaluation regarding the association of SUA with cardiovascular risk factors, which was more pronounced in women. MS was positively associated with increasing SUA, regardless of gender. Abdominal obesity and hypertriglyceridemia were the main factors associated with hyperuricemia even in normotensive individuals, which may add a higher risk for hypertension.

Background: Hypertension and metabolic syndrome are cardiovascular risk factors associated with increased adiposity. In a previous study, waist-to-stature ratio (WSR) was identified as the best obesity index associated with left ventricular hypertrophy., Objective: In this study we compared the ability of this index to identify hypertension and metabolic syndrome with other obesity indexes (body mass index--BMI; waist circumference--WC; and waist-to-hip ratio - WHR) by receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses., Methods: 1,655 (45.8% men) participants of the MONICA-WHO/Vitoria Project, mean age 45 ± 11 y were investigated. Metabolic syndrome prevalence (ATP-III criteria) was 32.9%, hypertension was 42.4% and obesity was 19.2%., Results: Regarding the ability to identify hypertension, there was a significant WSR superiority in relation to BMI and WC (p < 0.05) regardless of gender, but WHR (p > 0.05). In relation to the ability to identify metabolic syndrome, there was a significant WSR superiority in relation to WHR in men (p < 0.001), but BMI and WC (p = 0.16 and p = 0.9), respectively. However, in women WSR was significantly superior in relation to WHR (p < 0.001) and BMI (p = 0.025), but WC (p = 0.8). The optimal WSR cutoffs are 0.52 and 0.53 for hypertension and 0.53 and 0.54 for metabolic syndrome, for men and women, respectively., Conclusion: Abdominal obesity, identified by WSR as a surrogate, and not overall obesity (BMI as surrogate), is the simplest and best applicable obesity index associated to hypertension and metabolic syndrome in our population.

Background: Electrocardiographically-detected left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) is a strong predictor of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality., Objective: To assess the performance of the Sokolow-Lyon-Rappaport (SLR) and Cornell voltage criteria in a population sample regarding the diagnosis of LVH on echocardiogram (ECHO)., Methods: A total of 641 out of the 682 participants of the second phase of the MONICA-Vitória project were assessed using electrocardiogram and echocardiogram. A subgroup of healthy individuals (n=269) was used to generate reference values of LV mass (LVM). Sensitivities and specificities of the electrocardiographic criteria were determined by the ROC (receptor-operator characteristics) curve in relation to the diagnosis of LVH, as defined by the internal echocardiographic criterion (LVM > 48 and 46 g/m2.7 for males and females, respectively)., Results: The prevalence of LVH as detected by ECHO was 23.7% in the total sample, in which 49% of the individuals were hypertensive. The Cornell criterion showed a better association with the LVM as estimated by ECHO (r= 0.37, p < 0.01) than the SLR criterion (r= 0.19) as well as a better performance in the analysis of the area under the ROC curve. The new cut-off points for the internally-defined Cornell voltage criterion (2.3 mV for males and 1.9 mV for females) showed an acceptable combination of sensitivity (22.5 and 28% for males and females, respectively), with a high specificity (95%)., Conclusion: The classic SLR and Cornell voltage criteria showed a low performance in relation to LVH as detected by the ECHO. However, this accuracy may be improved by using the Cornell voltage criteria defined in the present study.

Objective: To establish cardiac ventricular weights recorded during the autopsy of healthy individuals who died of external causes, aiming at determining normality patterns in our population., Methods: A total of 94 hearts were evaluated at the Forensics Department of the city of Vitória, Espírito Santo. After the heart removal and resection of the atria and epicardial fat, the right ventricle (RV) and the left ventricle (LV), including the septum, were separated and weighed and the mass was indexed by the height. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test was used to test the normality of the distribution. Data are presented as means+/- SD., Results: After the exclusion of 12 hearts (possible cardiovascular disease detected post-mortem) 82 hearts were examined (52 males and 30 females, aged 16-68 yrs, 31+/-12 yrs). The weight of the LV was 181+/-25 g and 125+/-15 g, and the weight of the RV was 54+/-7 g and 38+/-6 g; the LV mass indexed by height was 105+/-14 g/m and 78+/-8 g/m, for males and females, respectively. The P95 of the LV weight was 218 g and 128 g/m in males and 148 g and 88 g/m in females. No significant correlation between ventricular mass and age was observed., Conclusion: The weight of the LV in the males from our sample was higher than that reported in the contemporary literature. Our results suggest that the presence of LV hypertrophy can be inferred in the presence of LV mass > 218 g or 128 g/m in males and 148 g or 88 g/m in females.

Background: Clinical and epidemiological studies have demonstrated a strong association between eating habits and chronic diseases, particularly cardiovascular events, although not all the mechanisms of action are understood., Objective: To describe and analyze the cardiovascular risk (CVR) in vegetarians and omnivores residing in Greater Vitória, State of Espírito Santo, Brazil, in the age range from 35 to 64 years., Methods: To evaluate CVR in the groups, a historical cohort study with 201 individuals was conducted. Sixty seven individuals who had been following a vegetarian diet for at least five years, and who were from Greater Vitória, as well as 134 omnivores participating in the MONICA Project/Vitória matched for socioeconomic class, gender, age and race were included. Biochemical and hemodynamic measurements were obtained in the Cardiovascular Investigation Clinic of UFES. For comparison of proportions, the chi2 test was used, and the Prevalence Ratio was calculated. The CVR was calculated using the Framingham algorithm for the group as a whole, and for separate genders., Results: The mean age of the group was 47+/-8 years and the mean duration of vegetarianism was 19+/-10 years; the lacto-ovo vegetarian diet was followed by 73% of the vegetarians. Blood pressure, fasting plasma glucose, total cholesterol, LDL-c, and triglycerides were lower among vegetarians (p<0.001). HDL-c levels were not different between the groups. According to the Framingham algorithm, vegetarians had a lower CVR (p<0.001)., Conclusion: Unbalanced omnivorous diet with excess animal protein and fat may be implicated, to a great extent, in the development of noncommunicable diseases and conditions, especially in the CVR.

Objective: To determine echocardiographic reference values for cardiac chambers, left ventricular mass, and left ventricular (LV) mass indexes in an asymptomatic adult population sample., Methods: This was an observational study based on a randomly selected population sample from the city of Vitória, Brazil. Two hundred and ninety-five volunteers (61.7% women) with no past history of cardiovascular disease underwent transthoracic echocardiography. The following M-mode echocardiographic parameters were measured: ventricular diameters, interventricular septal thickness, LV posterior wall thickness, LV mass, left ventricular mass indexes, plus aortic and left atrial diameters. Values were expressed as mean and standard deviation and percentiles, with a 95% confidence interval., Results: Echocardiographic values were slightly influenced by gender and age. Overall, cardiac measurements were higher in the male gender. LV posterior wall thickness, mass indexes corrected for height and diastolic diameter were influenced by age. The 95% percentiles of interventricular septum and LV posterior wall were 9.9 mm and 9.6 mm for men, respectively, and 9.3 mm for septum and posterior wall for women., Conclusion: The 95% percentile values of interventricular septum and posterior wall and, therefore, of both absolute and indexed left ventricular mass found in our study conducted in the Vitória population are lower than those reported in previous studies. In this framework, our results will be useful as a reference, since they are consistent with the new limits suggested in the literature for the echocardiographic diagnosis of left ventricular hypertrophy.

Objective: To assess the effect of growth hormone (GH) on myocardial remodeling in infarcted rats., Methods: This study comprised 24 Wistar rats divided into 3 groups as follows: 1) AMI-GH group--comprising 8 rats that underwent infarction and were treated with GH; 2) AMI group--comprising 8 rats that underwent infarction and received only the diluent of the GH solution; and 3) control group (C group)--comprising 8 rats that underwent simulated infarction. After 30 days, the animals underwent functional study through echocardiography, and the changes in myocardial contractility of the isolated left ventricular (LV) papillary muscle were studied., Results: The echocardiography identified an increase in the diastolic (C=7.32+/-0.49; AMI=8.50+/-0.73; AMI-GH=9.34+/-0.73; P<0.05) and systolic (C=3.38+/-0.47, AMI=5.16+/-1.24; AMI-GH=5.96+/-1.54; P<0.05) diameters (mm) in the LV of the infarcted animals. The AMI-GH group animals had a lower ejection fraction (%) (C=0.9+/-0.03; AMI=0.76+/-0.12; AMI-GH= 0.72+/- 0.14; P<0.05 for C vs AMI-GH) compared with those in controls. The study of the isolated left ventricular papillary muscle showed that the AMI-GH group had changes (C=1.50+/-0.59; AMI=1.28+/-0.38; AMI-GH=1.98+/-0.41; P<0.05 for C vs AMI-GH) only in the tension at rest (TR - g/mm2) and in the time delta for a 50% decrease in the tension developed (TR50, ms) after stimulation with calcium (C=23.75+/-9.16; AMI=-16.56+/-14.82; AMI-GH=-4.69+/-8.39; P<0.05 for C vs AMI-GH) and in the delta of tension developed (TD, g/mm2) after stimulation with isoproterenol (C=0.99+/-0.17; AMI=0.54+/-0.62; AMI-GH=0.08+/-0.75; P<0.05 for C vs AMI-GH) compared with those in control animals., Conclusion: The early administration of GH in the experimental infarction model in rats may result in adverse effects on the process of ventricular remodeling.