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Background: Unraveling the relationship between health-related quality of life (HRQOL) instruments and the International Classification of Functioning, Disability, and Health (ICF) seems essential due to the increasing importance of quality of life evaluations in patients with heart failure (HF) and the use of the ICF for comparative purposes. The aim of this study is to identify and compare the content of HRQOL instruments for HF using the ICF coding system. Methods: In a 2-stage design, first we will identify all measures used to assess HRQOL for patients with HF and second we will compare the content of those measures using the ICF coding system. Systematic search will be performed in in MEDLINE, CINAHL, and Scopus databases using a combination of free texts and MeSH terms between January 1960 and January 2017. All instruments will be linked to the ICF separately by 2 reviewers according to 10 linking rules developed for this purpose. The degree of agreement between the reviewers will be calculated via the kappa statistic. Conclusion: The results of this study may help clinicians and researchers to select the most appropriate outcome measure according to the ICF-based content validity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cor triatriatum sinistrum is a rare congenital cardiac malformation, accounting for about 0.1-0.4% of all congenital heart diseases and characterized by the presence of a fibromuscular membrane that subdivides the left atrium into two chambers in the classical form. While classic cor triatriatum in most patients can be observed during the neonatal period or early infancy, it is very rare in adults. We herein present an incidental finding of cor triatriatum sinistrum in a middle-aged man with coronary artery disease scheduled for coronary artery bypass graft surgery. The patient was admitted for exertional dyspnea and chest pain of a three-month duration. He had a past medical history of mild hyperlipidemia and mild hypertension. Transthoracic two-D echocardiography (TTE) demonstrated a visible presence of a membranous band in the mid portion of the left atrium with obvious obstruction by color and Doppler flow measurements, confirmed by three-D echocardiography. Selective coronary angiography also revealed a severe ostioproximal stenosis of the left anterior descending artery of up to 99%. On-pump coronary artery bypass grafting was performed without complications, during which the anastomosis of the left internal mammary artery to the left anterior descending artery and the removal of the membrane were done. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia/cardiomyopathy (ARVD/C) is a congenital cardiac disease with myocardial involvement, most probably right ventricular (RV) dysfunction, accounting for 20% of sudden cardiac deaths. Characterized by the fibro-fatty infiltration of the RV free wall, ARVD/C presents in adolescents with ventricular arrhythmias and heart failure symptoms and as biventricular failure in adults. The coronary risk in these patients is not clear. We present an incidental finding: the left anterior descending artery cut-off in a middle-aged man with ARVD/C. He had been under treatment for heart failure symptoms, which had decompensated frequently commencing 6 months earlier, and therefore he was scheduled for stem cell injection. He had no chest pain or coronary artery disease risk factors. Two-dimensional transthoracic echocardiography demonstrated RV enlargement with moderate to severe dysfunction and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) of 35-40%, which was 45-50% two years before. Selective coronary angiography performed 8 years previously was normal but a new one revealed the cut-off of the left anterior descending artery at the proximal portion, for which percutaneous coronary intervention was performed and showed no significant lesion in the other vessels. One should consider coronary artery disease in uncontrolled heart failure with LVEF reduction, even in the absence of typical chest pain. It may not be the natural course of the underlying disease. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]