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Aortic and mitral valvular calcifications are found to be associated with atherosclerotic risk factors and are largely accepted as part of a generalized atherosclerotic process. As well as the severity of stenosis, embologenic properties of plaques are also responsible for ischemic potentials of atherosclerotic plaques in carotid arteries. In this study, the authors aimed to define the characteristics of plaque morphology in patients with and without aortic valvular calcification (AVC) and to show the association between AVC and carotid plaque characteristics. Carotid plaque morphology in 182 consecutive patients with AVC was compared with plaque characteristics in 170 patients without AVC. Risk factors for atherosclerosis, age, and gender were similar in patients with and without AVC. The presence of carotid atherosclerosis, complex atheromas, and carotid artery stenosis was significantly higher in patients with AVC when compared with those without AVC (p < 0.001, p < 0.001, and p < 0.05, respectively). Unstable plaques (Types I and II) were also found to be more common in the patients with AVC than in those without AVC (p < 0.001). This study demonstrated the strong correlation between AVC and carotid atheromas. The plaques in patients with AVC are more unstable in morphology than in those without AVC, and this may explain the higher stroke incidence in these patients.

Objective: Complete atrioventricular (AV) block is a rhythm disorder that can result from various causes. The aim of this study was to define etiological factors, clinical features, pacemaker needs, in-hospital mortality rates and factors affecting these parameters in the patients with complete AV block., Methods: For this aim, 191 consecutive patients admitted to the hospital with complete AV block or who developed AV block during their hospital course between January 1999-September 2002 were included into the study., Results: The most common underlying cause of AV block was found to be the ischemia, which was followed by unknown etiology and iatrogenic complete AV block. The most common cause of in-hospital mortality was ischemic (especially acute) heart disease. No etiological factor for complete AV block was found in most of symptomatic patients presented with syncope. In patients with ischemic complete AV block, mortality and syncope rates were found to be high, especially in patients with multivessel disease. Permanent pacemaker was implanted in 76 of 191 patients with complete AV block and the significant portion of these patients were those without an etiological cause., Conclusion: Thus, it is revealed that factors affecting mortality in patients with complete AV block are acute myocardial infarction and age while other clinical parameters and pacemaker implantation had no effects on mortality.

Background: Amiodarone is an iodine-rich drug widely used for the management of various arrhythmias, but its clinical utility is usually limited by the high frequency of numerous side effects, most frequently disturbance of thyroid function., Material/methods: The present study presents the laboratory tests, color flow Doppler sonography (CFDS) findings, treatment and prognosis of 22 patients with amiodarone-induced thyroid dysfunction., Results: Eleven patients developed amiodarone- induced thyrotoxicosis (AIT), ten developed amiodarone-induced hypothyroidism (AIH) and one patient first developed AIT, followed by AIH. Age, amiodarone doses, duration of amiodarone treatment and discontinuation of amiodarone were similar in the patients with AIT and AIH. AIT was found more commonly in male patients, AIH in female patients. Color flow Doppler sonographic examination was performed in all patients with AIT to differentiate type 1 and 2 AIT. In ten patients, CFDS demonstrated increased glandular vascularity, diagnostic for type 1 AIT., Conclusions: This paper presents patients with AIT treated successfully with propylthiouracil or prednisolone after developing thyroid dysfunction as a consequence of amiodarone use. The role of thyroid Doppler in managing these patients is emphasized.

In this prospective study, we set out to determine whether analysis of heart rate variability (HRV) in patients with exercise-induced ventricular tachycardia (EIVT) and normal coronary arteries would reveal increased sympathetic nervous system activity. From January 1996 to December 2001, we compared 16 patients with EIVT and normal coronary arteries with an age- and sex-matched control group. Analysis of HRV showed that parameters indicative of parasympathetic activity were lower in our study group than in our control group: standard deviation of the mean of qualified NN intervals (SDNN), 81.6 +/- 14.5 vs 139.3 +/- 11.0, P <0.001; root mean square of successive differences (RMSSD), 22.3 +/- 4.8 vs 36.3 +/- 6.6, P <0.001; number of NN intervals that differed by more than 5 ms from the adjacent interval, divided by the total number of NN intervals (PNN50), 4.8 +/- 1.5 vs 10.2 +/- 3. 1, P <0.001; and high-frequency component (HF), 28.7 +/- 2.5 vs 32.4 +/- 3.9, P <0.05. Conversely, parameters indicative of sympathetic activity were higher in patients with EIVT: low-frequency component (LF), 71.2 +/- 5.0 vs 52.0 +/- 5.8, P <0.001; and absolute low/high frequency component ratio (LF/HF), 2.7 +/- 0.2 vs 1.6 +/- 0.2, P <0.001. There was a positive correlation between EIVT and LF (r=0.79, P <0.001) and between EIVT and LF/HF (r=0.81, P <0.001). Our results suggest the presence of increased sympathetic and decreased parasympathetic tone in patients with EIVT. We conclude that EIVT is associated with an imbalance in the autonomic nervous system.

Background: Coronary artery anomalies are discovered in less than 1% of angiography series. Since the number of angiographies and coronary bypass operations are increasing significantly every day, these anomalies are of clinical importance., Material/methods: 58,023 coronary angiographies were performed in the cardiology clinic of our hospital from 1978 to 2001. Coronary artery anomalies were discovered in 257 of these cases (0.44%). The mean age of these patients was 51.9+/-11.4 years (18-82). 80% were male (n=207)., Results: The circumflex artery (CXA) was the most frequently involved vessel (51.1%). Coronary arteries originating from the pulmonary artery were not encountered in our series due to the natural history of the disease. In 54 patients with coronary artery fistulae, 18 (33.3%) were closed by operation. Perioperative mortality was 5.5%. Acquired coronary artery fistulae or aneurysms due to trauma or inflammatory diseases are completely different entities and beyond the scope of this article. In 76 patients, open heart surgery was required for additional lesions, 57 of which were coronary artery bypass grafts., Conclusions: Being usually asymptomatic, coronary artery anomalies are usually discovered incidentally in the adult population. These pathologies are important for practical purposes, especially for interventional cardiologists, radiologists and cardiac surgeons, who should be aware of these anatomical entities. LMCA originating from the right coronary system has been reported to result in sudden death and myocardial ischemia, so these mostly asymptomatic patients must be followed closely.