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Objectives: To evaluate breast findings incidentally detected on body MRI., Methods: A retrospective review of the institutional database identified 1752 body MRI performed between January 2015 and September 2015. MRI of women with breast tissue visible in the field-of-view were reviewed for breast findings. Breast findings were classified with the breast imaging reporting and data system (BI-RADS) lexicon. The standard statistic, costs of additional work-up, and the clinical relevance were used to describe breast findings, and we calculated 95 % exact confidence intervals (CIs)., Results: 440 body MRI of 440 women (mean age: 57 ± 20 years) included breast tissue in the field-of-view. A total of 41 breast findings were identified in 41 patients. Breast findings were classified BI-RADS 2 N = 25, BI-RADS 3 N = 13, BI-RADS 4 N = 3. A total of 3.6 % [95 % CI 1.6 %, 5.6 %] women with breast tissue visible on MRI had a recommendation for further imaging work-up for a breast finding. The 18.7 % (3 of 16) of these patients had a clinically important finding (breast cancer). Further imaging evaluation increased costs of €108.3 per patient with a breast finding., Conclusions: Clinically important breast findings could be detected on body MRI in up to 0.7 % (3 of 440) of women.

We report our experience in B-mode ocular ultrasonography, focusing on its contribution when the clinical examination proves to be difficult, mainly due to the existence of intraocular opacities of the ocular fundus or diagnostic doubts. We revise the ocular ultrasound technique, its indications and contraindications, comparing to the other imaging techniques. In our experience ultrasonography revealed pathological findings which confirmed the clinical suspicion in most of cases or provide additional information. With understanding of the indications for ultrasonography and proper examination technique, one can gather a vast amount of information not possible with clinical examination alone.

After a period during which cardiac papillary fibroelastomas were considered incidental autopsy findings cerebral and coronary arteries embolism proved their aggressiveness. Echocardiography is now able to identify them and surgical resection is rapidly required. Sea anemone like macroscopic pattern is characteristic with finely villous masses, each frond being at microscopical examination formed by a central fibroelastic core surrounded by a myxomatous layer overlied by endothelial cells. Histogenesis remains elusive and we tried to clarify it by immunohistochemical analysis of 8 of the 20 cases studied (10 autopsies, 10 surgical resections). Morphological and immunohistochemical data show that endothelial cells play the most important part in abnormal formations.

Between January 1984 and December 1994, 130 patients underwent mitral valvuloplasty for pure dystrophic mitral regurgitation. There were 94 men and 36 women with a mean age of 61 +/- 9 years: 52 patients were in atrial fibrillation; 91% of patients were in NYHA Classes III or IV. At preoperative echocardiography, the regurgitation was assessed as Grade III or IV and classified using the Carpentier classification according to type I (dilatation of the annulus) or II (mitral valve prolapse); 95% of patients had isolated prolapse of the posterior leaflet, 3% had isolated prolapse of the anterior leaflet and 2% had prolapse of the two leaflets. After valvuloplasty, a prosthetic ring was implanted in 124 patients (95%). The early mortality was 3%; 5.3% of patients had early complications. All patients underwent control transthoracic echocardiography in the first postoperative week. They were reviewed with a second transthoracic echocardiography after a mean follow-up of 5 +/- 0.3 years and a cumulative follow-up of 657 years-patients. At the immediate postoperative echocardiography, 24 minimal residual regurgitations were observed; at long-term, 20 new mitral regurgitations developed, all mild without any clinical symptoms and 98% of patients were in the NYHA Classes I or II. At 10 years, the actuarial survival was 73 +/- 16%; absence of thromboembolic complications 95 +/- 3%, absence of reoperation 95 +/- 5%. This study confirms the efficacy of mitral valvuloplasty and the postoperative stability of repaired valvular lesions. These results suggest that the operative indications should be considered at an earlier stage.

Objectives: The growing number of reports of surgery for papillary fibroelastomas of the heart led us to evaluate the diagnostic potential of ultrasonography in patients with cerebral or coronary signs and to assess the efficacy of anticoagulant therapy in preventing recurrent cerebral ischemia and disease progression after resection., Patients and Methods: Ten cases of echographically diagnosed fibroelastoma of the heart treated by surgery were analyzed together with cases reported in the literature., Results: Transesophageal echography has been shown to be the superior method. Surgical resection has given good results and the postoperative course is always excellent. Recurrent embolism occurred in two of our cases despite well-conducted anticoagulation., Discussion: Surgical resection should be performed as early as possible because anticoagulation does not appear to sufficiently protect against embolic events, particularly cerebral events.

Background: We report an unusual localization of a hydatid cyst: the septum interventriculare., Case Report: A 60-year-old algerian man with hypertension was treated for cardiac insufficiency with hypereosinophilia. Cardiac echography showed a round tumor in the septum interventriculare. Serologic tests for hydatidosis were positive. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging were consistent with the diagnostic of hydatid cyst. Surgical treatment was rejected because of severe underlying hypertensive cardiopathy., Discussion: Cardiac hydatidosis is uncommon, but may be revealed by cyst rupture. Treatment requires surgery and associated medical management with albendazole requires further evaluation.

In order to evaluate the place of dobutamine echocardiography in everyday practice, this test and a stress ECG were performed in 34 patients referred for diagnostic or assessment coronary angiography. Dobutamine, administered in 3-minute stages from 5 to 30 micrograms/kg/min, was well tolerated. The anti-ischaemic treatment was continued in 26 patients before dobutamine echocardiography and in 15 patients before the stress ECG. The electrocardiographic, echocardiographic and angiographic documents were each analysed by 2 independent observers. Dobutamine echocardiography was considered to be positive in the presence of the development of a new abnormality of segmental kinetics or when abnormality of segmental kinetics was identified outside of the territory of infarction. With reference to coronary angiography, the sensitivity of stress ECG and dobutamine echocardiography was 46% and 42%, respectively, and the specificity was 75% and 88%, respectively; the sensitivity of each test was low, probably because of fake tests. The combination of the two tests improved the sensitivity (69%) without altering the specificity (75%). Dobutamine echocardiography could usefully complete a negative stress ICG whenever a false-negative result is suspected to avoir wrongly reassuring some patients and to allow appropriate management.

A 31 year old right handed woman presented with acute onset of aphasia which cleared over two days. CT-scan showed a left middle cerebral artery infarct within Wernicke area. Initial transesophageal two-dimensional echocardiography disclosed a mitral valve lesion suggesting a thrombus. She was discharged on oral anticoagulant treatment. A second stroke occurred ten months later involving left lenticulo-striate arteries area. Echocardiography remain unchanged. Subsequently, giant Lambl's excrescences of mitral valve was confirmed by operation and pathologic examination. The majority of patients with Lambl's excrescences are asymptomatic. However surface thrombus is common with this tumors which reposant a potential us for cerebral embolization. These tumors should be operated since complete excision is the only definitive means of eliminating the source of recurrent embolization.

Minor potential cardioembolic sources of stroke such as atrial septal aneurysms (ASA) or patent foramen ovale (PFO) are important risk factors for cryptogenic stroke. We aim to determine the prevalence of these abnormalities through an exhaustive etiological workup including transesophageal echocardiography and cervical arteries assessment in stroke patients younger than 60 years of age who had no evidence of a significant source of embolism. We classified 118 stroke patients into four groups according to transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) and cervical arteries assessment findings. Group A, consisted of 30 (25.4%) patients who had an arteriopathy likely related to stroke without any cardiac abnormality; Group B, 49 (41%) patients who had only a potential cardiac source; Group C, 9 (7.6%) patients who had an obvious arterial source of stroke and incidental cardiac abnormalities, and Group D, 30 (25.4%) patients who had neither cardiac nor arterial source. Data were analysed with X2 test for the comparison of risk factors between groups. Variance analysis was used to compare age between groups. Significance was assessed as p < 0.05. ASA represented 56.8% of the cardiac abnormalities and was diagnosed in 35.4% of the 79 patients who had an unexplained stroke (B and D). A PFO was found in 34.1% of the patients who had a cryptogenic stroke (B and D). According to Fisher's exact test, ASA was significantly associated to PFO (p << 0.001). According to this selection one fourth of the patients might have a truly cryptogenic stroke as the etiological workup failed to demonstrate any source of stroke. Comparison between groups showed that the patients in whom an arterial source was detected also had a potential cardioembolic source in 23% of the cases (C), versus 62% in patients who had no arterial source (B and D) (p = 0.0007). Our study confirmed the strong association between ASA, PFO and stroke. Although there was a lower incidence of minor potential cardioembolic sources in patients who had a cervical artery disease, we suggest a systematic TEE screening in all patients with stroke without major cardiac source, in order to ensure a better prevention.

Twenty patients (17 men and 3 women: average age 50 +/- 14 years) with asymptomatic or paucisymptomatic aortic regurgitation were studied to compare the values of radionuclide left ventricular ejection fraction (EF) at rest and on exercise before (1) and 6 +/- 1 months (2) and 5.7 +/- 1.1 years (3) after surgery. The resting EF was similar at all three examinations: 53 +/- 8 (1); 57 +/- 8 (2); 55 +/- 16 (3). However, it increased significantly on exercise from 40 +/- 10 (1) to 54 +/- 12 (2) (p < 0.001) and to 52 +/- 20 (3) (p = 0.036 versus 1). In the 7 patients with resting EF greater than 55 before surgery, there was no postoperative improvement: 61 +/- 6 (1); 61 +/- 5 (2); 65 +/- 9 (3). However, the exercise EF increased from 44 +/- 13 (1) to 55 +/- 17 (2) and 69 +/- 11 (3) (p = 0.004 vs 1). In 13 patients with resting EF < 55%, the value increased in the early postoperative phase but not later: resting: 49 +/- 5 (1); 55 +/- 8 (2) (p = 0.04); 49 +/- 17 (3) (NS vs 1); effort: 38 +/- 7 (1); 54 +/- 10 (2) (p < 0.001); 40 +/- 16 (3) (NS vs 1). Left ventricular systolic function only returns to normal and exercise after surgery in patients with resting preoperative EF > or = 55%, but nothing indicates that this normalisation is an absolute condition for a successful surgical result in aortic insufficiency in terms of survival and quality of life.

Systematic transoesophageal echocardiography after the 10th day of mitral valve replacement with a mechanical prosthesis has enable diagnosis of several abnormal conditions: thrombi, strands and paravalvular leaks. The aim of this prospective study was to determine the prevalence of these conditions by biplane transoesophageal echocardiography in the first 24 postoperative hours. Transthoracic and transoesophageal echocardiography was performed on average 12 +/- 3 hours after coming out of the surgical block in 77 consecutive patients who underwent mitral valve replacement with a mechanical prosthesis. Nine patients (11.7%) had appearances of thrombi or strands in the left atrium or auricle. These small thrombi (1 to 1.5 cm2) were not obstructive. No embolic events were observed in the first month of these patients. Spontaneous contrast was seen in the left atrium of 31 patients (40%). The factors associated with the presence of thrombus or strands were advanced age (p = 0.02), presence of spontaneous contrast (p = 0.02) and more dilated left atrium (p = NS) Paraprosthetic leaks were seen in 11 cases (14.3%). In 10 cases, the regurgitant jets were narrow at their origin with little extension into the left atrium. Only one patient had severe regurgitation associated with raised transprosthetic pressure gradients. Cases with paravalvular leaks had a lower incidence of spontaneous contrast (3.2% vs 21.7%) and no thrombosis. Transoesophageal echocardiography demonstrated spontaneous contrast, thrombi and strands in the initial hours following implantation of a mechanical mitral valve prosthesis. The prevalence of these appearances, comparable to that of the results reported with later investigations, underlines the importance of effective anticoagulation from the fist postoperative hours.

Between 1974 and 1990, 58 patients underwent tricuspid valve replacement with a porcine bioprosthesis (Hancock 42, Carpentier-Edwards 16) in the course of polyvalvular replacement (double 21, triple 37). Early postoperative mortality was 12%: 16 patients died secondarily, usually of cardiac causes. The actuarial survival (1 patient lost to follow-up) was 81 +/- 11% at 5 years and 60 +/- 17% at 10 years. Two patients were reoperated for dysfunction of a Hancock bioprosthesis, 11 and 15 years after implantation. At long-term, with an average follow-up of 108 +/- 48 months, 82% of survivors (28/34) were clinically improved. Doppler echocardiography was performed in 29 patients in February 1991. In 21 cases, with a follow-up of 88 +/- 40 months, the bioprosthesis was normal with an average diastolic transprosthetic pressure gradient of 3.8 +/- 1.7 mmHg. In 7 patients followed up for 129 +/- 40 months (p < 0.05) moderate dysfunction of the Hancock prosthesis was observed with a mean diastolic pressure. Severe dysfunction of a Hancock prosthesis was observed in 1 case. Fixed pulmonary hypertension was noted in 11 cases and was associated with a poor clinical result and a raised mean diastolic transprosthetic pressure gradient. The durability and haemodynamic performance of tricuspid porcine bioprostheses are satisfactory in the long term. Prosthetic dysfunction is correlated to the duration of implantation of the bioprosthesis and to persistent pulmonary hypertension.

The frequency and severity of atherosclerosis of the cardiac transplant make it an essential complication of cardiac transplantation. Coronary angiography is the usual diagnostic method but it has severe limitations. In order to evaluate other diagnostic methods coronary angiography and non-invasive techniques: echocardiography, exercise stress ECG, exercise radionuclide ejection fraction, stress Thallium scintigraphy, were performed practically simultaneously in 60 patients after cardiac transplantation. These non-invasive methods were said to be positive in the presence of, respectively, a segmental wall motion abnormality, ischaemic ST segment depression, absence of increased ejection fraction on exercise, reversible or irreversible myocardial hypofixation. Coronary angiography was considered as the reference procedure for distinction between "normal coronary circulation" (no angiographically detectable lesion) and "graft atherosclerosis" (at least one coronary stenosis irrespective of the severity and extension). None of the non-invasive methods had an adequate sensibility when compared with coronary angiography (echocardiography 0.27, exercise stress ECG 0.28, exercise radionuclide ejection fraction 0.64, myocardial scintigraphy 0.62) or negative predictive value (echocardiography 0.56, exercise stress ECG 0.58, exercise radionuclide ejection fraction 0.68, myocardial scintigraphy 0.66). This inadequacy of the non-invasive technique may be explained by the fact that they are more adapted to the diagnosis of myocardial ischaemia than that of coronary studies. In addition, the extent of the coronary lesions may have masked discordance between 2 segments by the global hypovascularisation. The results of this study indicate that the non-invasive methods studied cannot be recommended for diagnosis of atherosclerosis of cardiac transplants.

Twenty-four patients with a Saint-Jude Medical tricuspid valve prosthesis, aged 5 to 77 years, were studied. The etiology of the tricuspid lesion was rhumatic in 17 cases, infectious in 4 cases, and congenital in the other 3. Fourteen patient (58%) had undergone previous valve surgery, 7 of whom had undergone tricuspid valve replacement (TVR) by a bioprosthesis. Three patients were operated on for the third time. The TVR was isolated (4 cases) or associated with aortic valve replacement (3 cases), mitral valve replacement (8 cases), double aortic and mitral valve replacement (7 cases), repair of a ventricular septal defect (VSD) (1 case) and radical treatment of a Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome (WPW) in 1 case. There were 3 early deaths (12.5%). Eighteen of the 21 survivors were followed up clinically, biologically (detection of hemolysis) and by Doppler echocardiography for an average period of 45 months (range 10 to 96 months). The clinical benefit was clear cut. No embolic complications were observed and there were no cases of hemolysis. The mean resting tricuspid pressure gradient was 3.57 +/- 2.36 mmHg. The Saint-Jude Medical prosthesis would therefore seem to be a good alternative to other mechanical valve prosthesis in the tricuspid position and without the risk of valve degeneration associated with bioprosthesis.

Twenty-five patients aged 31 to 74 years (average 50 years) operated for type A aortic dissection (type I: 19 cases, type II: 6 cases) were included in this study. Surgical repair only concerned lesions of the ascending aorta. The hospital mortality was 20 per cent (5 cases), and usually secondary to extension of the dissection. With the exception of 2 late deaths, all patients were followed up for an average of 3.5 years. A late assessment including nuclear magnetic resonance imaging of the thoracic aorta was obtained in 17 of the 18 survivors. These investigations confirmed the good result of repair of the ascending aorta, the uselessness of systematic aortic valve replacement and the palliative nature of repair of type I dissection as 80 per cent of patients had a persistent patent false lumen in the distal aorta.

The aim of this study was to confront preoperative echocardiographic data with the anatomic operative findings in patients with mitral insufficiency (MI) undergoing Carpentier's mitral valvuloplasty in order to determine the mechanism(s) of the regurgitation, to classify MI by the echocardiographic changes and to thereby answer the question as to whether echocardiography can identify the patients likely to benefit from this operation. Between February 1985 and November 1987, 66 patients (47 men, 19 women, average age 58 +/- 9 years) with pure MI were referred for surgery with a view to mitral valvuloplasty. This operation was possible in 49 patients (2 of 6 rheumatic MI and 47 of 60 dystrophic MI). The sensitivity of echocardiography was excellent and its specificity very good in diagnosing prolapse of one or the other mitral leaflets. Echocardiography was not as good in distinguishing rupture from elongation of the chordae tendinae and myxoid degeneration from fibro-elastic leaflets. Echocardiography allowed preoperative classification of MI in 4 groups: Group 1 (n = 46) with prolapse of the posterior leaflet; Group 2 (n = 4) with prolapse of the anterior leaflet; Group 3 (n = 8) with prolapse of both mitral leaflets; Group 4 (n = 2) with abnormalities of the mitral annulus alone. Carpentier's valvuloplasty was possible in 43/46 patients in Group 1, 2/4 patients in Group 2, 1/8 patients in Group 3 and 1/2 patients in Group 4. In conclusion, echocardiography is a good tool for selecting patients with dystrophic MI for Carpentier's valvuloplasty.

In defining the characteristic abnormalities of obstructive cardiomyopathy (OCM), the echocardiogram appears to offer an excellent method. We have used this technique in 22 adults presenting with this condition, and have compared the results of echocardiography with those taken from 17 normal subjects. All those with OCM had asymmetrical hypertrophy of the septum (meaning hypertrophy of the septum without proportional thickening of the posterior wall of the left ventricle); certain other facts were noted: an undilated left ventricular cavity, good systolic function, and indications of poor diastolic compliance. In addition, from the thickeness of the posterior wall and the movement of the mitral valve complex during systole, it has been possible to draw a distinction between the patients with and those without obstruction while they were all at rest. These results confirm that it is possible to identify obstructive cardiomyopathy and the frequently associated defects of ventricular function by an echocardiographic method.

27 patients with an acoustic neurinoma were submitted to a complete cardiological survey oriented towards the detection of mitral valve prolapse (2D echo) and ECG signs of a particular risk of arrhythmia (standard ECG and continuous Holter monitoring). 9 of these 27 patients presented MVP, but none of them presented any serious ventricular arrhythmias. The corrected QT interval was significantly longer in patients without MVP. The frequency of the association of MVP and acoustic neurinoma can not be explained simply by the female predominance of the series and its should be interpreted with reservation in the absence of a control series. The absence of pre-operative arrhythmia does not exclude the potentiating role of MVP in the development of certain cases of unexplained post-operative death.

The authors report a case of paradoxal embolism. They review the usual circumstances of such a diagnosis and emphasise the value of contrasted two-dimensional echocardiography.

In the present study Doppler-echocardiography was used to evaluate the quality of mitral valve regurgitation (MVR) repair by Carpentier valvuloplasty. Between January, 1984 and June, 1987, this operation was performed in 51 patients (39 men, 12 women; mean age 58 +/- 10.9 years) presenting with mitral valve regurgitation; 25 were in class III and 14 in class IV of the NYHA classification. Two patients died soon after the operation and 2 others some time later. The 47 survivors were followed up for a mean period of 20.5 +/- 11.2 months: 3 of them required mitral valve replacement for residual MVR or mitral stenosis, one developed cerebral embolism. At the latest control, 18 patients were in NYHA class I and 26 in NYHA class II. Doppler velocimetry showed no or little mitral valve dysfunction; the residual MVR was below grade 1 in 37 of the 44 survivors who were not reoperated upon. Mitral function was satisfactory after Carpentier valvuloplasty, with a mean transmitral gradient of 3.3 +/- 1.3 mmHg and a mean mitral valve area of 2.9 +/- 0.98 cm2. In 3 patients an intraventricular gradient of 10 to 20 mmHg, reflecting moderate ventricular obstruction, was detected by Doppler velocimetry. These data obtained with the combined Doppler-echocardiographic method confirm that the quality of mitral function is excellent after Carpentier mitral valvuloplasty.

Hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy, the pathogenesis of which is controverted, exposes the patient to the risk of sudden death and often evolves towards heart failure. When medical treatment is inadequate, surgery may be considered. The authors report their experience of myectomy performed in 28 subjects with pure obstructive cardiomyopathy. Despite a medical treatment based, in most cases, on beta-blockers, all patients showed severe symptoms, with syncopes in 39 p. 100 of the cases, stage 2 or over angina (Canadian Cardiovascular Society grading) in 57 p. 100 of the cases, and stage 3 or over dyspnoea (New York Heart Association grading) in 61 p. 100 of the cases. The intraventricular pressure gradient, measured in 25 patients, was 81.7 +/- 44.9 mmHg. The operation always consisted of myectomy according to the Morrow procedure, i.e. double myotomy of the subaortic septum extended on a length of at least 4 cm, with excision of the muscle between the two incisions. In addition, mitral valve replacement was performed in 13 patients who had severe mitral regurgitation. Three patients (7 p. 100) died with low cardiac output in the peri-operative period; pre-operatively, these patients were in a particularly poor condition. One patient died suddenly during the 4th post-operative month. The annual mortality rate therefore was 2.3 p. 100, and the actuarial survival rate at 8 years was 89.3 p. 100.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)