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Introduction: Elite breath-hold divers (BHD) possess several oxygen conserving adaptations to endure long dives similar to diving mammals. During dives, Bottlenose Dolphins may increase the alveolar ventilation (VA) to perfusion (Q) ratio to increase alveolar oxygen delivery. We hypothesized that BHD possess similar adaptive mechanisms during apnea. Methods and results: Pulmonary blood volume (PBV) was determined by echocardiography, 15O-H2O PET/CT, and cardiac MRi, (n = 6) during and after maximum apneas. Pulmonary function was determined by body box spirometry and compared to matched controls. After 2 min of apnea, the PBV determined by echocardiography and 15O-H2O-PET/CT decreased by 26% and 41%, respectively. After 4 min of apnea, the PBV assessed by echocardiography and cardiac MRi decreased by 48% and 67%, respectively (n = 6). Fractional saturation (F)O2Hb determined by arterial blood-gas-analyses collected after warm-up and a 5-minute pool-apnea (n = 9) decreased by 43%. Compared to matched controls (n = 8), spirometry revealed a higher total and alveolar-lung-capacity in BHD (n = 9), but a lower diffusion-constant. Conclusion: Our results contrast with previous studies, that demonstrated similar lung gas transfer in BHD andmatched controls.We conclude that elite BHD 1) have a lower diffusion constant than matched controls, and 2) gradually decrease PBV during apnea and in turn increase VA/Q to increase alveolar oxygen delivery during maximum apnea. We suggest that BHD possess pulmonary adaptations similar to diving mammals to tolerate decreasing tissue oxygenation. New and noteworthy: This manuscript addresses novel knowledge on tolerance to hypoxia during diving, which is shared by elite breath-hold divers and adult diving mammals: Our study indicates that elite breath-hold divers gradually decrease pulmonary blood volume and in turn increase VA/Q, to increase alveolar oxygen delivery during maximum apnea to tolerate decreasing oxygen levels similar to the Bottlenose Dolphin. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Elite breath-hold divers (BHD) enduring apneas of more than 5 min are characterized by tolerance to arterial blood oxygen levels of 4.3 kPa and low oxygen-consumption in their hearts and skeletal muscles, similar to adult seals. Adult seals possess an adaptive higher hemoglobin-concentration and Bohr effect than pups, and when sedated, adult seals demonstrate a blood shift from the spleen towards the brain, lungs, and heart during apnea. We hypothesized these observations to be similar in human BHD. Therefore, we measured hemoglobin- and 2,3-biphosphoglycerate-concentrations in BHD (n = 11) and matched controls (n = 11) at rest, while myocardial mass, spleen and lower extremity volumes were assessed at rest and during apnea in BHD. Methods and results: After 4 min of apnea, left ventricular myocardial mass (LVMM) determined by 15O-H2O-PET/CT (n = 6) and cardiac MRI (n = 6), was unaltered compared to rest. During maximum apnea (-6 min), lower extremity volume assessed by DXA-scan revealed a -268 mL decrease, and spleen volume, assessed by ultrasonography, decreased -102 mL. Compared to age, BMI and VO2max matched controls (n = 11), BHD had similar spleen sizes and 2,3- biphosphoglycerate-concentrations, but higher total hemoglobinconcentrations. Conclusion: Our results indicate: 1) Apnea training in BHD may increase hemoglobin concentration as an oxygen conserving adaptation similar to adult diving mammals. 2) The blood shift during dry apnea in BHD is 162% more from the lower extremities than from the spleen. 3) In contrast to the previous theory of the blood shift demonstrated in sedated adult seals, blood shift is not towards the heart during dry apnea in humans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

IntroductionElite breath-hold divers (BHD) possess several oxygen conserving adaptations to endure long dives similar to diving mammals. During dives, Bottlenose Dolphins may increase the alveolar ventilation (VA) to perfusion (Q) ratio to increase alveolar oxygen delivery. We hypothesized that BHD possess similar adaptive mechanisms during apnea.Methods and resultsPulmonary blood volume (PBV) was determined by echocardiography, 15O-H2O PET/CT, and cardiac MRi, (n = 6) during and after maximum apneas. Pulmonary function was determined by body box spirometry and compared to matched controls. After 2 min of apnea, the PBV determined by echocardiography and 15O-H2O-PET/CT decreased by 26% and 41%, respectively. After 4 min of apnea, the PBV assessed by echocardiography and cardiac MRi decreased by 48% and 67%, respectively (n = 6). Fractional saturation (F)O2Hb determined by arterial blood-gas-analyses collected after warm-up and a 5-minute pool-apnea (n = 9) decreased by 43%. Compared to matched controls (n = 8), spirometry revealed a higher total and alveolar-lung-capacity in BHD (n = 9), but a lower diffusion-constant.ConclusionOur results contrast with previous studies, that demonstrated similar lung gas transfer in BHD and matched controls. We conclude that elite BHD 1) have a lower diffusion constant than matched controls, and 2) gradually decrease PBV during apnea and in turn increase VA/Q to increase alveolar oxygen delivery during maximum apnea. We suggest that BHD possess pulmonary adaptations similar to diving mammals to tolerate decreasing tissue oxygenation.New and noteworthyThis manuscript addresses novel knowledge on tolerance to hypoxia during diving, which is shared by elite breath-hold divers and adult diving mammals: Our study indicates that elite breath-hold divers gradually decrease pulmonary blood volume and in turn increase VA/Q, to increase alveolar oxygen delivery during maximum apnea to tolerate decreasing oxygen levels similar to the Bottlenose Dolphin.

IntroductionElite breath-hold divers (BHD) enduring apneas of more than 5 min are characterized by tolerance to arterial blood oxygen levels of 4.3 kPa and low oxygen-consumption in their hearts and skeletal muscles, similar to adult seals. Adult seals possess an adaptive higher hemoglobin-concentration and Bohr effect than pups, and when sedated, adult seals demonstrate a blood shift from the spleen towards the brain, lungs, and heart during apnea. We hypothesized these observations to be similar in human BHD. Therefore, we measured hemoglobin- and 2,3-biphosphoglycerate-concentrations in BHD (n = 11) and matched controls (n = 11) at rest, while myocardial mass, spleen and lower extremity volumes were assessed at rest and during apnea in BHD.Methods and resultsAfter 4 min of apnea, left ventricular myocardial mass (LVMM) determined by 15O-H2O-PET/CT (n = 6) and cardiac MRI (n = 6), was unaltered compared to rest. During maximum apnea (∼6 min), lower extremity volume assessed by DXA-scan revealed a ∼268 mL decrease, and spleen volume, assessed by ultrasonography, decreased ∼102 mL. Compared to age, BMI and VO2max matched controls (n = 11), BHD had similar spleen sizes and 2,3- biphosphoglycerate-concentrations, but higher total hemoglobin-concentrations.ConclusionOur results indicate: 1) Apnea training in BHD may increase hemoglobin concentration as an oxygen conserving adaptation similar to adult diving mammals. 2) The blood shift during dry apnea in BHD is 162% more from the lower extremities than from the spleen. 3) In contrast to the previous theory of the blood shift demonstrated in sedated adult seals, blood shift is not towards the heart during dry apnea in humans.

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the principal cause of mortality and morbidity globally. With the pressures for improved care and translation of the latest medical advances and knowledge to an actionable plan, clinical decision-making for cardiologists is challenging. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a field in computer science that studies the design of intelligent agents which take the best feasible action in a situation. It incorporates the use of computational algorithms which simulate and perform tasks that traditionally require human intelligence such as problem solving and learning. Whilst medicine is arguably the last to apply AI in its everyday routine, cardiology is at the forefront of AI revolution in the medical field. The development of AI methods for accurate prediction of CVD outcomes, non-invasive diagnosis of coronary artery disease (CAD), detection of malignant arrythmias through wearables, and diagnosis, treatment strategies and prediction of outcomes for heart failure (HF) patients, demonstrates the potential of AI in future cardiology. With the advancements of AI, Internet of Things (IoT) and the promotion of precision medicine, the future of cardiology will be heavily based on these innovative digital technologies. Despite this, ethical dilemmas regarding the implementation of AI technologies in real-world are still unaddressed.

Recent technological innovations in CT and MR imaging of the heart have vastly expanded the clinical utility of these modalities allowing them to complement and in some ways surpass the capabilities of more traditional methods. Cardiac MR (CMR) has an unrivaled ability to assess contractile function, characterize tissue, and detect minute areas of scar. In turn, CMR can reliably risk stratify ischemic heart disease and has emerged as a non-invasive gold standard technique for imaging non-ischemic cardiomyopathies.1 Cardiac CT (CCT) by comparison reveals cardiac structure and, in particular, coronary anatomy with remarkable sub-millimeter detail. For the first time, coronary stenoses can be directly and reliably visualized non-invasively. Owing to its very high negative predictive value for the detection of significant coronary obstruction, CCT can accurately exclude coronary disease as a cause of chest pain in low- to intermediate- risk populations. This article describes these modalities and their recent clinical advances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the principal cause of mortality and morbidity globally. With the pressures for improved care and translation of the latest medical advances and knowledge to an actionable plan, clinical decision-making for cardiologists is challenging. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a field in computer science that studies the design of intelligent agents which take the best feasible action in a situation. It incorporates the use of computational algorithms which simulate and perform tasks that traditionally require human intelligence such as problem solving and learning. Whilst medicine is arguably the last to apply AI in its everyday routine, cardiology is at the forefront of AI revolution in the medical field. The development of AI methods for accurate prediction of CVD outcomes, non-invasive diagnosis of coronary artery disease (CAD), detection of malignant arrythmias through wearables, and diagnosis, treatment strategies and prediction of outcomes for heart failure (HF) patients, demonstrates the potential of AI in future cardiology. With the advancements of AI, Internet of Things (IoT) and the promotion of precision medicine, the future of cardiology will be heavily based on these innovative digital technologies. Despite this, ethical dilemmas regarding the implementation of AI technologies in real-world are still unaddressed., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Karatzia, Aung and Aksentijevic.)

Background: Velocity-encoded magnetic resonance imaging (VENC-MRI) is a commonly used technique in cardiac examinations. This technique utilizes the phase shift properties of protons moving along a magnetic field gradient. VENC-MRI offers a unique way of measuring the severity of valve regurgitation by directly quantifying the regurgitation flow volume., Purpose: To compare flow analysis results of different software programs and to assess the effect of background correction in sample patient cases., Material and Methods: A phantom was built out of Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) which provides tubes of different diameters. These tubes can be connected to an external water circuit to generate a water flow inside the tubes. Expected absolute flow quantities inside the tubes were determined from preset tube- and flow-parameters. Different flow conditions were measured with a VENC-MRI sequence and the images evaluated using different software packages. In a second step six randomly selected patients showing different degrees of aortic insufficiency were evaluated in clinical terms., Results: The contour propagation algorithms used in the software packages performed differently even on static phantom geometry. In terms of clinical evaluation the software packages performed similarly. Enabling background correction or leaving out manual correction of propagated contours changed results for severity of aortic insufficiency., Conclusion: Turning on background correction and manual correction of propagated contours in MRI flow volume measurements is strongly recommended.

Background: The definition of abnormal septal wall motion (SWM) is usually performed on a subjective visual assessment with cardiac MR (CMR)., Purpose: To quantify SWM using a geometric index and to compare this index to the visual inspection in patients with or without abnormal SWM., Material and Methods: Cine CMR images of 100 consecutive patients were retrospectively assessed for visual evaluation of SWM and calculation of a convexity septal index (CSI) on mid-ventricular short-axis images, defined as b/a (a = minimal distance from anterior to posterior ventricular junctions; b = maximal distance from septum to a), obtained in end-systole (ES) and end-diastole (ED). Cohen κ, Bland-Altman method, Kruskall-Wallis, Mann-Whitney U, Jonckheere-Terpstra, and Spearman statistics were used to compare the two methods., Results: At visual evaluation, 73 patients had normal SWM (group A), nine abnormal SWM at ES (group B), and 18 at ES and ED (group C). Median CSI for group A was significantly higher (ES = 0.23, ED = 0.25) than those for group B and C (0.10-0.15) (P < 0.001). Inter-reader reproducibility of visual evaluation was high (κ = 0.841, P < 0.001) while that for CSI was 77%. Average time for visual analysis was 3 min, for quantitative analysis 4 min., Conclusion: CSI is a simple and reproducible way to quantify SWM. ED CSI seems to be sensitive in detecting abnormal SWM in patients with apparently normal SWM at visual evaluation., (© The Foundation Acta Radiologica 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav.)