Serum lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] was determined in 85 healthy controls (control group), in 49 patients with cerebrovascular disease (CVD group), and in 87 patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI group). Lp(a) concentration was measured using a single radial immunodiffusion method. Because Lp(a) showed a skewed distribution, Lp(a) was plotted in each group on a box plot and analyzed using non...

The degree of coronary artery atherosclerosis present in 600 hearts obtained from women, 100 in each of the decades from 30 through 89 years, was determined by one observer. Coronary atherosclerosis increased with age until the eighth decade when the atherosclerosis tended to level off. Cardiac hypertrophy and diabetes were associated with increased degrees of atherosclerosis. Hearts from the u...

Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is a promising method for evaluating thoracic aortic atherosclerosis and coronary atherosclerosis. The highest impact of TEE as a clinical tool is in searching for cardiac embolic sources in patients with stroke and atrial fibrillation and in conducting detailed evaluations in patients with valvular disease, especially those with mitral valvular disease. H...

Moore than 17,000 orthotopic heart transplants have been performed, and the results of all centers reporting to the International Registry show a 1-year survival rate of more than 80%. Heart transplantation has become a routine and effective method for the treatment of end-stage heart disease. Acute cellular rejection or infection are the most common causes of death within the first year after ...

BACKGROUND Leptin receptor (LEPR) polymorphisms have been reported to be associated with lipid metabolism and insulin resistance in various populations. However, whether LEPR polymorphisms are associated with the risks of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and coronary atherosclerosis in the Chinese Han population remains unknown. OBJECTIVES To investigate the association of LEPR polym...

Dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE) has been widely used as a diagnostic and prognostic modality in the management of stress. DSE is associated with limited complications and adverse effects on the health of patients. In this case report, we described a 42-year-old female patient with dobutamine-induced coronary artery spasm with history of exertional dyspnea, which had deteriorated recent...

OBJECTIVES The study was conducted to test the hypothesis that the prevalence of coronary atherosclerosis is greater among diabetic than among nondiabetic individuals and is similar for diabetic individuals without clinical coronary artery disease (CAD) and nondiabetics with clinical CAD. BACKGROUND Persons with diabetes but without clinical CAD encounter cardiovascular mortality similar to n...

AIM At present, limited in vivo information is available on the prevalence and severity of coronary atherosclerosis in asymptomatic healthy subjects. The aim of this study was to examine the prevalence, extent and severity of coronary atherosclerosis in healthy individuals. METHODS We performed an intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) examination on 198 heart transplant recipients 4 weeks after tra...