Infarcted segments of myocardium demonstrate functional impairment ranging in severity from hypokinesis to dyskinesis. We sought to better define the contributions of passive material properties (stiffness) and active properties (contracting myocytes) to infarct thickening. Using a finite-element (FE) model, we tested the hypothesis that infarcted myocardium must contain contracting myocytes to...

Sarcopenia is an aging condition involving low muscle mass and function. Fetuin-A (FetA) appears to be a factor for body composition remodeling. We hypothesized that age increases FetA levels and deteriorates the myocardial function by affecting diastolic function, especially in people with sarcopenia. We enrolled 541 asymptomatic elderly (≥ 65 years) patients. Compared with non-sarcopenic popu...

AIMS Orthostatic hypotension (OH) has been linked to increased mortality and incidence of cardiovascular disease in various risk groups, but determinants and consequences of OH in the general population are poorly studied. METHODS AND RESULTS Prospective data of the Swedish 'Malmö Preventive Project' (n = 33 346, 67.3% men, mean age 45.7 +/- 7.4 years, mean follow-up 22.7 +/- 6.0 years) were ...

OBJECTIVES To compare maternal cardiac function between pregnancies complicated by normotensive and pre-eclamptic intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR). METHODS Two-dimensional Doppler echocardiography and Doppler tissue imaging (DTI) were used to examine 19 pregnant women with IUGR and 17 with pre-eclampsia complicated by IUGR at 20-38 weeks of gestation. Indices were converted into differe...

Transmitral flow velocities were measured by Doppler echocardiography in nine healthy men who ingested 1 g/kg of ethanol within one hour. The measurements were made before the first drink and every hour thereafter for three hours. The peak mean (SE) blood ethanol concentration was 21.4 (1.0) mmol/l. Each man was also studied after drinking fruit juice. Ethanol increased the heart rate but did n...

OBJECTIVES This study sought to investigate the incremental prognostic value of non-invasive measures of early myocardial relaxation and left ventricular diastolic pressure (LVDP) in patients with impaired left ventricular (LV) systolic function. BACKGROUND The early diastolic mitral annulus velocity (Em) reflects myocardial relaxation, and the combined ratio of the early transmitral flow vel...

BACKGROUND The pathogenesis of HFpEF is unclear, but fibrosis, inflammation and hypertrophy have been put forth as likely contributors. CDCs are heart-derived cell products with anti-fibrotic and anti-inflammatory properties. OBJECTIVES We questioned whether allogeneic rat CDCs might be able to decrease manifestations of HFpEF in hypertensive rats. METHODS Starting at 7 weeks of age, Dahl s...

BACKGROUND Atrial fibrillation (AF) may cause electrical and structural atrial remodelling, leading to progression from paroxysmal to permanent form of arrhythmia. Predictors of such a transition have not yet been well established. AIM To assess the role of B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) and left ventricular (LV) diastolic impairment in prediction of progression from paroxysmal/persistent A...

BACKGROUND Prolonged exercise in human athletes is associated with transient impairment of left ventricular (LV) function, known as cardiac fatigue. Cardiac effects of prolonged exercise in horses remain unknown. OBJECTIVES To investigate the effects of prolonged exercise on LV systolic and diastolic function in horses. ANIMALS Twenty-six horses competing in 120-160 km endurance rides. ME...

OBJECTIVE Pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) is an autosomal recessive connective tissue disorder with involvement of the skin, the retina, and the cardiovascular system. Cardiovascular involvement is mainly characterized by mineralization and fragmentation of elastic fibers of blood vessels and premature atherosclerosis. We conducted an ultrasound study to investigate the cardiovascular phenotype ...