Computed tomography can be used to create highquality three-dimensional images. An example of a con uent left pulmonary vein in a patient with idiopathic paroxysmal atrial Ž brillation is shown in the Ž gure. The common trunk (arrows) and individual branches (arrowheads) are clearly seen. Thus, three-dimensional computed tomography of the heart may be useful for visualizing the pulmonary veins...

Six infants with anomalous connection of the pulmonary veins to the coronary sinus were studied with single crystal echocardiography. The posterior left atrial wall echo was identified by its continuity with the left ventricular posterior wall echo during a sweep from the left atrium to the left ventricle. In five of the six infants an echo-free space measuring 7 to 9 mm was identified behind t...

beta-Adrenergic agonists are important regulators of perinatal pulmonary circulation. They cause vasodilation primarily via the adenyl cyclase-adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate (cAMP) pathway. We examined the responses of isolated fourth-generation pulmonary veins of term fetal (145 +/- 2 days gestation) and newborn (10 +/- 1 days) lambs to isoproterenol, a beta-adrenergic agonist. In vessel...

Pulmonary vein thrombosis is a rare but potentially life threatening complication following lobectomy or bilobectomy. We present a case of right upper pulmonary vein thrombosis after a middle and lower lobectomy diagnosed at transoesophageal echocardiography. The patient was treated with antibiotics and anticoagulation with good recovery. Pulmonary angiography was performed 35 days after surger...

ver the last decade there has been substantial progress in nderstanding the pathogenesis of atrial fibrillation (AF), rimarily due to the recognition of the role of the pulmonary eins and their antral regions in the initiation and perpetation of AF (1,2). Much work has focused on the electrohysiological (3,4), anatomical, and histological properties f the pulmonary veins (5); how they initiate ...

Nonpharmacological treatment for atrial fibrillation (AF) has evolved dramatically over the past 20 years. Pulmonary vein isolation, a catheter ablation technique developed in the last decade, prevents focal triggers in the pulmonary veins from initiating episodes of AF. Although the procedure initially involved focal ablation with a catheter directly in the pulmonary veins, investigators subse...

The response of pulmonary arteries to endothelin-1 (ET-1) changes with age in normal pigs and is abnormal in pulmonary hypertension. The purpose of this study was to determine if the same is true of the pulmonary veins. We studied the wall structure and functional response to ET-1 in pulmonary veins from normal pigs from fetal life to adulthood and from pigs subjected to chronic hypobaric hypox...

Correspondence to: Mecit Kantarci, 200 Evler Mah. 14. Sok No: 5 Dadaskent, Erzurum, Turkey Phone: +90 442 231 69 15 Fax: +90 442 236 13 01 e-mail: [email protected] doi:10.5152/eajm.2012.45 Received: July 14, 2012 / Accepted: July 21, 2012 A 10-hour-old female infant presented with mild cyanosis and tachypnea. On physical examination, a cardiac murmur was not observed. A chest roentgenogram ...

Nitric oxide causes dilation of the pulmonary circulation and reduction in net lung liquid production in the fetal lamb, two critical perinatal events. Phosphodiesterase inhibition alone causes similar changes and also enhances the effects of nitric oxide. To better define the cyclic guanosine 5'-monophosphate (GMP) pathway in these events, we studied the effects of a specific phosphodiesterase...

Electrical isolation of the pulmonary veins and disconnection of the left atrial musculature from their arrhythmogenic effects is the cornerstone of definitive and curative treatment in patients with symptomatic recurrent paroxysmal atrial fibrillation that is refractory to antiarrhythmic therapy. The type of lesion produced by balloon cryoablation is such that the tissue architecture is preser...