Heart and Diabetes Center North Rhine-Westphalia

About: Heart and Diabetes Center North Rhine-Westphalia is a healthcare organization based out in Bad Oeynhausen, Germany. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Vitamin D and neurology & Heart failure. The organization has 288 authors who have published 357 publications receiving 9276 citations.

Peak systolic longitudinal strain of the lateral left ventricular wall improves after septal ablation for symptomatic hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy: a follow-up study using speckle tracking echocardiography.

Abstract: Speckle tracking echocardiography (STE) or two-dimensional (2D) strain imaging is a novel ultrasound method to assess myocardial deformation. Peak systolic longitudinal strain (PSLS) of the basal septum (IVS) and the opposite lateral (LVFW) wall were measured in addition to standard echocardiography in 88 consecutive patients (pts) with obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HOCM) who underwent a septal ablation procedure (PTSMA) and who were re-evaluated 12 ± 12 after months. At baseline, PSLS was substantially reduced both in basal regions. While PSLS remained unchanged in the basal IVS, i.e. the target region for PTSMA (baseline: −5.3 ± 4.1%; follow-up: −6.0 ± 4.3%; P = 0.06), it improved in the opposite LVFW (from −9.4 ± 4.7 to −12.4 ± 4.8%; P < 0.0001). Wall thickness decreased in both regions (Septum: from 20 ± 4 to 17 ± 4 mm; P < 0.0001; LV free wall: from 13 ± 2 to 12 ± 2 mm; P = 0.001). PSLS correlated significantly with wall thickness, both at baseline and at follow-up. NYHA functional class (from 2.9 ± 0.4 to 1.6 ± 0.6; P < 0.0001) and objective exercise capacity (from 96 ± 42 to 114 ± 42 W; P = 0.001) improved together with the reduction of outflow obstruction (LVOTO: from 62 ± 30 to 11 ± 19 mm Hg at rest, from 121 ± 26 to 43 ± 40 mm Hg with provocation; P < 0.0001). During the 12 months of observation, no patient had a severe adverse event. Regional myocardial deformation can be assessed quantitatively by STE. Reduction of LV afterload by elimination of the outflow gradient following a successful PTSMA with low doses of alcohol results in improvement of systolic lateral longitudinal function.

Nuclear cardiology practice and associated radiation doses in Europe: results of the IAEA Nuclear Cardiology Protocols Study (INCAPS) for the 27 European countries

Abstract: Purpose Nuclear cardiology is widely used to diagnose coronary artery disease and to guide patient management, but data on current practices, radiation dose-related best practices, and radiation doses are scarce. To address these issues, the IAEA conducted a worldwide study of nuclear cardiology practice. We present the European subanalysis.

The Biphasic Effect of Vitamin D on the Musculoskeletal and Cardiovascular System.

Abstract: This narrative review summarizes beneficial and harmful vitamin D effects on the musculoskeletal and cardiovascular system. Special attention is paid to the dose-response relationship of vitamin D with clinical outcomes. In infants and adults, the risk of musculoskeletal diseases is highest at circulating 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) concentrations below 25 nmol/L and is low if 40-60 nmol/L are achieved. However, evidence is also accumulating that in elderly people the risk of falls and fractures increases again at circulating 25OHD levels > 100 nmol/L. Cohort studies report a progressive increase in cardiovascular disease (CVD) events at 25OHD levels 100 nmol/L, but the threshold may be influenced by the level of physical activity. In conclusion, dose-response relationships indicate deleterious effects on the musculoskeletal system and probably on the cardiovascular system at circulating 25OHD levels 100 nmol/L. Future studies should focus on populations with 25OHD levels 100 nmol/L.

Complications of type 1 diabetes: new molecular findings.

Abstract: Interventions targeting the treatment of diabetic complications have not been nearly as successful as initially estimated, despite a marked improvement in therapeutic options for diabetes. The need for understanding why some very promising interventions have failed demands a closer look at the pathomechanisms of the complications. Great strides have been made in understanding the pathology, and several important hypotheses have emerged in recent years. On this basis, Brownlee and coworkers suggested a unifying hypothesis integrating various mechanisms discussed in past years with an overproduction of reactive oxygen species as an initiating cause. This hypothesis and further hypotheses, as well as mechanisms, are highlighted in this article. The field of pathomechanisms of diabetic complications is very wide, and any attempt to completely cover it within a single article is unrealistic. Therefore, our purpose is to present the most relevant concepts underlying diabetic complications in an attempt to contribute to a better understanding and pinpoint areas that warrant further research. Mt Sinai J Med 75:328–351, 2008. © 2008 Mount Sinai School of Medicine