Background: Surgical repair of tetralogy of Fallot may leave the patient with pulmonary regurgitation causing eventual right ventricle dilatation and dysfunction. Predicting clinical deterioration may help to determine the best timing for intervention.

Objectives: To assess whether the clinical and humoral status of patients in the second decade after repair of ToF[1] is worse than that of patients in the first decade after repair.

Methods: Twenty-one patients with repaired ToF underwent clinical assessment, electrocardiogram, echocardiogram and measurement of plasma B-type natriuretic peptide and N-terminal pro-BNP[2] as well as the 6 minute walk distance test. Patients were divided into two groups: group A – less than 10 years after repair (n=10, age < 12 years old), and group B – more than 10 years after repair (n=11, age > 12 years old). The age at repair was similar in both groups.

Results: In all but one patient the distance in the 6 min walk test was less than the minimum for age. RV[3] end-diastolic volume and the 6 min walk test correlated with age. NT-proBNP[4] levels were significantly higher in the ToF group compared to 26 healthy controls (P < 0.0001) and were inversely correlated with RV ejection fraction. Comparison of the two groups showed no difference in RV end-diastolic volume indexed for body surface area, pulmonary regurgitation severity, right or left ventricular myocardial performance index, RV ejection fraction, QRS duration, or 6 min walk indexed to minimum for age.

Conclusions: In this group of patients with similar age at operation and pulmonary regurgitation severity, most clinical, echocardiographic and humoral parameters were not worse in the second decade after repair of ToF. These data suggest that very early pulmonary valve replacement may not be of benefit.

Background: Burns are a major public health problem, with long hospitalization stay in both intensive care units and general wards. In Israel about 5% of all hospitalized injuries are burn injuries. There are no long-term epidemiological studies on burn injuries in adults in Israel.

Objectives: To identify risk factors for burn injuries and provide a starting point for the establishment of an effective prevention plan.

Methods: We analyzed the demographic, etiologic and clinical data of 5000 burn patients admitted to the five major hospitals with burn units in Israel during a 7 year period (1997–2003). Data were obtained from the records of the Israeli National Trauma Registry. The differences between various groups were evaluated using the chi-square test.

Results: Male gender was twice as frequent as female gender in burn patients (68.0% vs. 31.9%), and Jewish ethnicity was more common than non-Jewish (62.3% vs. 36.8%). Second and third-degree burns with body surface areas less than 10% constituted the largest group (around 50%). The largest age group was 0–1 years, constituting 22.2% of the cases. Inhalation injury was uncommon (1.9%). The most common etiologies were hot liquids (45.8%) and open fire (27.5%). Children less than 10 years old were burnt mainly by hot liquids while the main cause of burns for adults > 20 years old was an open flame. The majority of burns occurred at home (58%); around 15% were work related. The mean duration of hospitalization was 13.7 days (SD 17.7); 15.5% were in an intensive care unit with a mean duration of 12.1 days (SD 17.1). Surgical procedures became more common during the period of the study (from 13.4% in 1998 to 26.59% in 2002, average 19.8%). The mortality rate was 4.4%. We found a strong correlation between burn degree and total body surface area and mortality (0.25% mortality for 2nd to 3rd-degree burns with less than 10% TBSA[1], 5.4% for 2nd to 3rd-degree burns with 20–39% TBSA, and 96.6% for burns > 90% TBSA). The worst prognosis was for those over the age of 70 (mortality rate 35.3%) and the best prognosis was for the 0–1 year group (survival rate 99.6%).

Conclusions: The groups at highest risk were children 0–1 years old, males and non-Jews (the incidence rate among non-Jews was 1.5 times higher than their share in the general population). Those with the highest mortality rate were victims of burns > 90% TBSA and patients older than 70. Most burns occurred at home.

Background: In recent years there has been an increase in endovascular repair of thoracic aortic aneurysms. In cases of insufficient neck length, occlusion of left subclavian artery achieves proper sealing and is usually well tolerated. Selected cases require revascularization of the left subclavian artery, including patients after coronary bypass surgery (left internal mammary to left anterior descending) and those with arm claudication or subclavian steal syndrome.

Objectives: To evaluate the tolerability of left subclavian artery occlusion by stent graft without revascularization.

Methods: Thirty patients with thoracic aortic aneurysms underwent endovascular repair between July 2000 and November 2004. Eleven of them had occlusion of the left subclavian artery that required revascularization in two. Follow-up (average 3 years) included a) blood pressure measurements of both arms at rest, after effort and pulse palpation, and b) vertebral blood flow by duplex scan.

Results: Of nine patients with no revascularization, 8 (89%) tolerated left subclavian artery occlusion with no claudication or steal syndrome; one (11%) suffered mild claudication only after effort and required no intervention. No left radial pulses were palpated in the nine patients. Blood pressure measurements in the left arm showed an average decrease of 40%, which remained constant after induced effort in all patients and was clinically insignificant. Duplex scan demonstrated reverse flow in the left vertebral artery in 8 of 9 patients (89%) and occlusion in 1 (originating in the arch and covered by the stent graft) with no clinical symptoms.

Conclusions: Left subclavian artery occlusion by stent graft is a tolerable procedure in the long term. In most cases, the constant decrease in blood pressure remained unchanged during follow-up and had no significant adverse affects. Most patients do not require revascularization prior to the endovascular procedure.
 

Background: Infective endocarditis is a common disease with significant morbidity and mortality.

Objectives: To define clinical and echocardiographic parameters predicting morbidity and in-hospital mortality in patients with infective endocarditis hospitalized in a tertiary hospital from 1991 to 2000.

Methods: All patients with definite IE diagnosed according to the Duke criteria were included. We examined relevant clinical features that might influence outcome.

Results: The study group comprised 100 consecutive patients, 77 with native valve and 23 with prosthetic valve endocarditis. The overall in-hospital mortality rate was 8%. There was a higher mortality in the PVE[1] group compared to the NVE[2] group (13% vs. 7%, P = 0.07). The mortality rate in each group, with or without surgery, was not significantly different. Clinical predictors of mortality were older age and hospital-acquired endocarditis. The presence of vegetations and their size were significant predictors of major embolic events and mortality. Staphylococcus aureus was a predictor of mortality (25% vs. 5%, P < 0.005) and abscess formation. Multivariate logistic analysis identified vegetation size and S. aureus as independent predictors of mortality.

Conclusions: Mortality is higher in older hospitalized patients. S. aureus is associated with a poor outcome. Vegetation size is an independent predictor of embolic events and of a higher mortality.

Background: Spontaneous coronary reperfusion occurs in 7–27% of patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction, and is an independent predictor of myocardial salvage, percutaneous coronary intervention success, and improved outcome.

Objectives: To determine the optimal PCI[1] time for patients admitted to the hospital due to STEMI[2] with SCR[3].

Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of all patients admitted to the coronary care unit between July 2002 and November 2004 with a diagnosis of STEMI with SCR.

Results: The study group comprised 86 patients. There was not a single reinfarction episode during an observation period of 6579 patient hours. Cardiac catheterization was executed early (< 24 hours from pain onset) in 26 patients and late (> 24 hours) in 55. Pre-PCI angiographic TIMI flow 2–3 was seen in > 95% in both groups. PCI was performed more frequently in the “early” group (P = 0.024), while multi-vessel coronary artery disease (P = 0.094) requiring coronary bypass surgery (P = 0.056) was observed more frequently in the “late catheterization” group. Myocardial infarction and angina pectoris at 30 days occurred more frequently in the early catheterization group (P = 0.039), however no difference in any major adverse cardiac events was detected during long-term follow-up (491 ± 245 days).

Conclusions: Reinfarction after STEMI with SCR is a rare event. Early PCI in patients with STEMI and SCR, even when executed with aggressive anti-platelet therapy, seems to result in an excess of early MACE, without any long-term advantage. Prospective randomized trials should determine the optimal PCI timing for these patients.

Objectives: To evaluate immunologic parameters in B-CLL[1] associated with autoimmune disorders. As a hypothesis we postulated that in those cases, the malignant B cells might disclose an activated phenotype pattern leading to the production of autoantibodies.

Methods: In the Registry of the Israel Study Group on CLL that includes 964 patients, we found 115 cases showing a single or a complex of autoimmune disorders. We evaluated the lymphocyte morphology, immunoglobulin G and beta-2-microglobulin serum levels and positivity of the CD38 and FMC7 markers, and compared these values with those of a matched CLL population without autoimmune disorder. 

Results: The main autoimmune disorders encountered were autoimmune hemolytic anemia (55 patients), Evan's syndrome (n=7), Hashimoto's thyroiditis (n=15), vasculitis (n=5) and rheumatoid arthritis (n=4). We found atypical prolymphocytic morphology in 22%, high expression of the activation antigens CD38 and/or FMC7 in 30%, and high level of immunoglobulin G (> 1000 mg/dl) and beta-2-microglobulin in 57% and 78% respectively. When compared with a matched CLL population without an autoimmune disorder, these values were statistically significant.

Conclusions: Our data, which show activated lymphocyte morphology, high levels of IgG[2] and beta-2-microglobulin, and increased expression of CD38 and/or FMC7 in a significant number of cases, suggest that some degree of activation of B cells may lead to the occurrence of an autoimmune disorder in CLL.

Objectives: To determine whether drug studies in the pulmonary/allergy literature also demonstrate a publication bias towards more favorable results when a pharmaceutical company funds the study.

Methods: We reviewed all original articles published in seven pulmonary and allergy journals between October 2002 and September 2003. Included in the review were studies of inhaled corticosteroids (oral or nasal), long- or short-acting bronchodilators, or leukotriene receptor antagonists. Articles with funding from a pharmaceutical company and/or one or more authors employed by a pharmaceutical company were considered pharmaceutical company-sponsored studies. The remaining studies were considered not sponsored by a pharmaceutical company. Results were compared to ascertain whether positive results were obtained more frequently in the company-sponsored studies.

Results: Of the 100 articles included in this review 63 were considered pharmaceutical company-sponsored research. Results favorable for the drugs studies were significantly more common in those funded by a pharmaceutical company (98% vs. 32%).

Conclusions: In the pulmonary and allergy literature, as in other fields, there is a publication bias towards positive results in pharmaceutical company-sponsored research.