Objective: Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a reflection of both renal and cardiac reserve in patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), but there is a lack of evidence related to the effect of AKI on long-term mortality in patients with STEMI. This study was an investigation of the prognostic value of AKI for long-term mortality in patients with STEMI complicated by cardiogenic shock (CS) and primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI).
Methods: This retrospective analysis evaluated the long-term prognostic impact of AKI on 492 patients with STEMI complicated by CS who were treated with PPCI. AKI was defined as ≥0.3mg/dL increase in serum creatinine within 48 hours or a ≥50% increase in serum creatinine in 7 days, or a reduction in urine output (documented oliguria of less than 0.5mL/kg per hour >6 hours. Patients were grouped according to the incidence of AKI and long-term mortality was compared. Cox regression analysis was used to determine independent prognostic factors of long-term mortality.
Results: In Cox regression analysis, the age- and sex- adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) were higher for all-cause mortality in patients with AKI. [HR: 4.556; 95% confidence interval: (CI) 2.370–8.759]. After adjustment for confounding variables, the relative risk was greater for patients with AKI in comparison with patients without AKI (HR: 2.207; 95% CI: 1.150–4.739). Age (HR: 1.060, 95% CI: 1.027–1.094; p<0.001), left ventricular ejection fraction (HR: 0.952, 95% CI: 0.916–0.989; p=0.012), blood urea nitrogen level (HR: 1.019, 95% CI: 1.005–1.034; p=0.010), and AKI (HR: 2.244, 95% CI: 1.077–4.676; p=0.031) were found to be independent factors to determine long-term mortality.
Conclusion: The results of this study demonstrated that AKI was an independent prognostic factor for long-term mortality among patients with STEMI complicated by CS and treated with PPCI.

Objective: Vitamin D deficiency has been shown to be associated with coronary artery disease (CAD). In addition, there are studies suggesting that hyperuricemia is an independent risk factor for atherosclerosis, whereas the relationship between the combination of these 2 parameters and severity of CAD remains unclear. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between the combination of vitamin D deficiency and hyperuricemia and the extent of CAD.
Methods: A total of 502 patients who had experienced
myocardial infarction (MI) were included in this cross-sectional study. The 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25OHD) and serum uric acid (SUA) levels were measured in blood samples taken at the time of admission. A 2x2 factorial design was used to create groups according to the presence of hyperuricemia (>7 mg/dL) and vitamin D deficiency (<20 ng/mL). All of the patients underwent coronary angiography and the severity of CAD was determined using the Gensini score, SYNTAX score, and the number of diseased vessels.
Results: Both vitamin D deficiency and hyperuricemia were present in 83 patients (16.5%). Patients with hyperuricemia/vitamin D deficiency had more multivessel disease (24.1% vs 8.5%), and a higher SYNTAX score and Gensini score compared with the control group (13.9±8.0 vs. 9.5±6.3, 54.8±24.0 vs. 40.5±19.9, respectively). Age, male sex, presence of diabetes mellitus, family history of CAD, and levels of SUA and 25OHD were independent predictors of the severity of CAD. Moreover, the hyperuricemia/vitamin D deficiency group had 4 times greater odds of severe CAD than the control group.
Conclusion: The combination of hyperuricemia and vitamin D deficiency appears to be an independent predictor of severe CAD in MI patients.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the prognostic value of the serum vitamin D (Vit-D) level on admission in patients with acute pulmonary embolism (APE) to determine in-hospital mortality.
Methods: Ninety-nine patients who were diagnosed with APE between January 2015 and January 2018 and had a record of an admission serum Vit-D level were enrolled in the study. The serum Vit-D level was measured using an immune-based assay in all cases. The primary outcome of the study was in-hospital all-cause mortality.
Results: The study population was divided into 2 groups according to the median value of serum Vit-D level: Vit-D level ≤7.36 ng/mL in 49 patients and Vit-D level >7.36 ng/mL in 50 patients. The patients with a serum Vit-D level ≤7.36 ng/mL had a higher of incidence of in-hospital death compared with those whose serum Vit-D level was >7.36 ng/mL (6 [12.2%] vs. 1 [2%]; p=0.048). In Cox regression analysis, the serum Vit-D level (Hazard ratio: 0.82, 95% confidence interval: 0.68-0.98; p=0.043) was found to be independently associated with in-hospital mortality. The optimal value of serum Vit-D level for the prediction of in-hospital mortality was ≤6.47 ng/mL, with a sensitivity of 71.4% and a specificity 86.9% (area under the curve: 0.81, 95% CI: 0.72–0.88; p=0.004).
Conclusion: The findings demonstrated that the serum Vit-D level on admission may be an independent predictor for in-hospital mortality in patients with APE.

Objective: This study was designed to determine the effectiveness of continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) treatment on the improvement of heart rate variability (HRV) and whether gender plays a role in HRV in patients with mode-rate to severe obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS).
Methods: Consecutive patients with recently diagnosed moderate to severe OSAS underwent continuous synchronized electrocardiographic monitoring and were prospectively considered for inclusion in the study. HRV was analyzed before starting CPAP therapy and 1 year thereafter. The effects of CPAP on HRV were evaluated in men and women separately to ascertain whether there are gender differences in the clinical manifestations of OSAS and whether female HRV responses to CPAP are similar to those of men.
Results: A total of 18 patients (10 men, median age: 56 years) were included in the study. There were no significant differences in the baseline clinical characteristics of the male and female patients. After 1 year of CPAP treatment, heart rate decreased (p<0.05) and time domain parameters increased (p<0.05) in both men and women. None of the frequency domain parameters changed in women (p>0.05), whereas the high frequency power measured increased (p<0.05) and the ratio of low frequency to high frequency decreased (p<0.05) in men after 1 year of CPAP treatment. The increase in HRV after 1 year of CPAP therapy was significantly higher in men than in women (p<0.05).
Conclusion: CPAP therapy reduced enhanced cardiac sympathetic nerve activity in patients with OSAS assessed according to HRV. The beneficial effect of long-term CPAP therapy on HRV was more pronounced in men.

Background: We have evaluated the feasibility of concomitant carotid angiography after coronary angiography with the same catheter, and the practicality, safety and success of image acquisition with respect to conventional catheters.
Method: 248 patients have been enrolled in the study, who have been evaluated with both carotid and coronary angiography in a time period between 2010 and 2017. 117 of them were evaluated with right diagnostic catheters and 131 of them were evaluated with handmade S shaped (HMS) catheters.
Basic parameters were similar in both of the groups. Total procedural time (7.34 ± 1.10 vs 9.56 ± 3.59 minutes, p < 0.001), fluoroscopy use time (6.08 ± 1.72 vs 5.23 ± 1.00 minutes, p < 0.001), used contrast media volume (50.2 ± 15.6 mL vs 62.3 ± 17.9 mL, p < 0.001) were all lower in the HMS catheter group.
Conclusion: There is strong correlation between coronary and carotid artery disease (62%). Many Cardiologists perform concomitant carotid angiography when performing coronary angiography using right diagnostic catheters (JR). The JR catheters tip can be reshaped like to S to enhance its safety and efficacy during carotid imaging. Our experience supports this.
Imaging of the carotid arteries is advantageous for the patients with severe coronary artery disease, when performing coronary angiography. For this purpose, the same catheter used for coronary imaging can be used after it is reshaped at hand, in place of a special catheter. This method is both efficient and safe.

Objective: The incidence of cardiac implantable electronic device (CIED) infection is usually <2%. The interrupted suture technique is thought to be better than a continuous suture in order to prevent pacemaker pocket infection. The aim of this study was to determine if there was a correlation between the suture techniques and the pacemaker wound infection rate.
Methods: The data of 2200 patients from the 5-year period of 2011 to 2016 were studied. There were 1096 patients in the study group and 1104 patients in the control group. Continuous sutures were used in the study group and interrupted sutures were used in the control group.
Results: Pacemaker pocket infection occurred in 33 patients (1.5%). Seventeen patients in the study group and 16 patients in the control group developed a pacemaker pocket infection. A pacemaker pocket hematoma was seen in 54 patients in the study group (4.9%) and 50 patients in the control group (4.5%).
Conclusion: Use of the continuous or interrupted suture technique for wound closure had no significant role in the prevention of pacemaker pocket infection.

Objective: Myocardial infarction is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality. Fibrinolytic administration is still a life-saving choice in ST-segment elevated myocardial infarction (STEMI), but the rate of successful reperfusion can be inconsistent. Failed reperfusion adds additional clinical risks to rescue percutaneous coronary intervention for STEMI patients. The interval between the peak of the T wave and the end of the T wave (Tpe) and the ratio of Tpe and a corrected measurement of the time from the start of the Q wave to the end of the T wave (Tpe/QTc ratio) are relatively new electrocardiogram (ECG) indices and have not yet been tested in STEMI patients treated with fibrinolytic agents.
Methods: A total of 177 STEMI patients (mean age: 60.5±11.1 years; 138 men and 39 women) were enrolled in this retrospective study to evaluate ECG parameters. The Tpe interval and the Tpe/QTc ratio at baseline and at the 90th minute following the administration of fibrinolytic therapy were analyzed. The clinical and ECG findings of successful and failed reperfusion groups were compared.
Results: Successful reperfusion was achieved in 119 patients (67.2%). The average Tpe interval on the admission ECG was shorter (91.7 vs. 100.9 milliseconds [ms]) (p<0.001) and shortened more in the successful reperfusion group (9.3 vs. 4.5 ms) (p<0.001). A cut-off value of 89.0 ms for the Tpe interval on the admission ECG was found to be related to reperfusion success with a sensitivity of 90.9%.
Conclusion: The Tpe interval was a predictor for reperfusion success in STEMI patients treated with fibrinolytic agents.

The use of a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) as a bridge to heart transplantation (HTx) or as a destination therapy in patients with a contraindication for HTx is increasing. However, nearly half of the patients with LVAD support experience a ventricular arrhythmia (VA) in the first year. The history of a pre-LVAD VA is one of the most powerful predictors of VA after LVAD implantation. The clinical experience and data about ablation of a VA in patients with an LVAD are limited. There are important issues to be considered before and during the procedure in LVAD patients compared to other VA ablation patients. This is a report of ablation of intractable ventricular tachycardia in a patient with a LVAD.

Entrapment of equipment during coronary angiography is an uncommon but serious complication of invasive coronary procedures. Percutaneous extraction of trapped material is the accepted method of treatment. This case report is a description of the extraction of a diagnostic catheter retained as a result of collapsing into an O-shape in the right common iliac artery while trying to engage the tip of the catheter with the right coronary ostium. This rationale and unique wire-balloon method, requiring no specifically designed device, can be simply and safely performed in similar cases.

Scimitar syndrome is a rare congenital heart defect characterized by the combination of vascular, bronchial, and parenchymal malformations. This syndrome includes anomalous right pulmonary venous drainage to the inferior caval vein, hypoplastic right pulmonary artery, right lung hypoplasia and the presence of aortopulmonary collaterals to the right lung. In this study, we evaluate the different surgical approaches of 3 cases with Scimitar syndrome who was corrected successfully.

Q fever is a zoonotic disease caused by Coxiella burnetii, an obligate intracellular bacterium, which cannot be grown using routine blood culture methods. Although C. burnetii is reported to be the causative agent in approximately 50% of blood culture-negative infective endocarditis cases in developed countries, the incidence in Turkey is yet to be defined. The clinical course of Q fever endocarditis is generally subacute and chronic; the disease may be present for years with only subtle symptoms and no vegetation visible on echocardiography while the bacteria gradually destroy the heart valves. This is the case of the successful treatment of a young man with Q fever endocarditis that had an acute clinical course. In 1 month, he developed New York Heart Association class IV heart failure and a large, 3-cm vegetation was observed on an echocardiogram.