Active clinical trials for "Heart and Blood Diseases"

Recovery of the left ventricular function is variable from one patient to another, thus assessment of cardiac function by measuring left ventricular ejection fraction using echocardiography is the most common in the daily clinical practice. However, this technique has limitation related with its intra- and interobserver variability. A recent technique, 2D speckle tracking for assessing global longitudinal strain, has been introduced to reduce the variability and potentially has a higher accuracy. Speckle tracking is a method which uses two dimensions recording for measuring quantity of movement of myocardium in several segments. Speckle-tracking echocardiography is a current noninvasive ultrasound imaging technique that allows for an objective and quantitative evaluation of global and regional myocardial function independently from the angle of insonation and from cardiac translational movements,

Pulmonary vascular disease and cardiac performance in extreme preterm infants: A prospective cross-sectional study

Stress perfusion CMR has recently considered as one of the methods of choice for establishing the diagnosis of CAD based on its high diagnostic accuracy, lack of ionizing radiation as well as its ability to simultaneously assess the cardiac function, myocardial perfusion, and viability, however, there are some concerns on its suitability for assessment of myocardial perfusion in patients after coronary artery bypass graft surgery who suffer from recurrent angina. The study of hemodynamic forces offers a promising tool for further understanding of the interplay between the myocardium and blood as well as the mechanisms of cardiac filling. This work represents a retrospective follow up study of CMR data, available on CMR-database, from 112 patients with previous coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) performed around 10 years before the initial CMR examination. The study subjects underwent stress CMR testing; using both stressors; dobutamine and adenosine (done on two separate occasions). Injection of gadolinium contrast medium for late gadolinium enhancement was done with adenosine stress testing for late gadolinium enhancement (LGE). Offline analysis of these data will be done with the use of dedicated software for assessment for myocardial ischemia together with quantitative measurements of the hemodynamic forces with the help of dedicated software (QStrain version 1.3.0.79; Medis, Leiden, the Netherlands).

The purpose of this study is to investigate the potential association of coronary artery geometry, based on coronary CT angiography (CCTA), with the complexity and the severity of coronary atherosclerosis.

The purpose of the study is to evaluate the value of biomarkers in the diagnosis and risk stratification of patients with suspected pulmonary embolism.

ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. In spite of decrease in acute and long-term mortality following STEMI in parallel with more use of reperfusion therapy, such as primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI), modern antithrombotic therapy, and secondary prevention, mortality remains considerable. Reduced EF is a well-known predictor of increased short and long term major adverse cardiovascular events MACE :( heart failure, stroke and death)

Patients who are admitted with acutely decompensated heart failure and are receiving intravenous diuretics will be recruited to undergo testing using the Indicor Device. Participants will be tested daily while hospitalized and then on the day of discharge during which time they will be trained how to operate the device. Once discharged, patients will perform one test in the morning, and one test in the evening for up to 30 days.

Venous Thrombo-Embolic Disease (VTED) is a serious and common ailment, defined by the growth of a clot - or thrombus - in a vein, and/or as the migration of this thrombus to a pulmonary artery. It represents the third cause of death after cardio-vascular disease and cancer, and encompass superficial, muscular and Deep Venous Thrombosis (DVT), and Pulmonary Embolisms (PE), which can be isolated or associated. Ultrasound is today the most frequently used exam to diagnose DVT. However, it's unable to provide information on thrombus age or cause. Elastography is an imaging technic which aims to analyse elastic properties of a tissue, by applying a mechanical impulse on it, and could be an interesting tool in thrombus exploration, and provide additional information.

This study aims to assess the prevalence of sleep disorder breathing in pregnant women with a singleton gestation who develop hypertensive disorder of pregnancy (HDP) compared to women without HDP, when matched for gestational age and body mass index.

Background and objectives Heart failure is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide and it is a major cause of emergency department access for cardiovascular disease patients. Aim of this study is to identify the markers, based on short-term temporal repolarization dispersion, capable to individuate decompensated chronic heart failure (CHF) patients at high mortality risk. Method: We will obtain the following variables from ECG monitor, via mobile phone, during 5-minute recordings in decompensated CHF patients: RR, QT end (QTe), QT peak (QTp) and T peak to T end (Te) and we calculated mean, standard deviation (SD) and normalized index (N).