Circulation
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Multicenter Study
The United States Registry for Fibromuscular Dysplasia: results in the first 447 patients.
Fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD), a noninflammatory disease of medium-size arteries, may lead to stenosis, occlusion, dissection, and/or aneurysm. There has been little progress in understanding the epidemiology, pathogenesis, and outcomes since its first description in 1938. ⋯ In this registry, FMD occurred primarily in middle-aged women, although it presents across the lifespan. Cerebrovascular FMD occurred as frequently as renal FMD. Although a significant proportion of FMD patients may present with a serious vascular event, many present with nonspecific symptoms and a subsequent delay in diagnosis.
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In myocardial ischemia, induction of autophagy via the AMP-induced protein kinase pathway is protective, whereas reperfusion stimulates autophagy with BECLIN-1 upregulation and is implicated in causing cell death. We examined flux through the macroautophagy pathway as a determinant of the discrepant outcomes in cardiomyocyte cell death in this setting. ⋯ Ischemia/reperfusion injury impairs autophagosome clearance mediated in part by reactive oxygen species-induced decline in lysosome-associated membrane protein-2 and upregulation of BECLIN-1, contributing to increased cardiomyocyte death.
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Multicenter Study
Use of an intrapericardial, continuous-flow, centrifugal pump in patients awaiting heart transplantation.
Contemporary ventricular assist device therapy results in a high rate of successful heart transplantation but is associated with bleeding, infections, and other complications. Further reductions in pump size, centrifugal design, and intrapericardial positioning may reduce complications and improve outcomes. ⋯ URL: http://www.clinicaltrials.gov. Unique identifier: NCT00751972.