American heart journal
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American heart journal · Jun 2010
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative StudyA multicenter, open-label study of vernakalant for the conversion of atrial fibrillation to sinus rhythm.
The efficacy and safety of vernakalant, a relatively atrial-selective antiarrhythmic agent, in converting atrial fibrillation (AF) to sinus rhythm (SR) were evaluated in this multicenter, open-label study of patients with AF lasting >3 hours and < or =45 days (RCT no. NCT00281554). ⋯ Vernakalant rapidly converted recent-onset AF to SR, was well tolerated, and may be a valuable therapeutic alternative for reestablishing SR in patients with recent-onset AF.
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American heart journal · Jun 2010
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative StudySuboptimal use of evidence-based medical therapy in patients with acute myocardial infarction from the Korea Acute Myocardial Infarction Registry: prescription rate, predictors, and prognostic value.
Only limited data are available for the recent trend of optimal evidence-based medical therapy at discharge after acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in Asia. We evaluated the predictors for the use of optimal evidence-based medical therapy at discharge and the association between discharge medications and 6-month mortality after AMI. ⋯ The optimal evidence-based medical therapy is prescribed at suboptimal rates, particularly in patients with high-risk features. New educational strategies are needed to increase the use of these secondary preventive medical therapies.
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American heart journal · Jun 2010
Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative StudyBIVentricular versus right ventricular antitachycardia pacing to terminate ventricular tachyarrhythmias in patients receiving cardiac resynchronization therapy: the ADVANCE CRT-D Trial.
This multicenter, prospective, randomized, controlled, parallel trial compares the efficacy of biventricular (BIV) versus right ventricular (RV) antitachycardia pacing (ATP) in terminating all kinds of ventricular tachycardia (VT). ⋯ Antitachycardia pacing is effective in patients implanted with a CRT-D device. No significant differences in efficacy emerged between BIV- and RV-delivered ATP in the general population, whereas BIV ATP seems to present a safer profile in ischemic patients.
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American heart journal · Jun 2010
Multicenter Study Comparative StudyAssociation of insurance status with inpatient treatment for coronary artery disease: findings from the Get With the Guidelines program.
Prior studies have documented that patients' health insurance status can impact use of guideline-based care as well as acute outcomes for coronary artery disease. Whether insurance status remains a contemporary influence among centers participating in a national quality improvement initiative is unknown. ⋯ These findings suggest that among centers participating in a national quality improvement initiative patient insurance status may be associated with differences in cardiovascular care and outcomes.
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American heart journal · Jun 2010
Multicenter Study Comparative StudySerum vitamin D and risk of secondary cardiovascular disease events in patients with stable coronary heart disease.
Recent longitudinal analyses suggested that low levels of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25-OH-D) predict incident cardiovascular disease in initially healthy populations. Because the prognostic value of vitamin D for the occurrence of secondary cardiovascular events remains unclear, we examined the association of baseline 25-OH-D levels with prognosis in patients with stable coronary heart disease (CHD). ⋯ Unlike previous population-based studies, our analysis in high-risk patients with stable CHD does not support a prognostic value of baseline-25-OH-D levels for secondary cardiovascular event incidence or all-cause mortality.