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D Antoniucci

Publications and source records attributed to D Antoniucci.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Rapid reduction of ST-segment elevation after successful direct angioplasty in acute myocardial infarction.

The aim of this study was to evaluate whether assessment of ST-segment changes in the 12-lead electrocardiogram from admission to 30 minutes after successful direct coronary angioplasty can predict myocardial damage and functional outcome in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Of 158 consecutive patients, 117 (92 men, aged 61 +/- 11 years) were prospectively classified into 2 groups: group 1, <50% reduction in ST-segment elevation in a single selected lead (42 patients); group 2, > or =50% reduction in ST-segment elevation (75 patients). Baseline characteristics were similar except for anterior wall AMI and Killip class >2, which were more prevalent in group 1. Peak creatine kinase was significantly higher in group 1 (3,690 +/- 2,809 vs 2,592 +/- 1,960 U/L; p = 0.018). One-month echocardiograms were obtained in 102 patients (87%). Infarct zone wall motion score index decreased in both groups, but this reduction was higher in group 2 (p <0.001). Functional recovery (>0.22 decrease in infarct zone wall motion score index) was observed in 34% of group 1 and in 78% of group 2 patients (p <0.001). One-month left ventricular ejection fraction was higher in group 2 (p <0.001). At multivariate analysis, reduction of ST-segment elevation was the only independent predictor of functional recovery (p <0.001). In conclusion, ST-segment analysis provides rapid and inexpensive information allowing identification of patients who are likely to benefit the most from myocardial reperfusion as early as 30 minutes after the last balloon inflation.

Adult↗

Bailout coronary stenting without anticoagulation or intravascular ultrasound guidance: acute and six-month angiographic results in a series of 120 consecutive patients.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility, safety, and efficacy of bailout coronary stenting without anticoagulation or intravascular ultrasound guidance in patients with acute or unequivocal threatened closure after conventional angioplasty. One hundred twenty consecutive patients were prospectively enrolled according to the following criteria: 1) acute or threatened closure after balloon angioplasty; 2) reference vessel diameter > or = 2.5 mm. All patients after stent implantation were on antiplatelet treatment with aspirin and ticlopidine. Four types of stents were used: Palmaz-Schatz (J&J), Gianturco-Roubin (Cook), Freedom (Global Therapeutics), and Microstent (AVE). Procedural results: a total of 206 stents were implanted in 134 target lesions with a stent deployment success rate of 100%; 44 target lesions were treated with multiple stent implantation; the mean luminal diameter after stenting was 3.14 +/- 0.34 mm, and the mean final percent diameter stenosis was -2 +/- 10%; the mean balloon to vessel ratio was 1.11 +/- 0.15; the mean final pressure inflation was 13.9 +/- 2.4 atm; an optimal angiographic result was achieved in 128 lesions (96%). In-hospital results: in-hospital recurrent ischemia occurred in 4 patients (3%); recurrent ischemia resulted directly in death in 1 patient, in nonfatal Q-waves infarction in 2 patients, and in emergency coronary artery surgery in 1 patient. Six-month clinical follow-up results: event free survival rate was 77%; 1 patient had non fatal infarction; the incidence of repeat revascularization procedures was 19%; there were no cardiac deaths. Angiographic follow-up results (follow-up rate 93%): the restenosis or reocclusion rate was 28%. Bailout coronary stenting without chronic anticoagulation treatment or intravascular ultrasound guidance may be considered a highly feasible and safe treatment for acute or threatened closure after failed angioplasty.

Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary↗

Determinants of physical performance at cycloergometer in healthy middle aged men in Italy. The ECCIS project. Epidemiology and Clinics of Silent Ischemic Heart Disease.

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this analysis is to relate the performance at cycloergometer of healthy middle aged men, identified in a population, with a number of personal characteristics to explain part of their physical fitness indicators. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: A sample of 5,163 men aged 40-59, belonging to sedentary occupational groups in Florence and Rome, were screened by a complex diagnostic procedure (participation rate = 66.3%). 3,893 were judged "healthy" from the cardiovascular point of view. MEASURES: A cycloergometric test and the measurement of some individual characteristics allowed to correlate indicators of performance at exercise (work load, test duration, work load/heart rate, PWC150 and PWC150/kg) with body mass index, resting pulse rate, systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressure. HDL and non-HDL cholesterol, a score of physical exercise and cigarette consumption. RESULTS: Univariate and multivariate analysis showed significant relationship of exercise performance indicators with age, resting pulse rate, blood pressure, cigarette consumption (inverse) and with physical exercise score (direct). These individual characteristics could explain 14-15% of the variance of exercise performance indicators. CONCLUSIONS: The analysis could not establish how much the individual characteristics were causes or effects of individual physical fitness. A reasonable cause effect relationship can be argued for physical exercise score and likely for cigarette smoking. Relatively large differences in performance indicators can be expected for people with largely different individual characteristics.

Adult↗

Prevalence and correlates of echocardiographic determined left ventricular hypertrophy in 2318 asymptomatic middle-aged men: the ECCIS project. Epidemiolgia e Clinica della Cardiopatia Ischemica Silente.

It is well established that left ventricular hypertrophy is a strong and independent risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. This study was designed to determine the prevalence and correlates of left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) among a sample population of 2318 totally asymptomatic men aged 40-59. This sample is a subset of the participants in the ECCIS Project. Left ventricular mass was estimated by echocardiography. The following individual variables were employed in the multiple linear regression analyses: age, diastolic and systolic blood pressure at rest and at peak exercise, body mass index, body surface area, conditioning physical activity. Three indexes of left ventricular mass were used: left ventricular mass/height, left ventricular mass/body surface area and "adjusted left ventricular mass" derived from adjustment, using a regression model, of left ventricular mass by age, body mass index and body surface area. The sample was subdivided in 3 blood pressure classes; normotensive (n = 1605), borderline (n = 390) and hypertensive (n = 323). All the variables considered with the exception of diastolic blood pressure both at rest and peak exercise were significantly correlated with left ventricular mass. Upper normal limits for left ventricular mass indexed to height and body surface area and of adjusted left ventricular mass were 143 g/m, 129 g/m2, and 245 g respectively. The prevalences of left ventricular hypertrophy, as determined by the reference standard of left ventricular mass/height, left.ventricular mass/body surface area and adjusted left ventricular mass, ranged 2.7-3.2% in the normotensive group, 4.2-5.4% in the borderline group and 11.8-14.5% in the hypertensive group, and were lower using adjusted left ventricular mass index. The results of this study show that the prevalence of left ventricular hypertrophy using adjustment by age, body surface area and body mass index reduces variability of left ventricular mass associated with age and body size and may be useful for the correct identification of left ventricular hypertrophy and hypertensive heart disease.

Adult↗

Direct angioplasty and stenting of the infarct-related artery in acute myocardial infarction.

This study provides the incidence of in-hospital and 1-month recurrent ischemia in 118 patients with acute myocardial infarction when an aggressive direct angioplasty strategy was performed, including stenting of the infarct artery. Coronary stenting in acute myocardial infarction is feasible, and acute and 1-month angiographic results after stenting seem superior to those after standard angioplasty alone.

Aged↗

Myocardial contrast echocardiography versus dobutamine echocardiography for predicting functional recovery after acute myocardial infarction treated with primary coronary angioplasty.

OBJECTIVES: We sought to compare myocardial contrast echocardiography with low dose dobutamine echocardiography for predicting 1-month recovery of ventricular function in acute myocardial infarction treated with primary coronary angioplasty. BACKGROUND: The relation between myocardial perfusion and contractile reserve in patients with acute myocardial infarction, in whom anterograde flow is fully restored without significant residual stenosis, is still unclear. METHODS: Thirty patients with acute myocardial infarction treated successfully with primary coronary angioplasty underwent intracoronary contrast echocardiography before and after angioplasty and dobutamine echocardiography 3 days after the index infarction. One month later, two-dimensional echocardiography and coronary angiography were repeated in all patients and contrast echocardiography in 18 patients. RESULTS: After coronary recanalization, 26 patients showed myocardial reperfusion within the risk area, although 4 did not. At 1-month follow-up, all patients had a patient infarct-related artery without significant restenosis. Both left ventricular ejection fraction and wall motion score index within the risk area significantly improved in the patients with reperfusion ([mean +/- SD] 38 +/- 8% vs. 48 +/- 12%, p < 0.005; and 2.35 +/- 0.5 vs. 2 +/- 0.6, p < 0.001, respectively), but not in those with no reflow. Of the 72 nonperfused segments before angioplasty, 27 showed functional improvement at follow-up. Myocardial contrast echocardiography had a sensitivity and a negative predictive value similar to dobutamine echocardiography in predicting late functional recovery (96% vs. 89% and 89% vs. 93%, respectively), but a lower specificity (18% vs. 91%, p < 0.001), positive predictive value (41% vs. 86%, p < 0.001) and overall accuracy (47% vs. 90%, p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Microvascular integrity is a prerequisite for myocardial viability after acute myocardial infarction. However, contrast enhancement shortly after recanalization does not necessarily imply a late functional improvement. Thus, contractile reserve elicited by low dose dobutamine is a more accurate predictor of regional functional recovery after reperfused acute myocardial infarction than microvascular integrity.

Adult↗

Early coronary angioplasty as compared with delayed coronary angioplasty in patients with high-risk unstable angina pectoris.

BACKGROUND: Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) results in a higher complication rate in patients with unstable angina pectoris than in patients with stable angina. The current management approach is directed towards achieving stabilization by medical treatment in order to reduce the rate of major complications, but the value of a conservative strategy has not been proved by clinical trials, nor has the duration of therapy been established. On the other hand, the definition of unstable angina encompasses a heterogeneous spectrum of patients with different prognoses. It is more appropriate to stratify patients according to different risk in order to evaluate the results of different therapeutic strategies. The purpose of this study was the evaluation of the results of early and delayed coronary angioplasty in patients with high-risk unstable angina. METHODS: We compared immediate and follow-up results of early and delayed coronary angioplasty in a series of 263 patients with high-risk unstable angina because of prolonged (more than 15 min) angina or early post-infarction angina at rest. Early PTCA (within 4 h of the last ischaemic episode) was performed in 110 patients with unstable angina refractory to maximized medical treatment, whereas 153 patients with stabilized angina underwent delayed PTCA (at more than 72 h and less than 1 week from the last ischaemic episode). RESULTS: No significant differences between the two groups were found in primary lesion success rates (92.7% compared with 94.1%), major in-hospital adverse events such as reocclusion (5.4% compared with 2.6%), emergency coronary artery surgery (1.8% compared with 3.2%), myocardial infarction (3.6% compared with 2.6%) and death (1.8% compared with 0.7%). The rates of major adverse events during 6 months follow-up were similar in the two groups: recurrent ischaemia (13.4% compared with 19.7%), repeat coronary angioplasty (11.5% compared with 14.9%), coronary artery surgery (1.9% compared with 4.7%), myocardial infarction (0), and death (0). CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that an aggressive coronary angioplasty strategy in patients with high-risk unstable angina may result in a favourable outcome both immediately and at 6 months' follow-up, The achievement of a stabilization period seems neither to improve the clinical success rates nor to reduce major cardiac event rates.

Adult↗

[Comparison of outcome of primary PTCA for acute myocardial infarction in patients younger and older than 70 years of age].

BACKGROUND: The Primary Angioplasty in Myocardial infarction Study Group reported that the benefit of primary PTCA was observed mainly among patients who were classified as "not low risk" including those over age 70, with anterior infarction and heart rate > 100 bpm. The present study compares procedural success rate and in-hospital and one-month clinical outcome of primary PTCA in acute myocardial infarction patients < 70 and > or = 70 years of age. METHODS AND RESULTS: During 1995 121 patients with acute myocardial infarction underwent primary PTCA within 6 hours of symptoms onset or within 24 hours in case of evidence of ongoing ischemia. Eighty-two patients (Group I) were < 70 (mean age 56 +/- 9) and 39 patients (Group II) were > or = 70 (mean age 75 +/- 3). In group II there was a trend, although not significant, toward a higher prevalence of prior angina and infarction. Multivessel disease was more frequent in group II than in group I (69% vs 48%; p = 0.041). Ejection fraction was markedly depressed in both groups (38 +/- 10% in group I vs 34 +/- 11% in group II). Ejection fraction < or = 30% and shock on admission were more frequent in group II (39% vs 15% and 36% vs 21%, respectively). Optimal angiographic success (< or = 30% stenosis associated with TIMI grade 3 flow) was achieved in 77% of group II and in 98% of group I (p = 0.00059). The in-hospital mortality rate was 26% in group II and 1.2% in group I (p = 0.000042). Shock on admission and PTCA failure predicted high mortality rates. There was no difference between the two groups as regards to non-fatal reinfarction, recurrent ischemia, life-threatening arrhythmias, severe heart failure, revascularization procedures. There were no strokes. At one-month follow-up, recurrence of ischemia or positive response to stress test were more frequent in group II (24% vs 8%; p = 0.039). CONCLUSIONS: In patients with acute myocardial infarction < 70 years of age primary coronary angioplasty is associated with low rates of mortality and cardiac events. Mortality rate remains high in patients over age 70, especially when shock is present on admission or PTCA falls.

Age Factors↗

Bailout Palmaz-Schatz coronary stenting in 39 patients with occlusive dissection complicating conventional angioplasty.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate feasibility, safety, and efficacy of bailout Palmaz-Schatz stenting in a series of 39 patients with coronary dissection associated with acute or unequivocal threatened closure complicating conventional angioplasty. No anatomical characteristics other than reference vessel diameter < 3 mm were considered as contraindications for bailout coronary stenting. Stringent criteria were adopted in defining optimal results (< 10% residual stenosis, no angiographic evidence of residual dissection), suboptimal results (> 10% residual stenosis or angiographic evidence of residual dissection), deployment failure (failure to deploy the stent because of poor trackability or persistent occlusion despite stent deployment). A total of 49 stents and 7 half-stents were implanted in 36 patients (range 1-5; mean 1.45 +/- 0.84). Successful stenting without in-hospital death, urgent or semielective coronary surgery, stent thrombosis, or Q-wave myocardial infarction was achieved in 33/39 patients (85%). A suboptimal result was associated with an increased risk of in-hospital recurrence of ischemia and other related major adverse events (2/5 patients with suboptimal results vs. 1/31 patients with complete deployment success; P < 0.05). Multiple stents implantation did not carry a significant risk of major cardiac adverse events. The results of this study suggest that bailout Palmaz-Schatz stenting may be considered a stand-alone treatment of coronary dissection if an optimal acute angiographic result is achieved.

Adult↗

Normal behaviour of circulatory parameters during exercise. Reference values for heart rate and systemic blood pressure. The ECCIS Project data. Epidemiologia e Clinica della Cardiopatia Ischemica Silente.

The study of simultaneous variations in heart rate (HR) and systemic blood pressure is of great interest in ergometric practice complementing the analysis of the ST segment by ECG. This paper examines data proceeding from 500 consecutive, normal, exercise stress tests with the aim of offering reference values on the step-by-step behaviour of HR, systolic and diastolic blood pressure (SBP, DBP) during exercise in a normal population. The sample comes from a large epidemiological study (ECCIS Project) conducted on 4842 healthy, working men, aged 40-59, which proposes to identify, by a 3 stage procedure, subjects with totally asymptomatic coronary artery disease (type I silent ischemia). A further aim of our paper is to examine the influence of some physiological variables (age, height, weight, body mass index, resting HR, SBP and DBP) on the response to effort of HR, SBP and DBP; reciprocal HR/SBP adjustment during exercise; maximal attained workload and recovery time. Due to a preliminary observation that the rate of step-by-step increase in HR and SBP is inversely related to total duration, the population was split into 4 groups according to exercise tolerance (defined by maximal attained workload) to elaborate reference values. Furthermore our data demonstrate that: 1) SBP increases more rapidly with respect to HR for older and heavier subjects; 2) Exercise tolerance is inversely related to age, baseline HR and SBP, and directly related to weight and height; 3) return to baseline conditions, during recovery, is quicker for subjects with better exercise tolerance and lower baseline HR, SBP and weight.

Adult↗

[Primary coronary angioplasty for acute myocardial infarction associated with severe left ventricular dysfunction. Results in 50 patients].

BACKGROUND: Considerable controversy exists about the therapeutic value of primary coronary angioplasty for acute myocardial infarction. The available data suggest that primary angioplasty may improve the outcome in patients with cardiogenic shock, while some clinical studies have found no benefit in routine angioplasty in patients with acute myocardial infarction that were considered at high risk because of severe left ventricular dysfunction associated with myocardial infarction. METHODS AND RESULTS: During a 16-month period, 50 patients with acute myocardial infarction and severe left ventricular dysfunction underwent primary coronary angioplasty. Patients were enrolled if angiographic left ventricular ejection fraction was > or = 40% and symptom duration <6 hours, or >6 hours if there was evidence of ongoing ischemia. Optimal angiographic success (<30% stenosis associated with TIMI grade 3 flow) was achieved in 45 patients (90%), and a suboptimal result (>30% and <50% stenosis associated with TIMI grade 3 flow, or <30% stenosis associated with TIMI grade 2 flow) was achieved in 3 patients (6%), while in 2 patients angioplasty failed to reopen the infarct related vessel or was associated with a refractory no-reflow phenomenon. In 5 patients an optimal angiographic result was achieved after coronary stenting. Emergency repeated coronary angioplasty was required in 1 patient with reocclusion of a stented vessel, and after unsuccessful repeated coronary angioplasty, the patient underwent bypass surgery on a semi-elective basis. In 6 patients with multivessel disease, after successful primary angioplasty of the infarct-related vessel, a more complete revasculariziation was achieved with a second coronary angioplasty or bypass surgery before discharge. The in-hospital mortality rate was 6%. The follow-up of 47 patients surviving initial hospitalization was 171 +/- 163 days. There were 2 deaths (4%), both due to congestive heart failure, and 1 nonfatal reinfarction. Two patients (4%), were readmitted to the hospital for recurrent ischemia and both underwent successful repeated coronary angioplasty for restenosis. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study suggest that in patients with acute myocardial infarction associated with severe left ventricular dysfunction, primary coronary angioplasty may be considered a first choice treatment because of high reperfusion rate, relative low in-hospital mortality and few recurrent myocardial ischemic events.

Adult↗

Coronary risk factors and silent ischemic heart disease. The ECCIS Project.

An epidemiological study was conducted on 5163 men aged 40-59 years, made by occupational samples, from Florence and Rome to identify, by a three-stage procedure, subjects with asymptomatic silent ischemic heart disease (SIHD). This report describes some coronary risk factors. Men who are free from heart disease were compared with: (1) those having a low probability of SIHD (ECG signs only; n = 439); (2) those having a high probability of SIHD (ECG signs plus echographic signs, or positive markers of deficient perfusion, or altered radionuclide ventriculography; n = 104); (3) those having a definite SIHD (signs of the first two groups plus evidence from coronary angiography; n = 25). A clearcut increasing trend in the levels of major coronary risk factors, and in the multivariate estimated coronary risk for major events was found. The difference was not significant between highly probabile and definite cases of SIHD, due to the small numbers involved. Three multiple logistic models, with the three probability levels of silent ischemia as end-points, showed that four of 10 tested factors were associated with the presence of SIHD: age, systolic blood pressure, cigarette smoking and non-HDL serum cholesterol.

Adult↗

[The ECCIS study: the epidemiology and clinical picture of silent ischemic cardiopathy. Epidemiologia e Clinica della Cardiopatia Ischemica Silente].

BACKGROUND: The ECCIS project (Epidemiology and Clinic of Silent Ischemic Heart Disease) is an italian epidemiological study based on a population sample of 4,842 totally asymptomatic men aged 40-59 whose primary aim is the evaluation of the prevalence of totally silent myocardial ischemia and silent myocardial infarction. METHODS: The systemic search for markers of silent ischemia and infarction was pursued along 3 screening stages: the 1st stage included resting electrocardiogram, hyperventilation test, exercise electrocardiogram and 24-hour Holter electrocardiogram; the 2nd stage included echocardiogram, thallium-201 scintigraphy in conjunction with exercise test or dypiridamole test, exercise radionuclide ventriculography and ergometrine test; the 3rd stage included coronary angiography. After the completion of the 1st stage procedures 439 men (9.1%) with abnormal results and low probability of disease were invited to the 2nd stage and 387 accepted to undergo the diagnostic procedures. After the completion of the 2nd stage, 104 men with moderate or high suspicion of silent myocardial ischemia or infarction were invited to perform coronary angiography but only 62 men accepted to undergo the 3rd stage procedures (participation rate 59.6%). RESULTS: The final diagnosis of totally silent myocardial ischemia or infarction on the basis of predefined criteria was established in 25 patients. The prevalence of silent ischemic heart disease on the overall original 4,842 men was 0.52% (95% CL, 0.32 and 0.72%), while the final estimate after adjusting for participation rates at 2nd and 3rd stages was 0.89% (95% CL, 0.6 and 1.1%). CONCLUSIONS: The results of the ECCIS study show that the prevalence of silent myocardial ischemia is definitely lower than that revealed by prior epidemiological studies in Norway and in USA.

Adult↗

Quantitation of brain perfusion with 99mTc-bicisate and single SPECT scan: comparison with microsphere measurements.

This study describes and validates in a preliminary manner a method to measure the steady-state influx constant (Ki) of 99mTc-bicisate with one single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) scan. The method is based on the analysis of the arterial concentration of the radioactivity. The results of this quantitation procedure were compared with regional CBF (rCBF) measurements made using 99mTc-microspheres (MI). Two quantitative indexes of perfusion, fractional brain uptake (FBU) and normalized (with cerebellum) brain uptake (NBU), were also evaluated. Two SPECT studies were performed on seven cardiovascular patients who had no signs of neurological disease. In the first of these, 99mTc-bicisate was used, while in the other, which was performed 2 days later, MI were injected into the left heart ventricle. The values of the FBU, NBU, and Ki of 99mTc-bicisate were calculated in several gray and white matter brain regions of interest (ROIs) and compared with the rCBF values measured with MI in coupled ROIs. Mean FBU values were 0.00008 +/- 0.00002 and 0.00004 +/- 0.00001 in the gray and the white matter, respectively. Mean NBU values were 0.99 +/- 0.04 and 0.54 +/- 0.05, mean Ki values were 0.36 +/- 0.06 and 0.19 +/- 0.03 ml g-1 min-1 and mean rCBF values were 0.51 +/- 0.04 and 0.27 +/- 0.04 ml g-1 min-1 in gray and white matter, respectively. Analysis of variance of the regression gave different F values for the regressions with rCBF of FBU (F = 19, n = 126), NBU (F = 289, n = 112), and Ki (F = 117, n = 126).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Aged↗

Epidemiology of silent myocardial ischemia in asymptomatic middle-aged men (the ECCIS Project).

To evaluate the prevalence of type I silent myocardial ischemia and silent myocardial infarction, 4,842 men aged 40 to 59 years, identified in occupational samples in Florence and Rome, and free from major heart disease, severe illnesses and chest pain, underwent a 3-stage diagnostic procedure. The first stage included resting electrocardiogram, hyperventilation test, exercise electrocardiogram and 24-hour Holter electrocardiogram. The subjects who were suspected of having type 1 silent myocardial ischemia or previous silent infarction at the first stage (n = 439; 9.1%) were entered into the second stage, which included echocardiogram, thallium 201 scintigraphy in conjunction with exercise testing or dipyridamole test, exercise radionuclide ventriculography and ergonovine test. Three hundred eighty-seven men participated in the second stage; after the diagnostic procedures were performed, 104 men (2.1%) were still suspected of having type 1 silent myocardial ischemia or infarction on the basis of predefined criteria. Sixty-two men continued on into the third diagnostic workup including coronary angiography. The final diagnosis of type 1 silent myocardial ischemia or infarction was reached in 25 patients (prevalence 0.52%; adjusted estimate 0.89%). Of these 25, 19 had coronary atherosclerotic disease, 1 had Kawasaki disease, 1 had coronary anomaly, 1 had induced focal coronary spasm, and 2 had normal coronary arteriograms despite the presence of unquestionable old myocardial infarction. Altogether, 6 patients with silent myocardial infarction were identified.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adult↗

Preliminary evaluation in humans of Tc-99m-Q3, a new tracer for myocardial perfusion imaging.

Trans[99m-Tc-acac2en(TMPP)2]+, where acac2en is N,N'-ethylenebis(acetylacetone iminate) and TMPP is tris-(3 methoxy propyl) phosphine, (shortened Q3) is a new lipophilic Technetium-99m-labelled compound developed for myocardial perfusion imaging. Encouraging data were obtained in the experimental animal. Aim of this study was to perform a preliminary evaluation of Q3 imaging in humans and to compare it with a reference coronary flow tracer such as Tc-99m microspheres. Eight coronary artery disease patients (males, age 58.5 +/- 10 years) were studied. They were injected with 740 MBq of Q3 and single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) was performed 90 minutes later. After 3 days 740 MBq of Tc-99m microspheres were injected through a pig-tail catheter in the left ventricle (LV), during heart catheterization, and SPECT was acquired 60 minutes later. Q3 images showed a good target/background activity ratio:LV wall/LV cavity = 4.16 +/- 1.2; myocardium/lung = 3.95 +/- 0.52; the related values with microspheres were 6.36 +/- 2.48 (N.S.) and 4.57 +/- 1.07 (N.S.), respectively. Q3 was cleared by the liver and at the moment of SPECT collection the myocardium/liver activity ratio was 1.54 +/- 0.32. The Q3 LV lateral wall/septum activity ratio showed a good correlation with the corresponding microspheres ratio: Q3 ratio = 0.027 + 0.95 microspheres ratio, r = 0.89, SEE = 1.12, p < 0.005.

Coronary Disease↗

An analysis of the arterial input curve for technetium-99m-HMPAO: quantification of rCBF using single-photon emission computed tomography.

Arterial radioactivity content after the intravenous administration of HMPAO in seven human subjects was analyzed. Arterial sampling of 99mTc-HMPAO was performed on each subject over a 25-min period postinjection. The lipophilic fraction of the tracer present in the blood was rapidly extracted with octanol. An analysis of the time course of the extracted and nonextracted octanol fractions was performed in order to calculate the arterial input of the tracer available for brain extraction. HMPAO net regional brain clearances were then calculated and compared with rCBF values obtained in the same patients using 99mTc-microspheres injected into the left ventricle of the heart. HMPAO brain clearances were 0.41 +/- 0.01 and 0.27 +/- 0.01 ml/min/g for grey and white matter, respectively. Linear regression analysis was performed and the following result was obtained: clearance (HMPAO) = 0.07 + 0.43 . rCBF with a high significance (p less than 0.001). This equation can be used for the transformation of HMPAO clearances into rCBF values. Our study demonstrates that by using HMPAO and SPECT it is possible to obtain a quantitative estimate of rCBF in humans.

Adult↗