In tricuspid atresia, an obligatory right to left shunt occurs at the atrial level. We have observed several patients with left to right interatrial shunts. Data from cardiac catheterisation in 40 consecutive patients were reviewed to determine the frequency and mechanism of left to right shunting in tricuspid atresia. An increase of 6% or more in oxygen saturation between the superior vena cav...

BACKGROUND Biatrial pacing has a significant problem with memory function that misinterprets normal sinus rhythm as atrial tachyarrhythmias and in addition estimation of the atrial pacing thresholds (biatrial and uniatrial pacing thresholds) is sometimes difficult because of small P waves. METHODS AND RESULTS The intracardiac electrograms recorded by a pacemaker in 10 patients (age, 66.7+/-10...

BACKGROUND Heart failure patients with stable angina, acute coronary syndromes and valvular heart disease may benefit from revascularisation and/or valve surgery. However, the mortality rate is increased- 5-30%. Biventricular pacing using temporary epicardial wires after surgery is a potential mechanism to improve cardiac function and clinical endpoints. METHOD/DESIGN A multi-centred, prospec...

Current techniques to describe atrial function are limited by their load dependency and hence do not accurately reflect intrinsic mechanical properties. To assess the impact of atrial fibrillation on atrial function, combined pressure-volume relationships (PVR) measured by conductance catheters were used to evaluate the right (RA) and left (LA) atrium in 12 isoflurane-anesthetized pigs. Biatria...

AIMS Atrial function is an important component in overall cardiovascular performance. However, information on atrial function in dilated cardiomyopathy is limited. This study aimed to assess atrial function in dilated cardiomyopathy and to investigate if parameters of atrial function are more impaired in Chagas dilated cardiomyopathy (CDC) than in idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (IDC). METH...

Underlying mechanisms in the development of atrial flutter or intra-atrial re-entry tachycardia in patients with structural cardiac abnormalities remain poorly defined. The right atrial myocardium from two patients with congenital heart disease was evaluated, of whom one presented with severe right atrial dilation and arrhythmia and the other with a normal right atrium, to assess whether increa...

SUMMARY An assessment was made of cardiac function by means of right heart catheterization before and immediately after conversion of atrial fibrillation to sinus rhythm in 11 studies on 10 human subjects. Comparable data during exercise were available in five studies. Medical management of patients in this study was identical to that employed routinely for this procedure. After conversion to n...

The activity of type A right atrial vagal receptors was recorded from the right cervical vagus in cats anesthetized with sodium pentobarbital, immobilized with gallamine, and with their chests open. Nerve impulses initiated by receptor activation were recorded simultaneously with instantaneous right atrial pressure and dimensional changes under various hemodynamic conditions. Atrial volume chan...