Methods: Magnetic Resonance Imaging of cardiac valves requires state of the art equipement such as a 1.5 or 3 Tesla magnet and a surface coil. Three principal sequences are required [1]: 1) Black blood, 2) cine steady state free precession (CineSSFP), and 3) phase contrast velocity encoded cine (VENCine). Black blood images are obtained by preparation of a fast spin echo sequences with a nonsel...

BACKGROUND Data on acid and non-acid reflux patterns and esophageal function in Japanese patients with non-erosive reflux disease (NERD) are limited. The aim of this study was to use combined multichannel intraluminal impedance pH monitoring (MII-pH) and high-resolution manometry (HRM) to investigate the characteristics of Japanese patients who were treated with a "double-dose" (20 mg) of rabep...

Data on the natural course of gastrooesophageal reflux disease are sparse. One hundred and sixty six patients with typical reflux symptoms (heartburn and/or acid regurgitation) and pathologic pH monitoring (reflux time > 8.2% upright and/or > 3.0% supine) were studied. The patients were followed up by questionnaire and interview for a mean of 41 (seven to 86) months after diagnosis of reflux di...

PURPOSE Gastro-esophageal reflux (GER), particularly non-acid reflux, is common in infants and is a known cause of chronic respiratory symptoms in infancy. Recent guidelines recommended empirical acid suppression therapy and the head-up position in patients with suspected GER. However, the efficacy of the upright position in relieving GER and reflux-related respiratory symptoms in infants is un...

OBJECTIVE To test the hypothesis that valvular calcium deposition, pro-osteogenic signaling, and function can be altered in mice with advanced aortic valve disease. METHODS AND RESULTS "Reversa" mice were given a Western-type diet for 12 months and screened for the presence of aortic valve stenosis. Mice with advanced valve disease were assigned to 1 of 2 groups: (1) those with continued prog...

OBJECTIVE Cardiac valvular endothelium is unique in its ability to undergo endothelial-to-mesenchymal transformation, a differentiation process that is essential for valve development and has been proposed as mechanism for replenishing the interstitial cells of mature valves. We hypothesized that the valvular endothelium contains endothelial cells that are direct precursors to osteoblastic valv...

CONTEXT Laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) is a major cause of laryngeal inflammation and presents with a constellation of symptoms different from classic gastroesophageal reflux disease. OBJECTIVE To provide a practical approach to evaluating and managing cases of LPR. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION The PubMed database and the Ovid Database of Systematic Reviews were systematically searched for laryngop...

introduction: this study evaluates the accuracy of renal ultrasonography (us) in the detection of vesicoureteral reflux (vur) compared to voiding cystourethrography (vcug). methods: we retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 131 children with urinary tract infection. ultrasound findings were considered to be suggestive of vur if a “pelvocalyceal dilatation”‚ “retrovesical ureteral dilat...

Objective-comparative evaluation of different surgical methods of vesicoureteral reflux induction in rabbits.Design- Elective experimental study.Animals- sixteen healthy male rabbits.Procedures- sixteen healthy NewZiland White male rabbits were randomly divided in four equal groups. All rabbits were preoperatively evaluated with retrograde cystography for the presence or absence of congenital o...

The valvular disease usually involves two conditions: valvular stenosis and valvular insufficiency. Valvular stenosis occurs when a valve opening is smaller than normal due to stiff or fused leaflets. The narrowed opening may make the heart work very hard to pump blood through it. This can lead to heart failure. All four valves can be stenotic (hardened, restricting blood flow); the conditions ...