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Biomedical subjects

R R Miller

Publications and source records attributed to R R Miller.

At least 253 records · Page 14Linked to original sources

Exercise-induced ventricular tachycardia. Clinical features, relation to chronic ventricular ectopy, and prognosis.

To determine the clinical status, the occurrence of chronic ambulatory arrhythmias, and the prognosis of patients with exercise-induced ventricular tachycardia, 26 patients with ventricular tachycardia during or immediately following exercise on a treadmill were evaluated. Of the 26 patients, 16 had coronary arterial disease, two had nonischemic cardiomyopathy, and eight had no other cardiac disease. Eleven (61 percent) of the 18 patients with heart disease developed ventricular tachycardia during exercise, in contrast to six (75 percent) of eight normal subjects who had ventricular tachycardia after exercise. In eight patients with repeat stress testing, four (50 percent) had reproducible ventricular tachycardia or malignant ventricular ectopic beats. In 19 (73 percent) of 29 patients, malignant ventricular ectopy occurred on random 24-hour electrocardiographic monitoring; ventricular tachycardia occurred in 5/26 (19 percent), and malignant ventricular ectopic beats occurred in 14/26 (54 percent). Fifteen (83 percent) of 18 patients with cardiac disease vs 4 (50 percent) of eight normal subjects (P less than 0.05) evidenced malignant ventricular ectopy during ambulatory monitoring. Only one episode of sudden cardiac death occurred in 24 patients followed for 21 months. Thus, 30 percent (eight) of the patients with exercise-induced ventricular tachycardia had no evidence of heart disease. Furthermore, exercise-provoked ventricular tachycardia presaged sudden death in only one of 24 patients; however, ventricular tachycardia with exercise correctly predicts the presence of chronic advanced ventricular ectopic beats or ventricular tachycardia in 73 percent (19/26) of the patients.

Adult↗

First pass radionuclide assessment of right and left ventricular ejection fraction in chronic pulmonary disease. Effect of oxygen upon exercise response.

Right and left ventricular ejection fraction (RVEF; LVEF) were determined in patients with severe chronic pulmonary disease (mean +/- SEM [FEV1 percent predicted 36 +/- 3%; PaO2: 64 +/- 3 mm Hg]), utilizing first pass radionuclide angiocardiography. RVEF and LVEF were measured at rest and again during upright bicycle exercise while patients breathed room air, and again during low flow oxygen (O2) administration. Mean RVEF was abnormal (less than 45%) at rest and did not increase with exercise while subjects breathed room air (44 +/- 2 percent vs 44 +/- 3 percent, P = ns), but improved significantly during exercise while patients breathed O2 (45 +/- 5 percent vs 51 +/- 3 percent, P less than .05). Breathing room air, RV exercise ejection fraction was abnormal (less than 5 percent increase in absolute RVEF) in 15 of 18 patients, but only 5 of 10 patients were abnormal during O2 administration. LVEF at rest was normal in all subjects. These data suggest: 1) RV exercise ejection fraction is abnormal in most patients with chronic pulmonary disease; 2) while low flow O2 does not alter RV performance at rest, it improves RV exercise ejection fraction in some patients.

Aged↗

Echo-phonocardiographic evaluation of obstruction of prosthetic mitral valve.

Echo-phonocardiograms of 64 patients with multiple types of prosthetic mitral valves (PMV) were evaluated. Six patients demonstrated findings suggesting valve obstruction: four had surgical confirmation of prosthetic obstruction, one reduced cardiac output and pulmonary hypertension but no prosthetic dysfunction at surgery, and one is asymptomatic. Three of four patients with confirmed obstruction had variable second sound to opening click intervals (A2-MO) with interrupted disc opening; two had interrupted disc closure with split closing clicks and three of four had reduced diastolic closure rate. In 58 clinically well patients with PMV, cycle-to-cycle A2-MO varied little: 0-10 msec in sinus rhythm and 10-25 msec in atrial fibrillation. Diastolic closure rates of five different types of PMV were similar: 21.6 mm/sec, (range 14-49). No patient had interrupted opening, closing or multiple closing clicks. Thus, delayed PMV opening or closure, altered A2-MO interval and double closing clicks are highly useful in detecting patients with obstruction of a variety of mitral prostheses.

Adolescent↗

Evaluation of nalbuphine hydrochloride.

The chemical properties, animal and human pharmacology, analgesic efficacy, relative potency, administration, and adverse effects of nalbuphine, a recently marketed, parenteral, strong analgesic with narcotic antagonist properties, are reviewed. Acute, subacute, and chronic toxicity studies in animals revealed no unusual adverse effects. The abuse potential of nalbuphine in man is probably similar to pentazocine. Respiratory depression produced by usual therapeutic doses of nalbuphine is equivalent to that of morphine; at higher than usual doses, nalbuphine produces less respiratory depression. Nalbuphine has few effects on cardiovascular hemodynamics in patients without cardiac disease or with stable ischemic disease. In patients with acute myocardial infarction, nalbuphine has an advantage over morphine, pentazocine, and butorphanol of not producing hypotension. Nalbuphine is as effective and has the same potency as morphine as an analgesic, with about the same onset, peak, and duration of action. Sedation is the most common adverse effect and occurs about as often as with other strong analgesics. Nausea and vomiting occur less often. In contrast to pentazocine, the frequency of psychotomimetic reactions apparently is very low. On the basis of presently available evidence, nalbuphine appears to have fewer disadvantages than any other parenteral strong analgesic.

Analgesics↗

Surgery in active infective endocarditis.

Controversy persists concerning the role of early surgical intervention in severe infective endocarditis (IE). We therefore reviewed 163 episodes of well-documented IE in which 32 cardiac operations were performed during the active phase of IE. Congestive heart failure (CHF) was the principal indication for surgery in 88% (28/32); systemic emboli, 1/32; and persisting sepsis, 3/32. Staphylococcus and enterococcus were the most common infecting organisms in the operative group (44% and 16% respectively). Surgical mortality (11/32,37%) did not differ (p greater than 0.05) from medical mortality (26/131,20%). All 11 operative deaths occurred in patients moribund prior to surgery, including three with preoperative cardiac arrest. Surgical patients undergoing preoperative cardiac catheterization demonstrated marked CHF: a mean left ventricular end-diastolic pressure of 25.3 mm Hg. The mean cardiac index in 8/11 surgical deaths was lower (p less than 0.05) vs surgical survivors: 2.21/min/m2 vs. 3.21/min/m2. Postoperative complications were rare in the 21 surgical survivors. There were no episodes of continued infection, prosthetic dehiscence, or advanced heart block; only one paravalvular leak; and one systemic embolus. These findings emphasize the high medical and surgical mortality in patients with IE, suggest that delayed operative intervention may be a major causative factor resulting in a high surgical mortality, and justify an aggressive surgical approach in patients with valve dysfunction and heart failure. These data indicate that survivors of surgical intervention during active IE have eradication of infection and few postoperative complications.

Adult↗