Horizons in World Cardiovascular Research. Volume 18

Horizons in World Cardiovascular Research. Volume 18 opens with a chapter reviewing the literature regarding the effectiveness of hyperbaric oxygen therapy and iloprost treatment, either alone or in combination, on ischemia/reperfusion injury. Ductus arteriosus is a fetal circulatory pathway which helps to redirect blood flow to the placenta in the fetus and spontaneously closes shortly after birth. The clinical and laboratory features of isolated patent ductus arteriosus are reviewed, along with indications for closure, methods of closure, and results. The authors briefly summarize the unique and role of chloride in the treatment of cardiovascular patients, particularly heart failure patients, and present a series of case vignettes of cardiovascular patients undergoing practical use of this agent. Next, the timing of symptomatic infarct swelling after recombinant tissue plasminogen activator treatment is evaluated. To carry out this evaluation, 14,868 patients with acute ischemic stroke were retrospectively analyzed from a stroke registry data-bank. An additional study assesses whether serum lipid levels are associated with the risk of symptomatic intracerebral hemorrhage and functional outcomes in patients with acute ischemic stroke after receiving intravenous thrombolysis. The coronary characteristics of patients with ischemic stroke are also studied by way of coronary computed tomographic angiographies carried out in 349 patients with stroke and 349 age- and sex-matched patients without stroke. The coronary calcium scores and the prevalence of significant stenosis and high-risk plaque between the groups are compared. This compilation also studies subclinical coronary artery disease in low to intermediate risk patients through coronary computed tomographic angiographies carried out in 744 patients, measuring the coronary calcium scores and the prevalence of significant stenosis and high-risk plaque. The coronary characteristics in patients with chronic kidney disease are similarly examined. The concluding study evaluates the impact of intermittent fasting on cerebrovascular disease, revealing differences in stroke patterns during Ramadan between the fasting and non-fasting groups.