Central and Peripheral Hemodynamics in Young Adults Who Use Water Pipes and the Acute Effects of Water-Pipe Use.

Background: Tobacco use via water pipe (commonly referred to as water-pipe smoking [WPS]) is popular among young adults globally and exposes those who smoke to toxicants.

Research Question: Is WPS associated with impaired measures of arterial function and does WPS acutely impair these measures in young adults?

Study Design And Methods: We assessed heart rate (HR), brachial and aortic BP, HR-adjusted augmentation index (AI), and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (CFPWV) in 62 individuals who use water pipes and 34 individuals who have never used a water pipe recruited from the community (mean age, 22.5 ± 3.

Advances in telemedicine for the management of the elderly cardiac patient.

Telemedicine is the use of information and communication technology to deliver healthcare at a distance. It has been resorted to during the COVID-19 pandemic to lessen the need for in-person patient care decreasing the risk of transmission, and it can be of benefit afterward in the management of cardiac disease. The elderly population has unique challenges concerning the use of telehealth technologies.

The association of waterpipe smoking with arterial stiffness and wave reflection in a community-based sample.

Purpose: The evidence linking waterpipe smoking to cardiovascular disease is limited. We evaluated the association of waterpipe smoking (WPS) with arterial stiffness and wave reflection measured by augmentation pressure (AP), augmentation index (AIx), and carotid-femoral pulse wave velocity (CFPWV), which are validated predictors of cardiovascular disease.

Materials And Methods: Community-based, cross-sectional study including 205 exclusive waterpipe smokers and 199 matched never-smokers aged 35 years or older (mean age 51.

A comparison of artificial intelligence-based algorithms for the identification of patients with depressed right ventricular function from 2-dimentional echocardiography parameters and clinical features.

Background: Recognizing low right ventricular (RV) function from 2-dimentiontial echocardiography (2D-ECHO) is challenging when parameters are contradictory. We aim to develop a model to predict low RV function integrating the various 2D-ECHO parameters in reference to cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR)-the gold standard.

Methods: We retrospectively identified patients who underwent a 2D-ECHO and a CMR within 3 months of each other at our institution (American University of Beirut Medical Center).

Potentially inappropriate medications in elderly patients with heart failure: Beers Criteria-based study.

Objectives: Primary objectives were to evaluate the use of potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) use in elderly heart failure (HF) patients and the factors associated with the number of PIMs. Secondary objectives were to test for the correlation between PIMs and quality of life (QOL) and depression.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 125 elderly Lebanese HF patients with left ventricular ejection fraction <50%.

Dietary Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load Are Not Associated with the Metabolic Syndrome in Lebanese Healthy Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study.

High dietary glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL) were suggested to increase the risk of metabolic syndrome (MetS). This study aims to estimate dietary GI and GL in a sample of healthy Lebanese adults and examine their association with MetS and its individual abnormalities. The study uses data from a community-based survey of 501 Lebanese urban adults.

High Precision Digitization of Paper-Based ECG Records: A Step Toward Machine Learning.

Introduction: The electrocardiogram (ECG) plays an important role in the diagnosis of heart diseases. However, most patterns of diseases are based on old datasets and stepwise algorithms that provide limited accuracy. Improving diagnostic accuracy of the ECG can be done by applying machine learning algorithms.

Out-of-hospital cardiopulmonary resuscitation: a position statement of the Lebanese Society of Cardiology and the Lebanese Society of Emergency Medicine.

Out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) is a leading cause of death worldwide. Early cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and early defibrillation are key to improving outcomes of patients with OHCA including return of spontaneous circulation (ROSC) and survival to hospital discharge with good neurologic outcomes. Lebanon like other developing countries, suffers from absence of organized prehospital cardiac arrest care bundle and from absence of a legal framework for community involvement in cardiac arrest care.

Validation of the Arabic Version of the Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire.

Background: The Minnesota Living with Heart Failure Questionnaire (MLHFQ) is commonly used to measure quality of life (QOL) in patients with heart failure (HF). We examined the psychometric properties and cultural validity of an Arabic version of the MLHFQ.

Methods: An observational cross-sectional study was conducted with 210 adult HF outpatients.

A speckle-tracking strain-based artificial neural network model to differentiate cardiomyopathy type.

In heart failure, invasive angiography is often employed to differentiate ischaemic from non-ischaemic cardiomyopathy. We aim to examine the predictive value of echocardiographic strain features alone and in combination with other features to differentiate ischaemic from non-ischaemic cardiomyopathy, using artificial neural network (ANN) and logistic regression modelling. We retrospectively identified 204 consecutive patients with an ejection fraction <50% and a diagnostic angiogram.

Sleepless in Beirut: sleep duration and associated subjective sleep insufficiency, daytime fatigue, and sleep debt in an urban environment.

Purpose: Insufficient sleep is not well studied in developing countries. We assessed sleep duration among adults in Lebanon and examined its potential predictors and relationship with subjective sleep insufficiency, daytime fatigue, and weekday sleep debt.

Methods: This cross-sectional study included 501 adults (mean age 45.

Sleepless in Beirut: Sleep Difficulties in an Urban Environment With Chronic Psychosocial Stress.

Study Objectives: The prevalence of sleep disorders in the Lebanese population is unknown. We assessed the prevalence of insomnia and sleep apnea risk and examined their relationship with sociodemographic, lifestyle, and health characteristics in a sample from Greater Beirut.

Methods: This cross-sectional pilot survey included 501 adults from the community (age 45.

Prevalence, Awareness, and Control of Hypertension in Greater Beirut Area, Lebanon.

Background: Hypertension (HTN) has been identified as the leading risk factor for mortality and the third cause of disability worldwide. Lebanon has witnessed a threefold increase in the prevalence of HTN in the past decade. The timely exploration and detection of the factors contributing to a higher prevalence of the disease among the Lebanese population is fundamental.

The Association of Water-Pipe Smoking and Coronary Artery Calcium in a Community-Based Sample.

Background: Water-pipe smoking is increasing in popularity, driven partly by a perception of reduced harm compared with cigarette smoking. This study evaluates the association of water-pipe smoking with coronary artery calcium (CAC), a marker of coronary heart disease (CHD) risk, in a community-based sample.

Methods: A total of 175 exclusive water-pipe smokers and 170 nonsmokers, ≥ 35 years of age, were recruited from the community in Lebanon and Qatar.

Noninvasive Multimodality Imaging for the Diagnosis of Constrictive Pericarditis.

There is a need to review the multimodality imaging techniques, as well as the emerging role of the newer noninvasive imaging modalities in the field of constrictive pericarditis (CP). Therefore, the aim of this review is to summarize the current available techniques that are useful for the diagnosis and differentiation of CP from restrictive cardiomyopathy. Also, we provide illustrative images and videos of typical CP noninvasive imaging findings, as well as a diagnostic and management algorithm.

Resuscitation of Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Victims in Lebanon: The Experience and Views of Prehospital Providers.

Background: The survival rate of out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) victims in Lebanon is much lower than those seen internationally. In this study, we examined the attitudes and practices of prehospital providers in resuscitation.

Methods: We devised a cross-sectional survey with questions adopted from the literature including a study out of Lebanon.

Disparity in spatial distribution of pericardial calcifications in constrictive pericarditis.

Background: Pericardial calcification is seen among patients with constrictive pericarditis (CP). However, the pattern of pericardial calcium distribution and the association with clinical outcomes and imaging data are not well described.

Methods: This was a retrospective study from 2007 to 2013 to evaluate the pattern of pericardial calcium distribution by CT in CP using a semiquantitative calcium scoring system to calculate total pericardial calcium burden and distribution.

Impact of a hospital-based educational intervention on dietary salt-related knowledge and behaviour in a cardiac care unit population in Lebanon.

Background: Cardiovascular disease is the most common cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Numerous strategies have been effective in reducing cardiovascular disease risk, from pharmacological approaches to lifestyle modification interventions. One of these strategies includes the reduction in dietary sodium which in turn reduces cardiovascular risk by reducing high blood pressure, perhaps the most important cardiovascular risk factor.

Worsening of the Cardiovascular Profile in a Developing Country: The Greater Beirut Area Cardiovascular Cohort.

Background: Lebanon has no established governmental noncommunicable diseases surveillance and monitoring system to permit reporting on noncommunicable diseases rates. The last World Health Organization-supported surveillance report showed worrying trends in cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors.

Objectives: A cardiovascular cohort was established to permit CVD outcomes studies in an urban sample in the Lebanese capital and the study in hand presents the baseline CVD risk factors of this cohort.

Short Telomere Length is Associated with Aging, Central Obesity, Poor Sleep and Hypertension in Lebanese Individuals.

In Lebanon, data stemming from national cross-sectional surveys indicated significant increasing trends in the prevalence of cardiovascular diseases and associated behavioral and age-related risk factors. To our knowledge, no data are available on relative telomere length (RTL) as a potential biomarker for age-related diseases in a Lebanese population. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether there is an association between RTL and demographic characteristics, lifestyle habits and diseases in the Lebanese.

An Outflow Boundary Condition Model for Noninvasive Prediction of Fractional Flow Reserve in Diseased Coronary Arteries.

This paper reports on a new boundary condition formulation to model the total coronary myocardial flow and resistance characteristics of the myocardial vascular bed for any specific patient when considered for noninvasive diagnosis of ischemia. The developed boundary condition model gives an implicit representation of the downstream truncated coronary bed. Further, it is based on incorporating patient-specific physiological parameters that can be noninvasively extracted to account for blood flow demand to the myocardium at rest and hyperemic conditions.

A minimally processed dietary pattern is associated with lower odds of metabolic syndrome among Lebanese adults.

Objective: To (i) estimate the consumption of minimally processed, processed and ultra-processed foods in a sample of Lebanese adults; (ii) explore patterns of intakes of these food groups; and (iii) investigate the association of the derived patterns with cardiometabolic risk.

Design: Cross-sectional survey. Data collection included dietary assessment using an FFQ and biochemical, anthropometric and blood pressure measurements.

Myocardial infarction masquerading as myocarditis in a patient with factor V Leiden: unmasked with MR.

We present a case of a 21-year-old man presenting with sharp left-sided chest pain. A CT pulmonary angiogram was negative, ECG was unremarkable and a mild troponin rise was observed. Myocarditis was suspected as the most likely diagnosis, particularly in view of the patient's previous diagnosis of myocarditis 3 years prior.

Normalization of biventricular strain post steroid treatment of effusive constrictive pericarditis.

Peak left ventricular strain measured by speckle tracking echocardiography has previously been shown to normalize following pericardectomy in constrictive pericarditis, as indicated by an increase of the strain ratio between the lateral wall and septum. Here we present a case of effusive constrictive pericarditis treated with corticosteroids. Pre-treatment we observed reduced contractility of the lateral walls of both ventricles as measured by peak strain, with sparing of overall septal function, but with hypercontractility of the basal septal segment.

Artificial neural network-based model enhances risk stratification and reduces non-invasive cardiac stress imaging compared to Diamond-Forrester and Morise risk assessment models: A prospective study.

Background: Coronary artery disease (CAD) accounts for more than half of all cardiovascular events. Stress testing remains the cornerstone for non-invasive assessment of patients with possible or known CAD. Clinical utilization reviews show that most patients presenting for evaluation of stable CAD by stress testing are categorized as low risk prior to the test.