• Maria Papathanasiou, Loukas Tsourelis, Nikolaus Pizanis, Achim Koch, Markus Kamler, Tienush Rassaf, and Peter Luedike.
• Department of Cardiology and Vascular Medicine, West German Heart and Vascular Center, University Hospital Essen, Hufelandstr. 55, 45147, Essen, Germany.
• Eur. J. Med. Res. 2017 Nov 15; 22 (1): 46.

BackgroundResternotomy in cardiac surgery is considered a risk factor for postoperative complications. Previous studies have demonstrated an ambiguous relationship between resternotomy and clinical outcomes. Registry data from a mixed population of durable circulatory support devices suggest that history of cardiac surgery is a risk factor for mortality. Our study investigates the prognostic significance of resternotomy in a homogenous cohort of left ventricular assist device (LVAD) recipients.MethodsThe study included adult patients receiving a continuous-flow LVAD at our institution during the period 2010-2016. Postoperative adverse events and length of stay were analyzed. Survival was assessed at 6 months and by the end of the study. Multivariate risk factor analysis was conducted for independent predictors of death.ResultsOne hundred twelve patients, who received an intrapericardial LVAD (HVAD, HeartWare), were included in our analysis. Twenty-four patients (21.4%) had a history of previous sternotomy. These patients were older and non-eligible for bridging, and had more frequently coronary heart disease. Univariate analysis demonstrated no differences in the observed complications postoperatively. Survival was similar among groups. Destination therapy was the only predictor of mortality in our analysis (p = 0.02).ConclusionsResternotomy was not associated with worse outcomes after LVAD implantation in our cohort.

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