Interactive cardiovascular and thoracic surgery
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Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg · Aug 2011
Case ReportsHalf-turned truncal switch operation for transposition of great arteries with ventricular septal defect and pulmonary regurgitation.
A three-month-old girl weighing 4.2 kg, diagnosed with transposition of the great arteries (TGA) and ventricular septal defect (VSD) was referred to us. She had normal-sized pulmonary annulus and moderate pulmonary regurgitation. ⋯ The postoperative course was uneventful without left or right ventricular outflow obstructions over a year of follow-up. Our report demonstrated that the TGA and VSD with normal pulmonary annulus is not contraindicated for half-turned truncal switch operation.
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Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg · Aug 2011
Comparative StudyThe obesity paradox in elderly obese patients undergoing coronary artery bypass surgery.
We sought to determine whether the protective role of the 'obesity paradox' was present among elderly obese patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) by median sternotomy. We retrospectively analyzed 1909 consecutive patients who underwent heart surgery between January 2006 and June 2009, and identified 396 patients who were ≥ 70 years of age and had isolated CABG. Subjects were divided into three groups according to their body mass index (BMI): obese (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m(2)), overweight (BMI 25-29.99 kg/m(2)) and normal (BMI 18.5-24.99 kg/m(2)). ⋯ Re-exploration for bleeding was required in none of the obese patients, which was statistically significant (P=0.05) compared to the other groups; otherwise there was no statistical difference for all other complications, including total length hospital stay and length of stay in the intensive care unit. Despite being labeled as higher risk candidates preoperatively, obese elderly patients undergoing CABG did not demonstrate an increased risk of postsurgical complications. We conclude that the 'obesity paradox' is present in this population, and they should not be excluded from receiving the benefits of CABG.