The Annals of thoracic surgery
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Although conceptually sound, the use of multiple internal thoracic artery (ITA) bypass grafts to improve long-term clinical results remains controversial. This operation typically involves grafting the left ITA to the anterior descending artery and the right ITA to the right coronary artery. Past clinical studies of bilateral ITA operations have not examined comparative results associated with which coronary arteries received the ITA bypass grafts. Because grafting a superior conduit to an artery of lesser physiologic importance might reduce the clinical benefits, we compared the outcomes of patients receiving different configurations of bilateral ITA operations. ⋯ It appears that maximum long-term benefit from bilateral ITA operations is achieved by grafting the ITA conduits to coronary arteries that supply more left ventricular muscle.
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"Fast-track" (FT) cardiac surgery is popular in the private and university sectors. This study was designed to examine its safety and efficacy in the Department of Veterans Affairs elderly, male patient population, a population with multiple comorbid risk factors, often decreased social functioning, and impaired support systems. ⋯ An FT cardiac surgery protocol has been instituted in a university-affiliated teaching Department of Veterans Affairs medical center, with decreased length of stay and no significant increase in postoperative morbidity, 30-day mortality, or 6-month mortality. It was associated with a lower rate of nosocomial pneumonia, a finding that must be validated in a prospective study.
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For many congenital heart defects, hospital mortality is no longer a sensitive parameter by which to measure outcome. Although hospital survival rates are now excellent for a wide variety of lesions, many patients require expensive and extensive hospital-based services during the perioperative period to enable their convalescence. These services can substantially increase the cost of care delivery. In today's managed care environment, it would be useful if risk factors for higher cost could be identified preoperatively so that appropriate resources could be made available for the care of these patients. The focus of this retrospective investigation is to determine if risk factors for high cost for repair of congenital heart defects can be identified. ⋯ Low mortality and good long-term outcome for surgical correction of congenital heart defects is now commonplace, but can be expensive as some patients with complex problems receive the care necessary to survive. This study demonstrates that it is possible to identify factors preoperatively that predict financial risk. This knowledge may facilitate implementation of risk adjustments for managed care contracting and for strategic resource allocation.
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External conduits used for the repair of congenital heart diseases having discontinuity between the pulmonic ventricle and the pulmonary artery still carries a high risk of reoperation. Between June 1983 and June 1992, handmade equine pericardial conduit with fabricated trileaflet valve had been the conduit of choice in our institute. The aim of this study is to clarify the temporal sequence of conduit obstruction in this material and to formulate the optimal surgical strategies for this disease entity. ⋯ Degeneration of the valve in the equine pericardial conduit became prominent at 3 to 5 years after the operation, whereas the pressure gradient across the conduit continued to progress thereafter. A thick and hardened valve from degeneration and varying degrees of external compression by the sternum were delineated at the site of stenosis.
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The accumulation of intracellular sodium during myocardial ischemia couples an inappropriate calcium influx and depressed cardiac recovery during subsequent reperfusion. The effects of the selective sodium/ hydrogen exchange inhibitor HOE 694 are evaluated during myocardial ischemia and reperfusion. ⋯ The addition of 1 mumol/L HOE 694 to cardioplegic solution attenuates the increase of intracellular sodium during myocardial ischemia and early reperfusion. This is coupled with an improved recovery of contractile function, possibly as a result of decreased sodium and calcium overload of ischemic myocardium.