The Annals of thoracic surgery
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Numerous gaseous microemboli (GME) are delivered into the arterial circulation during cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). These emboli damage end organs through multiple mechanisms that are thought to contribute to neurocognitive deficits after cardiac surgery. Here, we use hypobaric oxygenation to reduce dissolved gases in blood and greatly reduce GME delivery during CPB. ⋯ Hypobaric oxygenation is an effective, low-cost, common sense approach that capitalizes on the simple physical makeup of GME to achieve their near-total elimination during CPB. This technique holds great potential for limiting end-organ damage and improving outcomes in a variety of patients undergoing extracorporeal circulation.
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Pulmonary atresia with ventricular septal defect and major aortopulmonary collaterals (PA/VSD/MAPCAs) is a complex and diverse form of congenital heart defect. Although most patients with PA/VSD/MAPCAs can wait until they are 3 to 6 months of age to undergo surgical reconstruction, there are three specific criteria that merit an earlier repair. These 3 criteria are (1) unremitting heart failure; (2) a ductus to one lung and MAPCAs to the other; and (3) hemitruncus to one lung and MAPCAs to the other. The purpose of this study was to evaluate our surgical experience with early complete repair of PA/VSD/MAPCAs. ⋯ The data demonstrate that early complete repair of PA/VSD/MAPCAs can be accomplished with low mortality and excellent postoperative hemodynamics. These early hemodynamic results are maintained at medium-term follow-up. We conclude that early complete repair is an appropriate choice for this highly select subgroup of patients.
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Meta Analysis Comparative Study
Similar survival after mitral valve replacement or repair for ischemic mitral regurgitation: a meta-analysis.
Ischemic mitral regurgitation (IMR) occurs in 20% of patients after myocardial infarction. There is no agreement as to the best surgical option. With no prospective randomized controlled trials available, our objective was to perform a meta-analysis comparing replacement and repair. ⋯ Mitral valve repair is associated with lower operative mortality but higher recurrence of regurgitation in patients with ischemic mitral regurgitation. No differences were found regarding survival, NYHA class, and functional indicators.
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Postoperative acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common serious consequence of cardiac surgery. One recent study found higher AKI rates when anemia and hypotension occurred during cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) relative to anemia alone. To revalidate this post hoc observation we analyzed detailed data from a large cardiac surgery cohort. ⋯ In a large cohort of cardiac surgery patients, we did not confirm any association of cardiac surgery-related AKI risk with the co-occurrence of hypotension and anemia during CPB relative to anemia alone. More detailed analyses also failed to support an anemia-hypotension interaction. Additional studies are required to better understand the relationship among anemia, hypotension during CPB, and postoperative AKI, but existing evidence is insufficient to support changes in clinical practice.