The Annals of thoracic surgery
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It is important to characterize in-hospital mortality after cardiac surgery and understand the relationships between postoperative length of intensive care unit stay, postoperative length of hospital stay, and the likelihood of in-hospital mortality. ⋯ Most in-hospital mortality occurs during the first week after cardiac surgery with few mortalities occurring after a protracted hospital course. Postoperative complications have a limited ability to explain the variability in mortality timing. Increased length of postoperative intensive care unit stay and hospital stay after cardiac surgery are associated with an increased likelihood of in-hospital mortality.
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Aortopathy associated with bicuspid aortic valve commonly involves the ascending aorta above the sinotubular ridge, but it may also affect sinus portions of the aorta. In some persons, the enlarged portion of the aortic root is limited to the noncoronary sinus. In such patients, we have spared the remaining portions of the aortic root by replacing the ascending aorta with a polyethylene terephthalate fiber (Dacron) graft and a tongue-shaped extension of the graft, thereby replacing the noncoronary sinus. In the present study, we evaluated late outcomes of this procedure, with specific attention to the fate of aortic tissue in the remaining sinuses. ⋯ In patients with bicuspid aortic valve and aortic root enlargement related mainly to enlargement of the noncoronary sinus, limited replacement of the noncoronary sinus and ascending aorta is a safe and simple procedure that is durable in midterm follow-up.
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There are few data on factors predicting recurrence of completely resected thymic carcinoma. This study analyzed prognosticators for recurrence and postrecurrence survival. ⋯ Superior vena cava invasion as well as Masaoka staging was significantly associated with recurrence-free survival in patients with completely resected thymic carcinoma. In patients with recurrent disease, surgical resection should be attempted for localized disease because it might provide some benefit for progression-free survival.