Transplantation proceedings
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Fertility is usually restored in women after solid organ transplantation, and successful pregnancies have been reported in female recipients of kidney, liver, heart, pancreas-liver, and lung transplants. However, women with solid organ allografts have higher incidence of pregnancy complications like hypertension, preeclampsia, preterm delivery. Hypertension appears to be dependent on the type of immunosuppressive agents. ⋯ All recipients were maintained on immunosuppressive therapy during pregnancy, except one mother who refused immunosuppression and experienced transplant rejection. Hypertension was the most frequent complication during pregnancy: in 23% of kidney transplantated mothers and in one out of nine liver transplant recipients. The only malformation observed in the newborns was the dislocation of the hip in the child of a kidney transplant recipient.
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Lung transplantation has become a consolidated treatment for patients with severe pulmonary hypertension (PH). Several difficulties are encountered during the procedure in such candidates, who are still recognized as more severely affected by perioperative morbility and mortality than those undergoing lung transplantation for other diseases. Right ventricular (RV) enlargement with tricuspid regurgitation, small left ventricle (LV) with an asymmetric hypetrophic wall, interventricular septal shift toward the left, with ventricular stiffness and diastolic incompetence, are typical preoperative echocardiographic findings of end-stage PH. ⋯ Early detection of impending circulatory and/or respiratory deterioration is warranted to prevent an irreversible decline in cardiac output, resulting in hazardous cardiac arrest. Inhaled nitric oxide represents the first choice for treatment of PH and RV failure associated with systemic hypotension during lung transplantation. Intraoperative situations requiring CPB must be identified before development of systemic shock, which represents a late ominous sign of RV failure.
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Polymyxin B (PMX-B) is a polycationic antibiotic, known to bind the lipid A portion of endotoxin, a cell wall component exclusively found in gram-negative bacteria (GNB). An extracorporeal hemoperfusion device (TORAYMYXIN) has been developed: PMX is covalently bound to the surface of an insoluble carrier material to inactivate endotoxin in blood without exerting toxicity on the brain or the kidney. The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy, safety, and clinical effects of direct hemoperfusion with an immobilized polymyxin B fiber column (DHP-PMX) among liver transplant patients with severe sepsis or septic shock. ⋯ The use of DHP-PMX may be an important aid in patients with sepsis in association with conventional therapy.
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Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is a semi-invasive monitoring technique increasingly used in cardiac surgery and in major noncardiac surgery for patients with known or supposed cardiac or coronary problems. During lung transplantation (LTx), the close interrelation between heart and lung function makes TEE an invaluable tool for instantly monitoring the physiopathological situation in the subsequent steps of the intervention. In patients scheduled for LTx, induction of anesthesia could be a dangerous moment with the possibility of cardiogenic shock if pulmonary hypertension (PH) exists; pneumatic tamponade is also possible in patients with emphysema caused by alpha(1)-antitrypsin deficiency, with subsequent cardiac insufficiency. ⋯ Lung reperfusion brings with it the possibility of coronary gaseous embolism, easily detected with TEE. After LTx, TEE can be used to detect strictures, thrombi, or permeability of pulmonary venous anastomoses. To summarize, intraoperative TEE during LTx contributes to the immediate recognition of critical events and allows for rapid therapeutic interventions.
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The aim of this study was to create a model that forecasted the stay in the intensive care unit in post-liver transplantation. ⋯ The most significant parameters were total bilirubin, serum creatinine, and serum sodium. The proposal model significantly correlated with the variable "intensive care unit stay." Such data are particularly important since increased intensive care unit stay correlates with a significant reduction in 1-year survival rate.