The Thoracic and cardiovascular surgeon
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Thorac Cardiovasc Surg · Aug 2002
Case ReportsTracheoinnominate artery fistula: successful surgical management of one case.
Fistula formation between the trachea and the innominate artery following tracheostomy is a rare, but life-threatening complication. Because of its clinical presentation with acute, massive, intractable bleeding, the mortality is nearly 100% without operation. To the best of our knowledge, the autologous pericardium flap for coverage of the tracheal defect has not been discussed in the English-language literature. We successfully treated one case of tracheoinnominate artery fistula following tracheostomy by using autologous pericardium flap.
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Ventricular assist systems have become an important tool in the surgical management of acute and chronic heart failure. While indications for left ventricular support ar e well established, criteria for right ventricular support are much less defined. This report summarizes current knowledge on the implantation of right ventricular support in clinical settings of isolated right heart failure, biventricular failure, postcardiotomy failure and post-LVAD right heart failure.