The Thoracic and cardiovascular surgeon
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Thorac Cardiovasc Surg · Sep 2015
Paravertebral Analgesia in Video-Assisted Thoracic Surgery: A New Hybrid Technique of Catheter Placement for Continuous Anesthetic Infusion.
Advantages of paravertebral analgesia in thoracotomy include the absence of morphine side effects and the lack of contraindications. We introduce a new technique for paravertebral catheter placement during video-assisted thoracic surgery. The catheter is placed in the same intercostal space as the camera port. ⋯ Postoperative analgesia is performed by a continuous infusion of local anesthetics. Our technique is safe and easy to perform and avoids opioid use. It works differently from intercostal analgesia and paravertebral blocks.
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Thorac Cardiovasc Surg · Sep 2015
Sutureless Valve Implantation via Mini J-Sternotomy: A Single Center Experience with 2 Years Mean Follow-up.
Despite increased operative time, minimally invasive cardiac surgery is associated with a lower morbidity than conventional aortic valve replacement (AVR). On the other hand, sutureless aortic bioprostheses have the potential of simplifying implantation, as it reduces the ischemic time. Our aim was to investigate the outcome of a sutureless AVR through a mini-sternotomy. ⋯ The sutureless bioprosthesis shows satisfactory clinical and hemodynamic results. Owing to its simple implantation technique, it represents a good support for minimally invasive access surgery via J-sternotomy.
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Thorac Cardiovasc Surg · Sep 2015
Comparison of Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation and Paravertebral Block for Postthoracotomy Pain Relief.
Inadequate relief of postthoracotomy pain is a major reason of increased occurrence of postoperative complications. We aimed to investigate and compare the effects of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) and paravertebral block (PVB) to relieve pain after thoracotomy procedures. ⋯ TENS has beneficial effects for pain relief after thoracotomy, without any side effects; however, it cannot provide sufficient pain relief when compared with PVB.
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Thorac Cardiovasc Surg · Aug 2015
Comparative StudyRestrictive Atrial Septum Defect Becomes a Risk Factor for Norwood Palliation of Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome Only When It Is Combined with Mitral or Aortic Atresia.
Restrictive atrial septal defect (ASD) is described as risk factor for Norwood procedure because of elevated pulmonary resistance. We hypothesized that it invariably could not cause pulmonary hypertension, unless it was combined with mitral valve or aortic valve atresia. We investigated how restrictive ASD influenced survival of patients with hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) who underwent Norwood operation. ⋯ Restrictive ASD only affects survival of HLHS patients following Norwood procedure if it is associated with mitral or aortic atresia.