European journal of cardio-thoracic surgery : official journal of the European Association for Cardio-thoracic Surgery
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Eur J Cardiothorac Surg · May 2015
Surgical management of infective endocarditis: an analysis of early and late outcomes.
To review our experience of surgical management of infective endocarditis (IE) over a 13-year period and analyse the outcomes and associated prognostic factors. ⋯ Surgical management of endocarditis continues to be challenging and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. This report of 191 patients who underwent valve surgery for IE shows that in-hospital mortality is influenced by preoperative renal function and stroke at the time of presentation. The optimal timing for surgery in patients with stroke remains controversial. Long-term survival was negatively influenced by increasing age, moderate to severely impaired LVEF, prosthetic valve IE and S. aureus infection.
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Eur J Cardiothorac Surg · May 2015
Multicenter StudyFunctional results after chest wall stabilization with a new screwless fixation device.
This is the experience with the Stratos system in two surgical centres for the management of two types of rib fractures: flail chest and multiple dislocated rib fractures with significant chest wall deformity. ⋯ Our results suggest that stabilization of the chest wall with this screwless rib fixation device can be performed with a low morbidity and lead to early restoration of chest wall integrity and respiratory pump function, without clinically relevant functional restriction. Owing to the simplicity of the fixation technique, indications for stabilization can be safely enlarged to selected patients with dislocated and painful rib fractures.
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Eur J Cardiothorac Surg · May 2015
Comparative Study Observational StudyPain and recovery are comparable after either uniportal or multiport video-assisted thoracoscopic lobectomy: an observation study.
Uniportal approaches to video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) lobectomy have been described in significant series. Few comparison studies between the two techniques exist. The aim was to determine whether the uniportal technique had more favourable postoperative outcomes than the multiport technique. ⋯ Uniportal VATS lobectomy is safe, and there is no appreciable negative impact on the hospital stay or morbidity. Patient-reported pain and morphine use in the first 24 h was low with either technique. Larger prospective studies are needed to quantify any benefit to a particular approach for VATS lobectomy.