Journal of cardiac surgery
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Comparative Study
The Maze procedure for the treatment of atrial fibrillation: a minimally invasive approach.
The standard Maze procedure has proven to be extremely effective in curing atrial fibrillation in thousands of patients worldwide. Until now it has required a median sternotomy and cardiopulmonary bypass. In order to simplify the standard approach, a minimally invasive technique was developed. We have recently applied this minimally invasive Maze procedure in 72 patients. ⋯ We believe that the minimally invasive Maze procedure is a substantial improvement over the standard approach in terms of patient morbidity while preserving the effectiveness of the Maze procedure in curing atrial fibrillation.
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Comparative Study
N-acetylcysteine reduces lung reperfusion injury after deep hypothermia and total circulatory arrest.
We hypothesized that the use of N-acetylcysteine would ameliorate the lung reperfusion injury observed after deep hypothermia and total circulatory arrest (DHTSA). ⋯ Results represented in our study indicate that addition of NAC into the pump after DHTSA can reduce lung reperfusion injury.