Journal of cardiac surgery
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Comparative Study
Assessment of EuroSCORE in patients undergoing aortic valve replacement.
The logistic EuroSCORE (European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation) is a risk stratification system used to predict the operative risk in patients undergoing surgical aortic valve replacement (AVR). The aim of this study is to investigate how accurate this system is, and how it compares to the observed risk. ⋯ The logistic EuroSCORE overestimates the risks for AVR. Therefore, it should not be used to deny high-risk patients a surgical AVR.
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Diagnosing a paradoxical embolism is challenging, and it can be proven only if the thrombus is identified across the intracardiac defect. Very few cases have been diagnosed as an impending paradoxical embolism. ⋯ We report a patient with an impending paradoxical embolism that was caught in transit across the patent foramen ovale. The patient was treated successfully with emergent surgery.
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Case Reports
Embolic occlusion of the left main coronary artery following an isolated aortic valve replacement.
Coronary occlusion after aortic valve replacement due to embolization is a rare complication. We report the case of a patient who developed acute heart failure due to occlusion of the left main coronary artery following an aortic valve replacement. Successful treatment was achieved with emergent coronary bypass surgery.
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Hemathorax is an uncommon but well-described complication of type B acute aortic dissection. Due to the location and anatomic relations of the descending aorta, aortic rupture of acute type B aortic dissection usually causes a left hemathorax. We now report the case of a 42-year-old male who presented with an acute type B aortic dissection and bilateral hemathoraces.