Asian cardiovascular & thoracic annals
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The data of a consecutive series of habitual marijuana smokers were retrospectively evaluated and compared with that of non-marijuana smokers to assess differences between the 2 groups. ⋯ Despite the fact that we were unable to demonstrate that marijuana had a causal role in the development of emphysema, our study showed that marijuana smokers had a higher incidence of inflammatory cells in pathological specimens, which may favor lung injury, thus predisposing to bulla formation.
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Asian Cardiovasc Thorac Ann · Jan 2014
Novel emboli protection cannula during cardiac surgery: first animal study.
Stroke after open heart surgery is a major cause of morbidity and mortality. Up to 60% of intraoperative cerebral events are caused by emboli generated by manipulations of the aorta during surgery. This is the first animal study evaluating the safety and efficacy of a novel aortic cannula designed to extract solid and gaseous emboli during cardiac surgery. ⋯ The CardioGard cannula is as simple to use as a regular commercially available aortic cannula, having a similar safety profile and proven efficacy in capturing intraoperative emboli.