The Journal of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery
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J. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg. · Apr 1979
Case ReportsAcute hypertension: its significance in traumatic aortic rupture.
Traumatic aortic rupture is a common occurrence associated with 16 percent of deaths from automobile accidents. Through a review of current literature and two recent cases from The Milton S. Hershey Medical Center, we have attempted to elucidate a common physical finding, acute hypertension associated with blunt chest trauma, and prove its significance as a diagnostic clue to traumatic rupture of the aorta. New laboratory findings of an aortic sympathetic reflex stimulated by stretching the aortic wall in the area of the isthmus provides a physiological explanation for the cause of hypertension after aortic trauma.
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J. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg. · Feb 1979
Implantation of an endocardial tined lead to prevent early dislodgment.
Early electrode dislodgment from the ventricular apex is a major complication associated with transvenous cardiac pacing. A new lead with flexible tines proximal to the tip electrode has been developed to minimize acute dislodgment incidence. The bipolar tined lead was implanted in 79 patients. ⋯ Although the cephalic vein was the preferred venous route, the jugular vein was needed more often for tined lead insertion than for standard lead insertion. The incidence of early dislodgment with the tined lead was 2.5 percent compared to 8 percent with the standard lead (no significant difference). This preliminary experience can only suggest that the addition of flexible tined leads may reduce early electrode dislodgment.
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J. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg. · Feb 1979
Comparative StudyPharmacologic antagonism of beta-adrenergic blockade in dogs. I. Hemodynamic effects of isoproterenol, dopamine, and epinephrine in acute propranolol administration.
Hemodynamic effects of isoproterenol, dopamine, and epinephrine were studied before and after acute beta-adrenergic blockade in 16 open-chest, anesthetized mongrel dogs. Beta blockade was induced with 1 mg. per kilogram of intravenous propranolol. Cardiac output measurements were obtained by thermal dilution, and pressure recordings were obtained in the right ventricle, pulmonary artery, left atrium, left ventricle, and aorta. ⋯ Left ventricular systolic pressure with isoproterenol after propranolol was reduced when compared with effects of smaller doses prior to propranolol. These observations suggest that none of the catecholamines studied would be optimal for circulatory support in heart failure in the presence of propranolol. The present results define a pharmacologic basis for design of appropriate drug combinations for circulatory support in beta-blocked animals.