Heart, lung & circulation
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Heart, lung & circulation · Jan 2014
Arrhythmogenicity of hypothermia - a large animal model of hypothermia.
Therapeutic hypothermia (TH) is used to mitigate cerebral injury after an out of hospital cardiac arrest. There is a perceived risk of increased arrhythmias with temperatures lower than the current target of 32-34°C for TH. This study sought to develop and investigate the electrophysiological changes in a sheep model of systemic hypothermia regarding the susceptibility to ventricular arrhythmias. ⋯ Hypothermia causes a significant increase in the heterogeneity of depolarisation and repolarisation. There is evidence to suggest that SR is protective with most of the increase in heterogeneity occurring with cooling to 34°C. This raises the possibility that the current target temperatures for therapeutic hypothermia may be safely lowered to provide a gain in cerebral protection.
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Heart, lung & circulation · Jan 2014
Randomized Controlled TrialThe effect of optimising cerebral tissue oxygen saturation on markers of neurological injury during coronary artery bypass graft surgery.
Surgical revascularisation of the coronary arteries is a cornerstone of cardiothoracic surgery. Advanced age and the incidence of preoperative co-morbidity in patients presenting for coronary artery bypass graft surgery increases the potential for stroke and other perioperative outcomes. It is hypothesised that by using interventions during cardiac surgery to improve cerebral oxygenation, the risk of patients enduring adverse neurological outcomes would be reduced. ⋯ Monitoring brain oxygen saturation during on-pump CABG together with an effective treatment protocol to deal with cerebral desaturation must be advocated.
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Heart, lung & circulation · Jan 2014
Case ReportsRight ventricular loop indicating malposition of J-wire introducer for double lumen bicaval venovenous extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VV ECMO) cannula.
The key to safe placement of a bicaval double lumen cannula for Venovenous Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (VV ECMO) is to visualise correct guide wire placement in the inferior vena cava (IVC), thus aiding subsequent correct advancement of the cannula. Transoesophageal (TOE) and transthoracic (TTE) echocardiography, as well as fluoroscopy, have been described as aiding imaging techniques. We report a case of guide wire malposition into the right ventricle, despite echocardiographic confirmation of guide wire position deep into the IVC. This malposition, if undetected, may have resulted in potential life threatening complications.
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Heart, lung & circulation · Dec 2013
Case ReportsRight ventricular perforation caused by pulmonary artery catheter three days after insertion in a patient with acute pulmonary embolism.
A 68 year-old man presented with dyspnoea and chest pain. Computed tomography showed a massive bilateral pulmonary embolism. A 7.5 French pulmonary artery catheter (PAC) was inserted from the right internal jugular vein, and placed at the main pulmonary artery (PA) due to a thrombus in the distal PA. ⋯ He was subsequently discharged without any further complications. We encountered a rare case of postoperative RV perforation caused by a PAC. It is important to keep in mind that such a complication could arise not only during but also a few days after PAC insertion.
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Heart, lung & circulation · Nov 2013
Multicenter Study Clinical TrialAUStralian Indigenous Chronic Disease Optimisation Study (AUSI-CDS) prospective observational cohort study to determine if an established chronic disease health care model can be used to deliver better heart failure care among remote Indigenous Australians: Proof of concept-study rationale and protocol.
The congestive heart failure syndrome has increased to epidemic proportions and is cause for significant morbidity and mortality. Indigenous patients suffer a greater prevalence with greater severity. Upon diagnosis patients require regular follow-up with medical and allied health services. Patients are prescribed life saving, disease modifying and symptom relieving therapies. This can be an overwhelming experience for patients. To compound this, remoteness, differentials in conventional health care and services pose special problems for Indigenous clients in accessing care. Additional barriers of language, culture, socio-economic disadvantage, negative attitudes towards establishment, social stereotyping, stigma and discrimination act as barriers to improved care. Recent focus supported by clinical evidence support the role of chronic disease self-management programs. A patient focused, problem identification, goal setting and psychosocial modification based program should in principal highlight these issues and help tailor a patient focused comprehensive care plan to complement guideline based care. At present there are no Indigenous focused chronic disease self-management programs. There is a need for research on ways to provide chronic disease management to this group. We therefore designed a study to assess a model of patient focussed comprehensive care for Indigenous Australians with heart failure. ⋯ The rationale and design of the AUSI-CDS using the Flinders Model is described.