Use of Intraoperative Coronary Angiography to Guide Surgical Intervention in Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery

Following coronary artery bypass graft surgery, graft patency is a major factor contributing to patient morbidity and mortality. There are several modalities available for assessing graft patency intra?op used by both the anesthesiologist and surgeon. However, these modalities have their own advantages and disadvantages which will be summarized in this case report. As illustrated by this case, angiography continues to be the gold standard for coronary anatomy assessment and can be performed easily using a portable digital fluoroscopic system.

Bioprosthetic valve thrombosis in carcinoid heart disease

Tricuspid regurgitation in carcinoid syndrome leads to significant morbidity and mortality that may warrant a tricuspid valve replacement. However, for patients with high serotonin levels and known hypercoagulable risks, the optimum timing for surgery and postoperative anticoagulation approaches remain unclear. High serotonin-triggered hypercoagulability makes prosthetic valves susceptible to thrombosis. Despite appropriate management with a somatostatin analog, some patients continue to have high markers of serotonin that causes platelet aggregation and rapid clot formation. In severely symptomatic patients who require valve surgery, it may not be feasible to postpone surgery until these metabolites are normalized, which may add a substantial risk for postoperative valve thrombosis to an otherwise uneventful procedure. In some, there is a significant need to predict and prevent bioprosthetic valve thrombosis in carcinoid heart disease and to identify best anticoagulation practices across a spectrum of its complex coagulation dynamics and clinical presentation.

Valve‑in‑valve-in homograft: A case of a repeat transcatheter aortic valve replacement in a patient with an aortic homograft.

In recent years, the use of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) has extended beyond the treatment of native aortic valve stenosis in patients with high surgical risk. TAVR is increasingly being performed for bioprosthetic aortic valve failure, i.e., the valve‑in‑valve (VIV) procedure. Establishing the success of a VIV procedure can be challenging in these cases. Furthermore, the limited availability of prostheses sizes further complicates the management of these patients. We present an unusual case of a repeat TAVR in a patient who previously had a VIV procedure in an aortic homograft.