The Frequency of Defibrillation Related to the Survival Rate and Neurological Outcome in Patients Surviving from Out-of-hospital Cardiac Arrest / 대한구급학회지

BACKGROUND: Early defibrillation is the treatment of choice in out-of-hospital cardiac arrests (OHCA) with initial shockable rhythms. However, the relationship between the frequency of defibrillation and neurological outcome was not clear. In this study, the frequency of defibrillation and other factors related to neurological outcome were investigated. METHODS: Records of 255 adult patients, who were admitted to the hospital after resuscitation from OHCA between November 2008 and March 2012, were retrospectively reviewed. 6 months after the return of spontaneous circulation, patients were divided into two groups based on the cerebral performance category (CPC) score for neurologic prognosis. The frequency of defibrillation during resuscitation and other variables were analyzed between the two groups. RESULTS: In the study group, initial rhythm was divided into two groups, non shockable rhythm (200, 78.4%) and shockable rhythm (55, 21.6%). The frequency of 1-7 defibrillations was significantly associated with good neurological outcome (OR 3.05, 95% CI 1.328-6.850). In addition, shockable initial rhythm (OR 4.520, 95% CI 1.953-10.459), arrest caused cardiac origin (OR 2.945, 95% CI 1.334-6.500), time to BLS (OR 1.139, 95% CI 1.033-1.256) and lower APACHII score (OR 1.095, 95% CI 1.026-1.169), which were associated with good neurological outcomes, independently. CONCLUSIONS: In those patients who survived from OHCA, adequate defibrillation was important to improve the neurological outcome, whether the initial rhythm was shockable or not. Frequency of 1-7 times defibrillation was associated with good neurological outcome.

Tetralogy of Fallot with Pulmonary Arteriovenous Fistula: A Case Report / 대한흉부외과학회지

Pulmonary arteriovenous fistula can occur in a variety of clinical situations including liver diseases, infections, metastatic carcinomas, systemic disorders, and after the palliation of congenital heart diseases. A 72-day-old male infant with Tetralogy of Fallot and pulmonary atresia underwent surgical correction without difficulty. However, ventilator weaning in the ICU failed initially because of an unexplained postoperative hypoxemia(FiO2: 0.8, PaO2: 40 mmHg, SaO2: 80~90%). Postoperative follow-up lung perfusin scan at postoperative 15 days showed right-to-left shunt(33.6%) and ventilator weaning was performed on the 20th day after the operation (FiO2: 0.4, PaO2, 50mmHg, SaO2: 86.9%). Arterial oxygen saturation under room air was 80~85% at 7 months postoperatively. One and half year follow-up lung perfusion scan showed decreased amount of right-to-left shunt (11.2%). We report a case with a review of the literatures.

Rebound Pulmonary Hypertension After Nitric Oxide Withdrawal / 대한흉부외과학회지

BACKGROUND: Inhaled nitric oxide therapy causes selective pulmonary vasodilation in congenital heart diseases with pulmonary hypertension. However discontinuation of inhaled nitric oxide therapy may be complicated by abrupt life-threatening rebound pulmonary hypertension(RPH) The purpose of this study was to prevent by comparing group I(without RPH n=13) and group II(with RPH n=6) to determine the risk factors involved inthe development of the RPH. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Between Januarty 6, 1998 and April 14, 1999. we studied 19 consecutive children who were treated with inhaled nitric oxide for clinically significant pulmonary hypertension after an open heart surgery for congenital heart disease. the ratio of males and females was 12:7 ranging in age from 10 days to 6040 days(16 years) To identify the effects of nitric oxide between two groups we measured heart rate mean and systolic pulmonary arterial pressure mean and systolic systemic arterial pressure central venous pressure pH paO2/FiO2 and O2 saturation before and after the initiation and just before the withdrawal of the inhaled nitric oxide. RESULT: In 6 of 19 patients(32%) withdrawal of inhaled nitric oxide caused RPH. In the two groups inhaled nitrix oxide decreased in pulmonary arterial pressure(PAP) without decreasing the systemic arterial pressure(SAP) and increased PaO2/FiO2 Compared with patients who had no RPH(group I) patients who had RPH(group II) were older in age (1204+/-1688 versus 546+/-1654 days p0.05) and lower concentration just before the withdrawal nitric oxide(4.2+/-2.6 versus 5.6+/-2.6 ppm, p>0.05) CONCLUSION: We speculate that older age shorter of nitric oxide therapy shorter weaning process are the risk factors of RPH.

Right Ventricular Outflow Tract Reconstruction with Bicuspid / 대한흉부외과학회지

BACKGROUND: Recently, open heart surgerys using homograft are progressively increasing in complex cardiac anomalies, and even though the use of homograft tissues harvested from hearts of transplant recipients and brain-death patients are allowed and their use is increasing, the supply of homograft tissue is very limited. MATERIAL AND METHOD: The large diameter homografts are difficult to apply directly for RVOT reconstruction of small neonatal and infant hearts due to the size mismatching. Therefore, were surgically down-sized the large diameter tricuspid homograft into bicuspid conduits by means of a longitudinal incision of the oversized homograft, excision of one cusp, and oversewing of the"Bicuspid homograft"wrapped around a Hega dilator of the appropriate size. RESULT: 3 patients(Male 1, Female 2: tetralogy of Fallot with pulmonary atresia), ranging in age from 5 months to 4 years and ranging in weight from 5.5Kg to 12.95Kg underwent reconstruction of the RVOT with bicuspid conduits obtained by appropriate tailoring from large-diameter homografts. The mean follow-up period was 4.3 months(range, 2 to 6 months). There were no complications related to the homograft tissues. CONCLUSION: In the short term follow-up, the bicuspid homografts provided good competence and excellent hemodynamics although a long term follow-up is needed to assess the functions of the bicuspid homografts in RVOT. We believe this technique may be a more effective alternative than the use of synthetic conduits when the use of an appropriate-sized homograft is not possible.

Clinical Considerations of the Surgical Closure of the PDA in the Premature Infants / 대한흉부외과학회지

BACKGROUND: Surgical closure of the PDA in premature infants with complications or contraindications to indomethacin use, or recurrence of symptomatic PDA is a safe and effective procedure with low operative risk and minimal complications. MATERIAL AND METHOD: From April 1996 to August 1998, 11 premature infants with body weight under 1.5 kg at operation underwent operation for a symptomatic PDA (male:5, female: 6). Associated dise ases were congenital heart disease(7), hyaline membrane disease(6), intraventricular hemor rhage(4), pneumonia(4), pneumothorax(3), hyperbilirubinemia(2), necrotizing enterocolitis(2), renal failure(1), epilepsy(1), and hydrocephalus(1). Surgical techniques are hemoclipping(8) and ligation(3). The size of PDA was 3~6 mm (5.0+/-1.2). RESULT: Systolic and diastolic blood pressure rised and heart rates decreased after PDA closure. ABGA improved postoperatively. There were no surgical complications. Six infants with improved ABGA data were weaned from mechanical ventilatory support. The follow-up durations after discharge were 3 month to 12 month. Five deaths were not related to operation. The causes of death were hyaline membrane disease(2), bronchopulmonary dysplasia with pneumonia(1), sepsis(1), and con gestive heart failure with respiratory distress syndrome(1). CONCLUSION: Early operative closure is the treatment of choice in most premature infants with a hemodynamically significant shunt(PDA), recurrence of symptomatic PDA, complications of Indomethacin, or contraindi cations to Indomethacin.

Bronchus-Associated Lymphoid Tissue Lymphoma: A Case Report / 대한흉부외과학회지

Primary malignant lymphomas of the lung are rare neoplasms representing 3.6% of all extranodal lymphomas and less than 1% of pulmonary malignancies, with its distinct clinicopathological features. A 60-year-old symptomatic man, who was a former non-smoker, had a cough and sputum. Chest roentgenogram and computed tomographic scan showed the presence of a posterior mass in the basal segment of the right lung. Transthoracic needle aspiration cytology was inadequate for the diagnosis of cancer. A subsequent right thoracotomy was carried out, which showed a primary pulmonary lymphoma of the bronchus-associated lymphoid tissue.

The First Successful Heart-Lung Transplantation in Korea / 대한흉부외과학회지

The first heart-lung transplantation in Korea was successfully performed. The recipient was a 11 year old girl with pulmonary atresia with intact ventricular septum. She had been catheterized at the ages of 4 months, 3 years, 7 years and 10 years, which revealed that neither Fontan nor biventricular repair was feasible. The donor was a traffic accident victim, a 9 year-old boy with the same blood type. The donor was pronounced dead according to the guidelines of the Korean Medical Association's Brain Death Committee. The operation was performed on April 20, 1997. The native heart-lung block was explanted segmentally and donor one was placed above the phrenic nerve using the Arizona technique. After the tracheal anastomosis with single continuous 4-0 prolene, both vena cavae were anastomosed, followed by aortic anastomosis. The graft ischemic time was 145 minutes. The postoperative course was complicated by fever and tracheal stenosis at the anastomosis site. The fever was controlled by anti-tuberculous medications and the tracheal stenosis was relieved by stent (Palmaz 8 mm, 30 mm in length) placement on POD #71. The patient is doing well and is very active in her 7th postoperative month.

Effect of low-dose Aprotinin on Postoperative Bleeding and Renal Function after Cardiopulmonary Bypass / 대한흉부외과학회지

High-dose aprotinin (Hammersmith regimen) has been widely used for years to control postoperative bleeding and reduce blood consumption in cardiac surgery but had known to cause some side-effects and had disadvantage in cost-effectiveness. The prospective controlled study of 33 patients undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass was performed to evaluate the efficacy for reducing postoperative bleeding and unfavorable effects of low-dose aprotinin. The level of hemoglobin and platelet in the blood and the amount of postoperative bleeding were assessed preoperatively, and postoperatively for the study of hemostatic function. The level of BUN and serum creatinine in the blood, levels of urine creatinine, total protein, albumin, alpha-1-microglobulin and creatinine clearance were assessed before and after the operation for the study of renal function. The aprotinin group had a significant reduction in chest tube drainage; 243+/- 123 ml versus 406+/-303 ml (P=0.037) during 6 hours immediate-postoperatively, 494+/-358 ml versus 869+/-570 ml (P=0.045) during 24 hours postoperatively. The ratio of alpha-1-microglobulin/creatinine and microalbumin/creatinine in the urine were slightly increased in the aprotinin group postoperatively in comparison with the control group but there were no statistically significant difference (55+/-23 versus 24+/-10 in the alpha-1-microglobulin/creatinine, 56+/-19 versus 38+/-25 in the microalbumin/creatinine at post- operative 3rd day). There were no significant difference between two groups in other parameters of renal function, too. This study showed that low-dose aprotinin is an effective means of reducing postoperative bleeding without inducing significant renal dysfunction.

First Successful Dynamic Cardiomyoplasty in Korea / 대한흉부외과학회지

A 25-year-old man with viral cardiomyopathy and chronic active hepatitis successfully underwent dynamic cardiomyoplasty for the first time in Korea on July 30, 1996. The patient had been intermittently dyspneic for 5 years and was admitted to our center twice because of heart failure. For the past 2 years, he was NYHA functional class III status with a left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) of around 30%. The patient was born with scoliosis and showed a short stature. The liver function showed elevated liver enzymes, and hepatitis B antigen was positive. The liver biopsy revealed chronic active hepatitis. The preoperative echocardiogram showed decreased left ventricular function with grade II mitral and grade II tricuspid regurgitation with dilated left and right atrium. Recently his symptoms worsened and we decided to perform a dynamic cardiomyoplasty. The left latissmus dorsi muscle (LDM) was mobilized and tested with lead placement on his right lateral decubitus position. The patient was positioned into supine and, after median sternotomy, the heart was wrapped with the mobilized muscle. The Russian made cardiomyostimulator (EKS-445) and leads (Myocardial PEMB for heart and PEMP-1 for LDM) were used. The total operation time was 8 hours and there were no perioperative episodes. Postoperatively the LDM had been trained for a 10 week period and currently the stimulation ratio is maintained at 1:4. The postoperative LVEF did not increase with the value of 30-35%. However, the patient feels better postoperatively with slightly increased activity.