ABSTRACT
Emergency operation was performed for 2 cases of acute pulmonary embolism which showed floating thrombi in the right atrium and right ventricle. Case 1 was a 48-year-old man without any contributory past history. Case 2 was a 65-year-old woman with a history of old myocardial infarction and chronic left heart failure with only 19% of the left ventricular ejection fraction. Although their preoperative hemodynamics and respiratory conditions were stable, ultrasound examination revealed floating thrombi in the right heart. Sudden death could have occurred if the occlusions had migrated to the pulmonary artery. Thus, emergency operation was selected instead of thrombolysis. During operation, the blood pressure suddenly decreased before the establishment of the cardiopulmonary bypass in both cases. This may have been the result of sudden additional pulmonary embolism, because no floating thrombi were noted in the right atrium or right ventricle at operation. After operation, case 1 recovered quickly although case 2 was discharged only after 6 months. It is highly possible that the presence of right heart thrombi change the hemodynamics rapidly. Therefore, emergency operation is necessary even when the hemodynamics and respiratory condition are stable. Thrombectomy is recommended even to patients such as case 2 in a serious condition, because this surgical procedure under cardiopulmonary bypass has been proven to be very safe.
ABSTRACT
The patient was an 18-year-old man with congenital cerebral palsy who had undergone a tracheotomy at the age of 12. He underwent 2 emergency operations for massive endotracheal bleeding due to a tracheoinnominate artery fistula. At the first operation, the tracheal and tracheoinnominate artery fistulas were each closed directly, with median sternotomy. The second operation was due to recurrence of bleeding on the 20th postoperative day. The innominate artery was transected to avoid recurrence of bleeding. We only used an autologous pericardium but no artificial materials other than sutures, because of operative field contamination. Although a subcutaneous abscess developed at the operative wound 2 years after the operation, it was cured by incisional drainage and administration of antibiotics. In the case of tracheoinnominate artery fistula, it is impossible to save life without surgical treatment. However, the surgery involves a risk of repeated hemorrhaging and infections, resulting in a very poor prognosis. In our case, transection should have been performed at the first operation to avoid a recurrence of bleeding. The surgical method, using an autologous pericardium but no artificial materials, appeared to be effective in preventing infections. The surgical method should be selected with careful consideration to prevent repeated hemorrhaging and infection.
ABSTRACT
Intravenous leiomyomatosis (IVL) is defined as the extension into the venous channels of histologically benign smooth muscle tumors originating either from a uterine myoma or from the walls of a uterine vessel. We report a case of IVL extending to the right atrium and right ventricle through the right internal iliac vein and the inferior vena cava. The patient was a 43-year-old woman. The tumor was extirpated by simultaneous median sternotomy and laparotomy with the use of cardiopulmonary bypass. It was necessary to use cardiopulmonary bypass in order to open the right atrium. However, it proved difficult to insert the venous cannulae into the inferior vena cava due to the presence of the tumors. In order to perform the cannulation, a trans-right atrial excision of this tumor was necessary. Nevertheless, hemodynamic deterioration tended to occur during the procedure because of unexpected bleeding. We believe that to safely carry out this operation, it would be better to ensure circulatory arrest before trans-right atrial excision of the tumor. We have been continuing preventive antiestrogen therapy because recurrence would be very likely if any tumorous tissue remained after surgery. Fortunately, no intravenous infiltration of the tumor has been detected by either pelvic computed tomography or ultrasonography during the 26-month follow-up period. Surgical excision of the tumors and postoperative medication are now believed to have been effective.
ABSTRACT
A 52-year-old man was referred to our institution because of a solitary aneurysm of the left common iliac artery. The presence of the aneurysm was demonstrated by CT and angiography. The aneurysm had a diameter of about 30mm. The walls of the bilateral external iliac arteries were irregular, like a string of beads. The aneurysm was resected and replaced with a vascular prosthesis. Histological examination of the aneurysm and a part of the left external iliac artery indicated a diagnosis compatible with fibromuscular dysplasia (FMD: medial fibroplasia). A solitary iliac aneurysm is rare, and is usually due to atherosclerosis. However, the aneurysm in this case was related to FMD. To the best of our knowledge, only one other case of a solitary common iliac aneurysm caused by FMD has so far been described.