Waffle Procedure via Left Anterolateral Thoracotomy for a Tuberculous Constrictive Pericarditis Patient / 日本心臓血管外科学会雑誌

We present the case of a 72-year-old man with constrictive pericarditis due to tuberculous pericarditis, who was treated with the waffle procedure via left anterolateral thoracotomy. The preoperative catheterization study showed the dip-and-plateau pattern, and the echocardiographic study shown the thickened pericardium and dilatation impairment. The surgery was able to be performed without cardiopulmonary bypass. The thickened pericardium was abraded with a Harmonic Scalpel. The waffle procedure was effective in this patient. The postoperative course was good, with improvement of NYHA status and cardiac pressure study results. We suggest that this procedure is useful for the patients with constrictive pericarditis.

A Juvenile Case of Folding Plasty for Mitral Active Infectious Endocarditis / 日本心臓血管外科学会雑誌

We report a case of mitral active infectious endocarditis in a 15-year-old boy successfully managed by folding plasty without any prosthetic devices. He was admitted to our hospital because of high fever and general fatigue. Echocardiography revealed a vegetation of 15×18 mm attached to the anterior commissure area of the mitral valve with severe mitral regurgitation. Brain MRI showed acute brain infarction without symptoms, and enhanced computed tomography also showed multiple infarctions of the spleen and the left kidney. <i>Staphylococcus aureus </i>was identified in the venous blood culture. We diagnosed active mitral infectious endocarditis with multiple systemic embolization and disseminated intravascular coagulation. After antibiotic therapy for 9 days, mitral valve surgery was performed with cardiopulmonary bypass and cold blood cardioplegia through a median sternotomy and a left atriotomy. A giant vegetation was attached to the damaged mitral leaflet of the AC to A1 and P1. The vegetation and damaged leaflet were removed by an ultrasonic aspirator and resected. Removal of the superficial vegetation with the aspiration method enabled preservation of more than half of the A1 and half of the P1 for valve repair. The anterior commissure annulus without a leaflet was reconstructed by compression suture. Furthermore, in a procedure similar to folding plasty, leaflet A1 was folded down and sutured to annulus P1, and a simple suture technique was involved to the left cut edges of leaflet A1 and P1. The postoperative course was uneventful. Two years after surgery, the patient was well with no recurrence of infection and trivial mitral regurgitation on echocardiography.