Has external banding become a historical technique during venous valve repair?

OBJECTIVE: In deep venous valve repair, transcommissural external valvuloplasty (TEV) is the commonly used technique. In some cases, external banding (EB) is combined with this procedure to improve the patency and durability of the surgical procedure. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed patients who underwent deep venous valve repair from 1998 through 2018. Patients were divided according to the surgical procedure: Group A: TEV alone and Group B: TEV+EB. Early postoperative outcomes of the procedure were compared between the groups. RESULTS: There were 265 patients in Group A and 165 patients in Group B. The mean follow-up period was 4.2±3.7. The rate of recurrence of venous reflux, ulcer, and reoperation were 31.9 versus 30.9, 21.2 versus 21.8, and 16.7 versus 13.9 in Group A and Group B, respectively. There were 67 reoperations in the follow-up period. At reoperation, external valvuloplasty was performed in 64% of the reoperations in Group A, while this rate was 13% for Group B. CONCLUSIONS: There is no more need for EB during the venous valve repair with the increased experience of valvuloplasty techniques. TEV might be enough with acceptable long-term outcomes during deep venous reconstruction.

Mitral valve replacement and subaortic membrane resection following pneumonectomy.

The pulmonary status is a vital factor for patients undergoing open heart surgery. The cardiac surgery itself deteriorates the actual pulmonary functions. Today, patients are no longer living with a cardiac disease due to compromised respiratory functions secondary to various pathologies, patients with lung disorders more often seek solutions for their cardiac disease and they are commonly operated. However, the resection of a lobe or a whole lung is a major challenge for the patients planned for cardiac surgery. In this report, we present a 65-year-old patient, who had left pnemonectomy which had been performed 8 years ago and was admitted for mitral valve replacement and subaortic membrane resection.

Solitary coronary artery nourishing the entire heart.

Coronary artery anomalies are being more frequently diagnosed these days both because increasing numbers of patients are undergoing diagnostic studies and because advanced radiographic imaging methods are now commonly available. An isolated single coronary artery giving rise to the main coronary branches is a rare congenital anomaly. In this report we present a patient with a solitary coronary ostium, with both the left and right coronary artery systems arising from it, and then following their usual courses. This case was diagnosed incidentally during conventional angiography.

[Pulsatile thoracal mass: a rare case of large left ventricular pseudoaneurysm]. / Pulsatil torakal kitle: Nadir görülen bir sol ventrikül psödoanevrizmasi.

Left ventricular pseudoaneurysms (LVPA) develop after myocardial infarction, trauma, infection and either valvular or ventricular surgery. We present here an unusual case of LVPA appearing like a pulsatile mass, which was easily seen from the chest wall. A 55-year-old woman was admitted to our clinic with a pulsatile mass and trill, easily seen on the anterior chest wall 6 weeks after coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery and endoaneurysmorrhaphy operation. Contrast-enhanced tomography showed a soft tissue mass detected close to the subcutaneous fat tissue of the anterior chest wall located in the left hemithorax. Left ventriculography was consistent with a large pseudoaneurysm in the apical wall of the left ventricle. Cardiopulmonary bypass was established with femoral cannulation, and endoaneurysmorrhaphy and CABG x 1 operations were carried out. The patient was discharged home on postoperative day 15. Follow-up echocardiography showed successful repair and shrinkage of the aneurysm, and the patient remained asymptomatic without any clinical event during our follow-up. LVPA usually present with heart failure. However, some patients may have recurrent tachyarrhythmia, progressive dyspnea, nonspecific chest pain, or thromboembolism, or remain clinically silent. When a patient is seen after cardiac surgery with a pulsatile mass detected on the chest wall, LVPA should be considered in the differential diagnosis.

Comparison of 3 different incisions used for atrial-septal defect closure.

BACKGROUND: Surgical closure of atrial-septal defects is now associated with low morbidity and mortality rates. We assessed surgical, cosmetic, and psychological results of 3 different surgical approaches to atrial-septal defect repair. METHODS: Study participants were 82 patients who underwent surgery for atrial-septal defect. Mean age was 21 +/- 8 years, and the female:male ratio was 23:59. Patients were divided into 3 groups according to the incision used; group 1 (n = 26), partial lower sternotomy; group 2 (n = 34), right anterolateral thoracotomy via a submammary incision, and group 3 (n = 22), conventional median sternotomy. RESULTS: There was no operative or late mortality. No significant differences between groups were associated with the surgical technique used. Direct closure was the procedure of choice performed in 53 patients (64.6%). In the remaining patients the repair was performed with a pericardial patch (29 patients, 35.4%). One patient in group 1 required conversion to median sternotomy because transoesophageal echocardiography performed at the operating theater revealed a partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection of right pulmonary veins to the inferior vena cava. This patient was excluded from the study group. All patients were symptom free postoperatively, and control echocardiography revealed a trivial shunt in only 1 patient, with a Qp:Qs ratio of 1.3. Rhythm abnormalities, including atrioventricular block, atrial fibrillation, and flutter, were observed in 7 patients but were found to be unrelated to the surgical incision (P = .3). Cardiopulmonary bypass, cross-clamp, and operative times were longer with minimally invasive approaches; but these differences were not statistically significant. Intensive care unit and hospital stay periods were significantly shorter in groups 1 and 2. During the postoperative follow-up period, patients in groups 1 and 2 showed superior results in satisfaction with their cosmetic outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: With the development of minimally invasive techniques that yield surgical results comparable to those of standard techniques, surgeons have changed their focus from survival to cosmetic and psychological outcomes, especially in the repair of simple cardiac defects. Operations performed via limited skin incisions are surgically safe and provide superior cosmetic and psychological results.

Papaverine solution improves preservation of saphenous vein grafts used during cardiac surgery.

The purpose of this study was to assess the viability and dilator response of the saphenous vein segments harvested during cardiac surgery. The saphenous veins were incubated with either normal saline (group A) or papaverine solutions (group B). The viability of saphenous vein endothelial cells was assessed by counting the number of total cells. Maximal endothelium-dependent vasodilator response to acetylcholine was also investigated. Cell viability of vein samples was decreased after 4 hours of incubation with normal saline (34 +/- 6.5%) as compared to solution containing papaverine (92 +/- 3.7%). By 24 hours, the viabilities of the endothelial cells incubated with saline and papaverine solutions were 22 +/- 4.5% and 87 +/- 5%, respectively.There was significant difference in vasodilatation responses to acetylcholine between saline-incubated and papaverine-incubated groups. By 4 hours of incubation, the relaxation response to acetylcholine significantly deteriorated in group A when compared to the initial value (P < 0.001). Furthermore, the decrease in this vasorelaxation response has also continued throughout the observation period and the values obtained by 24 hours were observed to be significantly lower than those obtained at the end of 4 hours (P < 0.01). In contrast, although a decrease was noticed in group B over time, this decrease was not statistically significant (P, not significant). We thus conclude that the use of papaverine solution improves endothelial cell viability and is associated with preservation of the maximal endothelial-dependent vasodilator response of a vein segment.

Posterior pericardial ascending-to-descending aortic bypass through median sternotomy.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Adult patients with complex forms of descending aortic disease remain a surgical challenge and have a high risk of postoperative mortality and morbidity. Surgical management may be complicated when there is an associated cardiac defect, necessitating repair, or a hostile anatomy exists. We present our experience with extra-anatomic bypass through posterior pericardial route at the same stage with intracardiac/ascending aortic aneurysm repair. METHODS: Patients that underwent one-stage surgery with posterior pericardial bypass between ascending and descending aorta during 2003-2007 were reviewed. Data from early and mid-term follow-up, including mortality, perioperative blood loss, graft-related complications, patency, and persistent hypertension, were noted. RESULTS: Six male patients with a mean age of 20.8 +/- 0.7 years were operated for coarctation of the aorta associated with additional pathologies (three cases of ascending aortic aneurysm-one with associated aortic valve insufficiency, one case of isolated aortic valve regurgitation, two cases of mitral valve regurgitation). No early or mid-term mortality was observed during follow-up of a mean of 21.6 +/- 10.0 months. No late graft-related complications or reoperations were observed with patent grafts. Systolic blood pressure decreased after surgery by an average of 43 mmHg. CONCLUSIONS: Coarctation of the aorta with concomitant cardiac lesions can be repaired simultaneously through sternotomy and posterior pericardial approach, when patients present in adulthood, to minimize morbidity and mortality.

Mitral valve replacement with bileaflet preservation for complex annular calcification.

Extensive calcification of mitral apparatus may preclude optimal valve repair, thus requiring debridement. We performed mitral valve replacement in a 55-year-old woman with a modified bileaflet preservation technique to avoid complications related to extensive debridement. Posterior transposition of the anterior leaflet as a buttress over the posterior ventricular wall provided extra support for the weakened tissues and covered the decalcified areas, which protected against debris embolism. This technique is safe and reproducible, especially for elderly patients who have complex calcification that requires extensive debridement, enables better preservation of ventricular function, and avoids disruption of the mechanical left ventricular wall.

An alternative patch repair technique during valve replacement for native valve endocarditis.

A patient with native valve endocarditis and vegetation on anterior mitral leaflet underwent aortic valve replacement with preservation of aortic noncoronary leaflet as a patch over the inflamed intervalvular fibrous body. This technique may minimize prosthetic material use, which is the most important risk factor for reinfection.

Noninvasive assessment of impaired endothelial dysfunction in mucocutaneous Behçet's disease.

Noninvasive assessment of endothelial dysfunction (ED) and diagnosing the early vascular development of atherosclerosis in active mucocutaneous Behçet's disease. Twenty-nine active BD patients (study group) without any obstructive vascular involvement were compared with twenty-nine healthy controls (control group) in terms of ED utilizing endothelium-dependent dilation as well as endothelium-independent dilation (FMD), which was assessed by measuring changes in brachial artery diameter following sublingual glyceril trinitrate (400 microg Nitrolingual spray). All patients underwent a complete transthoracic echocardiographic and tissue Doppler study. A standard form was utilized for the documentation of the presence or absence of the known risk factors for atherosclerotic vascular disease. Statistical analysis was performed by utilizing SPSS version 11. There was no difference between patients and controls in terms of echocardiographic and tissue Doppler parameters as well as baseline brachial artery diameters. Flow-mediated dilation showed 38% impairment in study group compared with control (P<0.05). Endothelium-independent NTG dilatation did not differ in both groups. Ultrasonography is an easily applicable noninvasive method for following BD patients for the risk of ED, which may preclude to atherosclerosis, save time and cost-effective.

Stenting for stenosing Takayasu aortitis following carotid artery stenosis in a 32-year-old patient.

Takayasu arteritis is a chronic granulomatous vasculitis with multivessel involvement, causing significant mortality and morbidity in affected individuals. A 32-year-old patient with severe right common carotid stenosis underwent expanded polytetrafluoroethylene graft interposition to the carotid artery. A bare Wallstent endoprosthesis (Boston Scientific Medi-Tech, Natick, MA) was implanted for the abdominal aortic stenosis incidentally diagnosed during follow-up 1 year after the carotid operation while the disease was inactive. Close follow-up of the activity of the vasculitic process is warranted owing to the progression of the vascular lesions or formation of de novo lesions in Takayasu disease.

Erdosteine ameliorates lung injury induced by transient aortic occlusion in rats.

The aim of this experimental study was to evaluate the protective effect of erdosteine on lung injury induced by ischaemia-reperfusion (IR) of the lower extremities of rats. Wistar albino rats (n = 21) were divided into three groups. In the IR group (n = 7), the aorta was cross-clamped for two hours, followed by one hour of reperfusion. In the erdosteine group (n = 7), animals were pretreated with erdosteine 100 mg/kg daily via gastric lavage, starting three days before aortic occlusion. In the control group (n 5 7), the lungs were removed and blood samples were taken immediately after sternotomy. No treatment was given in the control and IR groups. After both lungs were removed, biochemical parameters were measured and broncho-alveolar lavage (BAL ) assessment was made. MDA levels and MPO activities in the lung tissue were significantly reduced in the erdosteine group compared to the IR group. BAL assessment revealed decreased neutrophil counts in the erdosteine-treated group. Pretreatment of animals with erdosteine significantly attenuated transient aortic occlusion-induced remote lung injury, characterised by leukocyte accumulation and lipid peroxidation. The results suggest that erdosteine may be beneficial in amelioration of lung injury caused by IR.

[Missed aortic transection following blunt trauma: a case report]. / Künt travmaya bagli farkedilmeyen aort transeksiyonu: olgu sunumu.

Missed vascular injuries following blunt traumas can lead to fatal clinical conditions that require an emergency intervention. Aortic transection (AT) is the most fatal complication of these missed vascular injuries. In this case report an AT that developed following a blunt trauma is presented. The patient was admitted with effort dyspnea and tachycardia. He had a history of blunt trauma three years ago. There was an enlargement of the upper mediastinum on X-ray studies. Thoracal magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography revealed aneurysm of the descending aorta. Dacron graft interposition was performed as surgical treatment. The symptom and signs disappeared dramatically after the operation.

Closure of adult patent ductus arteriosus under cardiopulmonary bypass by using foley balloon catheter.

BACKGROUND: The wall of patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) in adults is usually fragile and may be associated with calcification. METHOD: We present a 43-year-old female patient who underwent successful ductal closure operation under cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) via a transpulmonary route. RESULTS: The operation was uneventful and the patient was discharged from the hospital on the 4th postoperative day. CONCLUSION: Transpulmonary route for the closure of the PDA by using CPB is a safe and acceptable approach in adult patients.