Reoperative aortic valve replacement after bio-Bentall using a double sewing ring technique.

We report an 89-year-old haemodialysis patient with a structural valve deterioration following a Bentall-de Bono operation with a tissue valve using the double sewing ring technique. The bioprosthesis was extracted easily, and the aortic valve replacement was performed without any complications in a high-risk patient. This procedure may be feasible given the prospects of reoperation.

Repair of insufficient aortic valve and single coronary artery with intramural course.

We report about a patient with severe bicuspid aortic valve insufficiency and a single coronary artery with an intramural course. Aortic valve repair with double plication and coronary translocation was satisfactory.

[Strategy to Avoid Reoperation after Ascending Aortic Replacement for DeBakey Typeâ Acute Aortic Dissection].

When ascending aortic replacement (AAR) is performed in patients with DeBakey typeⅠ acute aortic dissection( AAD), residual false lumen of the aortic arch after AAR is a risk factor of remote aortic reoperation. We have principally considered entry resection as a surgical policy for AAD, but since 2013, for cases of re-entry in the brachiocephalic artery, reconstruction of the brachiocephalic artery has been added. We verified whether brachiocephalic artery reconstruction contributes to the thrombus closure of the false lumen of the aortic arch after the operation. Of 68 patients who underwent AAR for DeBakey typeⅠ AAD within a 12 year period, 17 had re-entry in the brachiocephalic artery on preoperative computed tomography (CT). Six patients who underwent brachiocephalic artery reconstruction were assigned to group A, and 11 patients who did not were assigned to group B. We compared the 2 groups. Aortic clamp and selective cerebral perfusion times were significantly longer in group A. By postoperative CT, false lumen of the aortic arch was not found in any case (0%) in group A, but was found in 10( 90.9%) of the 11 cases in group B( p=0.0006). The risk of residual false lumen of the aortic arch significantly decreased in group A. In conclusion, in cases where re-entry is found in the brachiocephalic artery, a false lumen often remains in the aortic arch after AAR. However, by reconstructing the dissected brachiocephalic artery, the false lumen of the aortic arch can be obliterated, which contributes to avoidance of reoperation in a chronic phase.

[Distal Stentgraft-induced New Entry Developed after Surgery for Aortic Dissection].

We experienced 2 cases with distal stentgraft-induced new entry (distal SINE) after thoracic endovascular aortic repair( TEVAR) for type B aortic dissection and 1 case after total arch replacement and frozen elephant trunk method for type A dissection. We successfully performed additional TEVAR in all cases. If the stent graft is bent at deployment, distal SINE may occur on the great curvature side of the aorta by the spring back force. Therefore, we must pay attention to appropriate device selection, and even when remodeling of the aorta is good, meticulous follow-up is necessary.

[Patch plasty of intraoperative acute aortic dissection in a patient with severe aortic valve stenosis;report of a case].

Intraoperative aortic dissection is a rare complication, but is associated with a high mortality. We report a case of 79-year-old woman with severe aortic valve stenosis who underwent aortic valve replacement(AVR). After cardiopulmonary bypass(CPB) was established, aortic dissection started at the inflow cannulation site. Because hemodynamics were stable, we performed AVR as scheduled. After declamping, excessive bleeding from the arterial cannulation site continued. CPB was reestablished by placing the arterial cannula in the left femoral artery. The ascending aorta was opened at the site of cannulation under deep hypothermic circulatory arrest. The entry tear was successfully repaired by entry resection and Hemashield patch plasty. The postoperative course was uneventful, and the patient was discharged on the 22nd postoperative day. Patch plasty may be useful for the management of intraoperative aortic dissection.

Antithrombin-p.Ala416Pro: the second reported case in Japan.

A 42-year-old man was referred to our department due to recurrent deep venous thrombosis. He, his father and his aunt had low antithrombin (AT) heparin cofactor activity and progressive AT activity levels with normal AT antigen levels. A single nucleotide substitution of G to C was found at nucleotide position c.1246 in exon 7 of the patient's AT gene, resulting in a p.Ala416Pro mutation of AT. The same mutation was identified in his father and aunt, but not his sister, who had a normal AT level. These results show that the AT-p.Ala416Pro mutation was responsible for type IIa AT deficiency in this family.

[Left coronary ostial stenosis and aortic regurgitation associated with syphilitic aortitis; report of a case].

We report a surgical case of severe left coronary ostial stenosis and aortic regurgitation associated with syphilitic aortitis. A 46-year-old man was referred to our hospital for further examination of effort angina pectoris. Coronary angiography and echocardiography showed severe left coronary ostial stenosis and aortic regurgitation. We initiated treatment with penicillin G injections and an emergency surgery was performed 8 days later. Aortic valve replacement (SJM #23) and coronary artery bypass grafting were also performed. We used in situ left internal thoracic artery (ITA) and right gastroepiploic artery (GEA) to prevent stenosis of the proximal anastomotic site in the late postoperative period. The postoperative course was uneventful.

[Bleeding complication from the elephant trunk graft at the 2nd stage operation of the total aortic replacement].

We described a rare complication that occurred during the 2nd stage of a total aortic replacement. The patient was a 72-year-old male who presented with type B acute aortic dissection complicated by distal arch aneurysm. Following the replacement of the total arch aorta with an elephant trunk graft (22 mm Gelweave graft), the descending and abdominal aorta enlarged rapidly. After about 3 months, he was scheduled for the 2nd operation. Through the 8th intercostal space and under partial cardiopulmonary bypass, the descending and the abdominal aorta was replaced with a 20 mm Gelweave-Coselli graft. The 12th intercostal artery, celiac trunk, superior mesenteric artery (SMA), and bilateral renal arteries were reconstructed. During the operation, severe bleeding began from the entire elephant trunk graft. After heparin neutralization and a massive transfusion of blood, fresh frozen plasma, and platelet-rich plasma, the bleeding was controlled. However, paraplegia occurred probably because of severe intraoperative hypotension. Careful attention should be paid during the 2nd stage of an elephant trunk operation.

[Aortic dissection after aortic valve replacement for bicuspid aortic valve complicated with ascending aortic dilatation; report of a case].

Congenital bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) is known to be a predisposing factor for aortic aneurysms and dissection because of intrinsic weakness of the aortic wall. We report here a case of 58-year-old man who developed type A aortic dissection 40 months after aortic valve replacement (AVR) for a congenital BAV. The ascending aorta diameter was 48 mm at the time of AVR. Computed tomography revealed ascending aortic dilatation (maximum diameter 64 mm) complicated with aortic dissection. We performed aortic root replacement and total arch replacement successfully. He has been doing well after the operation. In patients of congenital BAV with a baseline ascending aortic diameter of >40 mm, especially in young patients, complete replacement of the ascending aorta at the time of AVR should be considered in order to prevent future aortic complications.

Unexpectedly large aortoesophageal fistula inconsistent with CT imaging due to the thrombus working as the tamponade.

A 69-year-old woman with a history of graft replacement of descending aortic aneurysm was referred to our hospital due to massive hematemesis with shock status. Additionally, the deterioration of respiratory status made us start the management under mechanical ventilation. The emergent gastrointestinal endoscopy by a general practitioner showed ulcer-like lesion of the upper esophagus and arterial bleeding. A contrast-enhanced computed tomography showed thoracic aortic aneurysm surrounded by low density mass and contrast medium protruding from the aneurysm. The findings suggested that thoracic aortic aneurysm perforated into esophagus and made an aortoesophageal fistula. Hemodynamic deterioration rapidly progressed and she passed away 4 days after her hospitalization. Autopsy showed that a new thoracic aortic aneurysm arose from the proximal site of the graft. The aneurysm ruptured to esophagus with 6.0 cm x 5.0 cm sized fistula. The fistula was filled with a large thrombus. The large thrombus filling with the fistula worked as the tamponade and prevented her from the fatal exsanguinations and sudden death. The mechanism of the sentinel bleeding and the fatal exsanguinations known as Chiari's triad was revealed in our report.

Infective endocarditis caused by lactobacillus.

Lactobacillus (LB) is a gram-positive rod-shaped bacterium that inhabits the oral cavity, gastrointestinal tract, vagina and nasal cavity. Although LB plays a role in the prevention of infections caused by pathogenic bacteria, it causes some critical infectious diseases such as infective endocarditis (IE). IE due to LB is rare; however, early diagnosis and early treatment are important because of its high mortality rate. We report the onset of IE after otologic treatment in a heavy drinker of alcohol, the second case of IE due to LB in Japan.

Significance of peritoneal fluid drainage in management after repair of complex heart defects in infancy: cytokine dynamics in vivo.

BACKGROUND: In vivo redundancy of pro-inflammatory cytokines results in a vicious cycle of systemic inflammatory response syndrome and low cardiac output syndrome (LOS). The purpose of this study was to elucidate the influence of peritoneal fluid (PF) drainage on cytokine dynamics in vivo and the significance of early induction for infants with LOS. METHODS AND RESULTS: Seven infants, who underwent early PF drainage to manage LOS after repair of complex heart defects under cardiopulmonary bypass, were enrolled. The serum and PF levels of the pro- and antiinflammatory cytokines, interleukin (IL)-6, -8, -10 and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, were measured during the perioperative period. Clinical outcomes were observed simultaneously. There were no cases of early or late death, or infectious complications. Drainage volume of PF peaked just after operation, and decreased completely. The amount of proinflammatory cytokines in the PF increased for 3 days after operation. Of the proinflammatory cytokines in the PF IL-6 increased the earliest and cleared the fastest. The amount of cleared IL-8 and TNF-alpha peaked on the 3rd postoperative day and resembled the course of C-reactive protein (CRP). Serum levels of CRP and proinflammatory cytokines in patients with PF drainage decreased significantly more than those without PF drainage. CONCLUSIONS: Early initiation of PF drainage is useful in the postoperative critical care of infants with LOS by improving cytokine dynamics in vivo, although there are differences between the severity of patients undergoing PF drainage and those who do not.

Rastelli type repair using Freestyle valved conduit for a 69-year-old woman with tetralogy of Fallot.

A 69-year-old woman visited our hospital with general fatigue and shortness of breath on effort as the chief complaints. She was diagnosed as having tetralogy of Fallot, using cardiac ultrasonography. The cardiac catheterization findings showed that right venticular hypertension was at 114/5 mmHg, which was parallel to the left ventricular pressure, and a pressure gradient of about 100 mmHg was observed between the right ventricle and the pulmonary artery. Coronary artery angiography revealed that the left coronary artery was intact, but the right had an abnormal origin from the left valsalva sinus and was estimated at nearly equal to the single coronary. Therefore, we performed a Rastelli type operation with a valved conduit which we made using a composite Hemashield artificial graft (diameter 20 mm) and Freestyle valve (diameter 21 mm). The postoperative course was uneventful and she was discharged with hemodynamic conditions mostly normalized.