The Annals of thoracic surgery
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Randomized Controlled Trial
Does external pleural suction reduce prolonged air leak after lung resection? Results from the AirINTrial after 500 randomized cases.
External pleural suction is used after lung resection to promote lung expansion and minimize air leak duration. Published randomized trials failed to prove this advantage but they are limited in number and underpowered in many cases. The aim of the AirINTrial study was to test the hypothesis that external pleural suction may reduce the rate of prolonged air leak in a large, randomized cohort. ⋯ Results from the AirINTrial showed that the routine use of external suction reduces the rate of prolonged air leak after anatomic lung resection. More accurate strategies of pleural suction based on the amount of air flow and the degree of lung expansion should be probably established to improve its effectiveness.
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Comparative Study
Comparative effects of ventricular assist device and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation on renal function in pediatric heart failure.
Effects of mechanical cardiac support on renal function in children with end-stage heart failure are unknown. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of ventricular assist device (VAD) and extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) on renal function in children. ⋯ On the basis of these data, we demonstrate that renal dysfunction improves early after mechanical cardiac support.
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Appropriate choice of Fontan pathway requires keen preoperative examination of angiographic anatomy. We hypothesize that surgical choices may be better informed by lessons learned from postoperative hemodynamic evaluation in different Fontan connection strategies. ⋯ Considering cycle-averaged Eloss, HFD, and peak inferior vena cava flow Eloss, DCPC had the best hemodynamic performance. Intraatrial conduit Fontan is an efficient modification of lateral tunnel Fontan that offers possibility for excellent streamlining of inferior vena cava and superior vena cava with the pulmonary arteries.
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Tricuspid valve (TV) infective endocarditis (IE) accounts for 15% of IE cases and usually is treated medically. Surgical intervention is rare, and understanding of treatment options is based on small series of patients. The purpose of this study was to describe the population and outcomes for isolated TV IE using The Society of Thoracic Surgeons Adult Cardiac Database. ⋯ Isolated TV operation for IE is a rare clinical entity with a similar operative mortality to left-sided IE operations. Repair and replacement of the TV had similar perioperative mortality. Patients in the healed TV IE group demonstrated lower complication rates, length of stay, and a trend toward decreased mortality.
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In this article, we assessed the pooled sensitivity and specificity of endobronchial ultrasound-guided transbronchial needle aspiration (EBUS-TBNA) in studies during the last 10 years that have solely used EBUS-TBNA as a minimally invasive technique, with or without computed tomography or positron-emission tomography screening. The meta-analysis included 1,066 patients from 9 studies who underwent EBUS-TBNA. ⋯ It has excellent sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value. EBUS-TBNA is well tolerated and does not lead to complications in patients.