The Annals of thoracic surgery
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Comparative Study
Operative outcomes after open repair of descending thoracic aortic aneurysms in the era of endovascular surgery.
Since the advent of endovascular techniques for repair of descending thoracic aortic aneurysms (DTAAs), there has been a relative paucity of current data for open repairs. The purpose of this study was to assess the operative and long-term outcomes in a contemporary series of open repairs of DTAAs. ⋯ In the era of endovascular repair of DTAAs, operative death and morbidity outcomes for open repairs are observed to be low. In addition to good long-term survival rates, open repairs are durable, as evidenced by low reintervention rates.
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Informed consent refers to the process by which physicians and patients engage in a dialogue to explain and comprehend the nature, alternatives, and risks of a procedure or course of therapy. The goal of this study is to better "inform the process of informed consent" by offering empirically derived procedural complication lists that provide objective contemporary data that surgeons may share with patients and families. ⋯ The informed consent process for congenital heart surgery may be served by accurate contemporary data on occurrence of complications. While a threshold rate of occurrence of individual complications may guide the physician, rare but important debilitating complications should also be discussed irrespective of frequency. We propose to better inform the process of informed consent by providing objective complications data.
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Comparative Study
Survival benefits of postoperative chemoradiation for lymph node-positive esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
Little is known about the efficacy of chemoradiation therapy after surgery for patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma. This retrospective study aimed to determine whether postoperative chemoradiation improves survival compared with surgery alone. ⋯ Postoperative chemoradiation therapy provided a survival benefit for patients with lymph node-positive esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
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Comparative Study
Pediatric cardiothoracic surgery in patients with unilateral pulmonary agenesis or aplasia.
Unilateral pulmonary agenesis or aplasia (UPA), a rare developmental defect of the lung, is sometimes associated with congenital heart and tracheal diseases. The purpose of this study was to assess our experience of pediatric cardiothoracic surgery in UPA patients. ⋯ Most of the pediatric cardiothoracic operations in UPA patients were successfully performed through an optimal surgical approach and procedure, but they still presented surgical risks of high mortality and morbidity. Perioperative management of UPA patients should be provided with a precise understanding of anatomic configuration and a careful consideration of underlying risk factors.
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Comparative Study
Real-time magnetic resonance imaging technique for determining left ventricle pressure-volume loops.
Rapid determination of the left ventricular (LV) pressure-volume (PV) relationship as loading conditions are varied is the gold standard for assessment of LV function. Cine magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) does not have sufficient spatiotemporal resolution to assess beat-to-beat changes of the LV PV relationship required to measure the LV end-systolic elastance (EES) or preload-recruitable stroke work (PRSW). Our aim was to investigate real-time MRI and semiautomated LV measurement of LV volume to measure PV relations in large animals under normal and inotropically stressed physiologic conditions. ⋯ Real-time MRI can assess LV volumes, EES, and PRSW at baseline and elevated inotropic states.