The Annals of thoracic surgery
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Multicenter Study
Effects of Blood Transfusion on Cause-Specific Late Mortality After Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting-Less Is More.
Red blood cell transfusion after coronary artery bypass graft surgery has been associated with increased late all-cause death. Yet, whether this association is, first, independent of the packed red blood cells and perioperative morbidity association, and second, of a cardiac versus noncardiac etiology remains unknown. ⋯ Perioperative red blood cells transfusion is associated with significant adverse late death effects among both complicated patients and noncomplicated patients, principally seen between 0 and 5 years postoperatively, and is driven by both increased cardiovascular and noncardiovascular mortality. Further studies are needed to elucidate the mechanisms behind these findings, including their potential dose dependence.
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Multicenter Study
Minimally Invasive Versus Open Esophagectomy for Esophageal Cancer: A Population-Based Analysis.
The objective of this study was to evaluate outcomes of minimally invasive approaches to esophagectomy using population-level data. ⋯ The use of minimally invasive techniques to perform esophagectomy for esophageal cancer is associated with modestly improved perioperative outcomes without compromising survival.
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Multicenter Study Observational Study
Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation Versus Surgical Aortic Valve Replacement for Severe Aortic Stenosis in Patients With Chronic Kidney Disease Stages 3b to 5.
There are scarce data on outcomes after transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) and surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in patients with renal failure. ⋯ CKD stages 3b to 5 increases the risk of mortality after TAVI and SAVR. In this subset of patients, SAVR was associated with somewhat better early and late survival. The risk of acute kidney injury was higher after SAVR. These findings suggest that CKD stages 3b to 5 does not contraindicate SAVR. Strategies to prevent severe acute kidney injury should be implemented with either SAVR or TAVI.
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Multicenter Study
Seminal Postoperative Complications and Mode of Death After Pediatric Cardiac Surgical Procedures.
Understanding the seminal complications leading to death after pediatric cardiac surgical procedures may provide opportunities to reduce mortality. This study analyzed all deaths at two pediatric cardiac surgical programs and developed a method to identify the seminal complications and modes of death. ⋯ Seminal complications occurred early postoperatively, and systemic circulatory failure was the most common mode of death. Our classification system is likely scalable for subsequent multicenter analysis to understand cause-specific mortality variation across hospitals and to drive quality improvement.
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The European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation (EuroSCORE) II was developed to reflect a more current dataset and evidence-based improvements in cardiac surgery. In the United States, The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS) risk score is more accepted owing to relatively high predictive value despite less user friendliness and inapplicability to some cardiac surgeries. We compared the precision of EuroSCORE II with EuroSCORE I and the STS risk score for operative mortality. ⋯ EuroSCORE II had better predictive discrimination for operative mortality than EuroSCORE I, which greatly overestimated this risk. EuroSCORE II fared well compared with the STS risk score. The inclusive nature of EuroSCORE II for numerous procedures provides more flexibility than the STS score for complex procedures. EuroSCORE II should be considered for calculating risk score for complex cardiac surgical patients.