Annals of cardiac anaesthesia
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Cardiac allotransplantation has, over the years, become the established therapeutic modality for patients with end-stage heart failure. Significant advances in immunosuppressive therapy have dramatically improved the outcome of heart transplantation over the past four decades. This review will focus on the anaesthetic challenges involved in the perioperative management of these complex patients as well as some of the proposed alternatives to transplantation.
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Monitoring cerebral oxygenation with near infrared spectroscopy may identify periods of cerebral desaturation and thereby the patients at risk for perioperative neurocognitive issues. Data regarding the performance of near infrared spectroscopy monitoring during deep hypothermic circulatory arrest are limited. The current study presents data regarding use of a commercially available near infrared spectroscopy monitor during deep hypothermic circulatory arrest in paediatric patients undergoing surgery for congenital heart disease. ⋯ During cardiopulmonary bypass, cooling and deep hypothermic circulatory arrest, near infrared spectroscopy monitoring followed the clinically expected parameters. Such monitoring may be useful to identify patients who have not achieved the highest possible cerebral oxygenation value despite 15 min of cooling on cardiopulmonary bypass. Future studies are needed to define the cerebral oxygenation value at which neurological damage occurs and if interventions to correct the decreased cerebral oxygenation will improve perioperative outcomes.