The Journal of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery
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J. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg. · Jul 2024
Reproductive health among women of child-bearing age after surgery for Rheumatic Heart Disease in Rwanda.
To determine maternal and fetal outcomes in postoperative women with rheumatic heart disease who become pregnant after valve surgery and evaluate current anticoagulation management during pregnancy. ⋯ Despite preoperative counseling discouraging conception, many women with prosthetic valves still become pregnant after surgery. The results of this study will inform evidence-based and context-specific practices for anticoagulation during pregnancy in Rwanda and the region.
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J. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg. · Jul 2024
Trends and Comparative Outcomes Between Operative Approaches for Segmentectomy in Lung Cancer.
Segmentectomy is increasingly performed for non-small cell lung cancer. However, comparative outcomes data among open, robotic-assisted, and video-assisted thoracoscopic approaches are limited. ⋯ Segmentectomy volume has increased considerably, with robotic-assisted thoracoscopic surgery becoming the most common approach. Minimally invasive surgery has less major morbidity compared with open segmentectomy, with no difference between video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery and robotic-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. However, risk of open conversion is higher with video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery. Robotic-assisted thoracoscopic surgery had increased nodal harvest, whereas hilar nodal upstaging was highest with thoracotomy. This study reveals significant differences in outcomes exist between segmentectomy operative approach; the impact of approach on survival merits further investigation.
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J. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg. · Jul 2024
Identification of a subpopulation of highly adherent endothelial cells for seeding synthetic vascular grafts.
There is an unmet clinical need for alternatives to autologous vessel grafts. Small-diameter (<6 mm) synthetic vascular grafts are not suitable because of unacceptable patency rates. This mainly occurs due to the lack of an endothelial cell (EC) monolayer to prevent platelet activation, thrombosis, and intimal hyperplasia. There are no reliable methods to endothelialize small-diameter grafts because most seeded ECs are lost due to exposure to fluid shear stress after implantation. The goal of this work is to determine if EC loss is a random process or if it is possible to predict which cells are more likely to remain adherent. ⋯ For the first time, we show EC detachment is not an entirely random process. This provides validation for the concept that we can seed small-diameter vascular grafts only with highly adherent ECs to maintain a stable endothelium and improve graft patency rates.