The heart surgery forum
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The heart surgery forum · Jan 2007
Case ReportsGiant right atrial myxoma mimicking hepatic cirrhosis: a case report.
Cardiac myxomas are rare benign tumors of the heart. The growth rate of these tumors remains unknown. Right atrial myxoma can simulate nonspecific constitutional symptoms, such as remittent or lasting fever, weight loss, and chronic anemia, and may escape timely diagnosis until the development of severe complications such as pulmonary hypertension due to embolism from fragments originating from the tumor mass or blockage of the right atrioventricular ostium or Budd-Chiari syndrome with acute abdominal pain. We present a case of a giant right atrial myxoma mimicking hepatic cirrhosis in a 52-year-old man.
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The heart surgery forum · Jan 2007
Predictive risk factors for early mortality in operative treatment for chronic ischemic mitral insufficiency.
The combination of coronary artery bypass grafting and mitral valve surgeries is closely associated with high in-hospital mortality and morbidity. In this study, we sought to analyze the factors that influence early mortality in 68 patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting + mitral valve surgery due to ischemic mitral insufficiency. ⋯ The early mortality rate was found to be 13.2% (9/68) in patients with ischemic mitral regurgitation undergoing simultaneous coronary bypass and mitral valve surgeries. New York Heart Association class > or =3, left ventricle end-systolic volume, left ventricle end-systolic diameter, cardiopulmonary perfusion time, preoperative unstable angina pectoris, intra-aortic balloon application, and age >65 years were determined to be statistically significant risk factors that influence early in-hospital mortality.Conclusion. Surgery, despite having a high mortality risk in patients with ischemic mitral insufficiency, is considered to be a treatment measure that generally improves the quality of life and prolongs life.
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The heart surgery forum · Jan 2007
Case ReportsAorto-innominate fistula by gun-shot injury: a case report.
We report an aorto-innominate fistula caused by gun-shot injury. The fistula was diagnosed by aortography and repaired under hypothermic circulatory arrest.
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The heart surgery forum · Jan 2007
Comparative Study Controlled Clinical TrialA novel approach for pain management in cardiac surgery via median sternotomy: bilateral single-shot paravertebral blocks.
Regional analgesia has entered cardiac anesthesia in the form of spinal or epidural analgesia. However, the risk of spinal or epidural hematoma is a constant worry. Alternative regional techniques might be applicable in cardiac surgery. ⋯ Postoperative pain scores were at any point significantly lower with TEA, immediately at 2.4 +/- 2.2 versus 3.7 +/- 2.6, at 6 hours at 1.1 +/- 1.5 versus 2.4 +/- 1.8, and at 24 hours at 1.0 +/- 1.4 versus 2.3 +/- 1.6 (0 = no pain, 10 = maximum pain). There was no complications related to epidural catheter placement or BSS-PVB. Using both techniques, immediate extubation after cardiac surgery is feasible; TEA provides better pain relief after cardiac surgery than BSS-PVB.
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The heart surgery forum · Jan 2007
Randomized Controlled Trial Comparative StudyEffects of pretreatment with different topical vasodilators on blood flow in the internal mammary artery: a prospective randomized study.
This study was conducted to investigate how brief pretreatments with 4 different vasodilators applied topically at normal body temperature affect blood flow in the internal mammary artery. ⋯ Brief treatment of the internal mammary artery with topical vasodilators at normal body temperature significantly increases blood flow in this vessel. The data from this study are particularly valuable in relation to off-pump surgery, in which this vessel is usually anastomosed soon after it is harvested.