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Abstract Background Mega-aortic syndrome including aortic arch and descending aortic aneurysm is a challenging surgical case. Because the aorta continuously dilates, creating the distal anastomosis sites becomes an issue. Despite the developments in endovascular techniques including frozen elephant trunk, in the case of mega-aortic syndrome or mycotic aneurysm, extensive surgical repair is still a strong armamentarium. Our patient had a mega-aorta with chronic aortic dissection. Herein, we show tips regarding concurrent ascending, aortic arch, and descending aortic replacement via posterolateral thoracotomy for this relatively young patient. Case presentation A 46-year-old man with chronic kidney disease had chronic type A aortic dissection with an extensively dilated thoracic aorta from the distal ascending to the descending aorta measuring 63 mm in diameter and abdominal aorta measuring 50 mm. The short segment of the distal descending aorta was narrowed to 36 mm. The patient underwent a concurrent replacement of the distal ascending aorta, aortic arch, and descending aorta via a posterolateral thoracotomy. The patient was extubated on postoperative day (POD) 1 and discharged home without serious complications such as stroke, respiratory failure, or renal failure on POD 18. The 1-year follow-up computed tomography did not find issues in the anastomosis sites; however, the abdominal aorta enlarged from 50 to 58 mm. The patient underwent a thoracoabdominal aortic replacement and recovered well without any complications. Conclusions Good exposure and meticulous organ protection methods are key to a safe concurrent replacement of the ascending, aortic arch, and descending aorta via posterolateral thoracotomy.

Objective: We aimed to determine the efficacy of total arch replacement with stented elephant trunk by comparing it with hemiarch replacement with and without open stent graft for acute aortic dissection type 1. Methods: We reviewed records of 177 patients who underwent hemiarch replacement (HAR group) (concomitant open stent, 125) and 98 patients who underwent total arch replacement (TAR group) (concomitant stented elephant trunk, 91) for acute type 1 dissection. Compared with the TAR group, the HAR group was older (68.1 vs 60.9 years; P

Abstract Background Extracorporeal left ventricular assist device is often required for acute myocardial infarction patients in cardiogenic shock when temporary mechanical circulatory support fails to provide hemodynamic stabilization. This study aimed to evaluate the clinical outcomes of acute myocardial infarction patients in cardiogenic shock supported by an extracorporeal left ventricular assist device. Methods This retrospective study enrolled 13 acute myocardial infarction patients in cardiogenic shock treated with an extracorporeal left ventricular assist device from April 2011 to July 2020. Results Twelve (92.3%) and eleven (84.6%) patients were supported using venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and intra-aortic balloon pumping before implantation, respectively. The median duration from acute myocardial infarction to extracorporeal left ventricular assist device implantation was 7 (3.5–24.5) days. The overall in-hospital mortality rate was 30.8% (n = 4). Extracorporeal left ventricular assist device was explanted in one patient for cardiac recovery; eight (61.5%) patients were approved as heart transplant candidates in whom the extracorporeal left ventricular assist device was exchanged for a durable left ventricular assist device; two (15.4%) expired while waiting for a heart transplant, and two (15.4%) received a successful transplant. The 1- and 3-year overall survival rates after extracorporeal left ventricular assist device implantation were 68.3% and 49.9%, respectively. Conclusions The operative mortality after extracorporeal left ventricular assist device implantation in acute myocardial infarction patients in cardiogenic shock was favorable. Our strategy of early hemodynamic stabilization with extracorporeal left ventricular assist device implantation in these patients as a bridge-to-bridge therapy was effective in achieving better survival.

Abstract Background Annular dilation by left atrial remodeling is considered the main cause of atrial function mitral regurgitation. Although acceptable outcomes have been obtained using mitral ring annuloplasty alone for atrial functional mitral regurgitation, data assessing outcomes of this procedure are limited. Therefore, we aimed to assess midterm outcomes of mitral valve repair in patients with atrial functional mitral regurgitation. Methods We retrospectively studied 40 patients (mean age: 69 ± 9 years) who had atrial fibrillation that persisted for > 1 year, preserved left ventricular ejection fraction of > 40%, and mitral valve repair for atrial functional mitral regurgitation. The mean clinical follow-up duration was 42 ± 24 months. Results Mitral ring annuloplasty was performed for all patients. Additional repair including anterior mitral leaflet neochordoplasty was performed for 22 patients. Concomitant procedures included maze procedure in 20 patients and tricuspid ring annuloplasty in 31 patients. Follow-up echocardiography showed significant decreases in left atrial dimensions and left ventricular end-diastolic dimensions. Recurrent mitral regurgitation due to ring detachment or leaflet tethering was observed in five patients and was seen more frequently among those with preoperative left ventricular dilatation. Three patients without tricuspid ring annuloplasty or sinus rhythm recovery by maze procedure developed significant tricuspid regurgitation. Five patients who underwent the maze procedure showed sinus rhythm recovery. Rates of freedom from re-admission for heart failure at 1 and 5 years after surgery were 95 and 86%, respectively. Conclusions Mitral valve repair is not sufficient to prevent recurrent atrial functional mitral regurgitation in patients with preoperative left ventricular dilatation. Tricuspid ring annuloplasty may be required for long-term prevention of significant tricuspid regurgitation.

Abstract Background In individuals with hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy, elongated anterior mitral leaflets are commonly associated with systolic anterior motion. In patients with mild septal hypertrophy, a myectomy is considered insufficient to relieve systolic anterior motion and left ventricular outflow tract obstruction. Case presentation In the patient, who had relatively mild septal hypertrophy, the section of the anterior leaflet protruding into the left ventricular outflow tract was resected, concomitant with septal myectomy and the relocation of the papillary muscles. An edge-to-edge stitch was placed at the uppermost segment of the coaptation zone. Using these manoeuvres, systolic anterior motion, left ventricular outflow tract obstruction and mitral regurgitation were successfully resolved postoperatively. Conclusions We describe a surgical technique with an edge-to-edge suture for the resection of an elongated anterior mitral leaflet. In combination with septal myectomy and relocation of the papillary muscles, this technique is a simple and viable option, especially when septal hypertrophy is not severe.

Abstract Background Good mid-term durability of mitral valve repair of bileaflet lesions has been reported; however, patients may develop failure during follow-up. This study assessed late outcomes and mechanisms of failure associated with mitral valve repair of bileaflet lesions. Methods Fifty-six patients (mean age 67 ± 12 years) underwent mitral valve repair of bileaflet lesions due to degenerative disease in 2011–2018. Mitral annuloplasty was added to all procedures except for 1 patient with annular calcification. Mitral valve lesions were identified by surgical inspection. Mean clinical and echocardiography follow-up occurred at 2.7 ± 2.1 and 2.5 ± 1.9 years, respectively. Results Additional mitral valve repair techniques involved triangular resection (n = 15 patients), quadrangular resection with sliding plasty (n = 12), neochordoplasty (n = 52), and commissural plication (n = 26). Prolapse of ≥2 anterior and posterior leaflet scallops occurred in 22 (39%) and 30 (54%) patients, respectively. During follow-up, 10 (17.8%) patients developed moderate or severe mitral regurgitation. Whereas prolapse or tethering was observed early after neochordoplasty or quadrangular resection, recurrent regurgitation occurred late after commissural repair. Five-year freedom from recurrent moderate or severe mitral regurgitation rates was 71.1 ± 11.0%. Conclusions Seventeen percent of patients developed recurrent mitral regurgitation during follow-up. Repair failure in the early phase occurred owing to aggressive resection of the posterior mitral leaflet or maladjustment of the artificial neochordae. Recurrent mitral regurgitation might occur in the late phase even after acceptable commissural repair. A sequential approach may be useful to improve the quality of mitral valve repair in bileaflet lesions.

Abstract Background Previous studies have shown a relationship between delirium and depressive symptoms after cardiac surgery with distress personalities linking to negative surgical outcomes. The aim of the present study is to further investigate the association between patients with Type D (distressed) personality with regards to delirium after cardiac surgery. Methods We conducted a consecutive-sample observational cohort pilot study with an estimated 142 patients needed. Enrollment criteria included patients aged ≥18 years who were undergoing planned cardiovascular, thoracic and abdominal artery surgery between October 2015 to August 2016 at the University of Tsukuba Hospital, Japan. All patients were screened by Type-D Personality Scale-14 (DS14) as well as the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) the day before surgery. Following surgery, daily data was collected during recovery and included severity of organ dysfunction, sedative/analgesic exposure and other relevant information. We then evaluated the association between Type D personality and delirium/coma days (DCDs) during the 7-day study period. We applied regression and mediation modeling for this study. Results A total of 142 patients were enrolled in the present study and the total prevalence of delirium was found to be 34% and 26% of the patients were Type D. Non-Type D personality patients experienced an average of 1.3 DCDs during the week after surgery while Type D patients experienced 2.1 days over the week after surgery. Multivariate analysis showed that Type D personality was significantly associated with increased DCDs (OR:2.8, 95%CI:1.3–6.1) after adjustment for depressive symptoms and clinical variables. Additionally, there was a significant Type D x depression interaction effect (OR:1.7, 95% CI:1.2–2.2), and depressive symptoms were associated with DCDs in Type D patients, but not in non-Type D patients. Mediation modeling showed that depressive symptoms partially mediated the association of Type D personality with DCDs (Aroian test =0.04). Conclusions Type D personality is a prognostic predictor for prolonged acute brain dysfunction (delirium/coma) in cardiovascular patients independent from depressive symptoms and Type D personality-associated depressive symptoms increase the magnitude of acute brain dysfunction.

Abstract Background The aim of this study was to delineate impacts of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), flow demand, and status of myocardium on graft flow. Methods We retrospectively assessed 736 individual coronary artery bypass grafts that had been created as the sole bypass graft for a vascular region in 405 patients. The grafts comprised 334 internal thoracic artery (ITA) to left anterior descending (LAD), 129 ITA and 65 saphenous vein grafts (SVG) to left circumflex (LCX), and 142 gastroepiploic artery (GEA) and 66 SVG to right coronary artery (RCA). Minimal luminal diameter, size of revascularized area, history of myocardial infarction, and PCI in the relevant area were examined to determine whether these factors are associated with flow insufficiency (FI), which was defined as ≤ 20 mL/min. Results FI developed in 123/736 grafts (16.7%) and correlated significantly with stenosis in the distal portion (23.0% vs. 12.8%, p = 0.0003). Prior myocardial infarction significantly correlated with FI in GEA–RCA (p = 0.002) and ITA–LCX grafts (p = 0.04). There was a history of PCI to the LAD (PCI group) in 54 ITA to LAD bypass grafts (16.2%), whereas the remaining 280 had no history of PCI to the LAD (no-PCI group). Graft flow was significantly greater in the no-PCI than in the PCI group (53 ± 29 vs. 42 ± 27; p = 0.006). The incidences of FI and graft failure were significantly higher in the PCI than the no-PCI group (22.2%, vs. 8.2%; p = 0.003; 9.2% vs. 1.8%; p = 0.003, respectively). Conclusions Prior PCI has a negative impact on graft flow. The influences of small revascularized area, myocardial infarction, and PCI are greater, necessitating consideration of factors associated with flow demand or microvasculature when planning revascularization.

Background Although radiofrequency ablation creates myocardial necrosis leading to troponin T (TnT) release into the systemic circulation, the significance of TnT elevation after atrial fibrillation (AF) ablation is unknown. Objective To demonstrate a possible mechanism of reverse structural remodeling in the left atrium (LA) by evaluating postprocedural TnT elevation. Methods This study included 106 patients with an enlarged LA (paroxysmal AF, n = 43; persistent AF, n = 63). All patients underwent pulmonary vein isolation alone in the index procedure. Left atrial volume indexed to body surface area (LAVi) was measured by echocardiography before ablation and 6 months after sinus rhythm restoration. Patients were divided into responders (n = 53) and nonresponders (n = 53) based on a cutoff value of 23% reduction in LAVi. The TnT level was measured 12 hours postprocedure. Results LAVi decreased from 43 ± 13 to 33 ± 12 mL/m2 (P < .0001). The TnT level was higher in responders than in nonresponders (1.31 ± 0.34 μg/L vs 0.88 ± 0.29 μg/L; P < .0001) and correlated linearly with percent reduction in LAVi (R = .54; P < .0001). Also in multivariate analysis, the TnT level was the only independent predictor for responders (odds ratio 90.1; 95% confidence interval 14.95-543.3; P < .0001). The TnT level in patients who required a repeat procedure (n = 30) was lower than that in patients who did not require a repeat procedure only in the persistent AF group (0.92 ± 0.38 μg/L vs 1.16 ± 0.37 μg/L; P = .01). Conclusion Greater elevation of the TnT level was related both to favorable outcomes after ablation and to greater reversal of structural remodeling. Postprocedural TnT level may be reflective of the preservation of healthy LA myocardium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]