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The study was approved by the institutional review board (IRB) at the University Medical Center Campus Kiel, Kiel, Germany (reference number: AZ D 559/18) and registered at the German Clinical Trials Register (reference number: DRKS00022222). Objective. Unilateral pulmonary edema (UPE) is a complication after minimally invasive mitral valve surgery (MIMVS). We analyzed the impact of this complication on the short- and long-term outcome over a 10-year period. Methods. We retrospectively observed 393 MIMVS patients between 01/2009 and 12/2019. The primary endpoint was a radiographically and clinically defined UPE within the first postoperative 24 h, secondary endpoints were 30-day and long-term mortality and the percentage of patients requiring ECLS. Risk factors for UPE incidence were evaluated by logistic regression, and risk factors for mortality in the follow-up period were assessed by Cox regression. Results. Median EuroSCORE II reached 0.98% in the complete MIMVS group. Combined 30-day and in-hospital mortality after MIMVS was 2.0% with a 95, 93 and 77% survival rate after 1, 3 and 10 years. Seventy-two (18.3%) of 393 patients developed a UPE 24 h after surgery. Six patients (8.3%) with UPE required an extracorporeal life-support system. Logistic regression analysis identified a higher creatinine level, a worse LV function, pulmonary hypertension, intraoperative transfusion and a longer aortic clamp time as predictors for UPE. Combined in hospital mortality and 30-day mortality was slightly but not significantly higher in the UPE group (4.2 vs. 1.6%, p = 0.17). Predictors for mortality during follow-up were age ≥ 70 years, impaired RVF, COPD, drainage loss ≥ 800 mL and length of ventilation ≥ 48 h. During a median follow-up of 4.6 years, comparable survival between UPE and non-UPE patients was seen in our analysis after 5 years (89 vs. 88%, p = 0.98). Conclusions. In-hospital outcome with UPE after MIMVS was not significantly worse compared to non-UPE patients, and no differences were observed in the long-term follow-up. However, prolonged aortic clamp time, worse renal and left ventricular function, pulmonary hypertension and transfusion are associated with UPE.

Background: Sleep disordered breathing (SDB) is a frequent comorbidity in cardiac disease patients. Nevertheless, the prevalence and relationship between SDB and severe primary mitral regurgitation (PMR) has not been well investigated to date. Methods: A cohort of 121 patients with significant PMR undergoing mitral valve surgery were prospectively enrolled and received a cardiorespiratory single night polygraphy screening using ApneaLink before surgery. Eighty-two of them underwent a follow-up examination including a follow-up single-night sleep study 3 months after surgery. Results: The mean age of patients was 65.3 ± 12.0 years. Sixty patients (49.6%) were female. The mean EuroSCORE II was 2.5 ± 2.4%. Initially, 91 (75.2%) patients presented with SDB, among whom 50.4% (46 patients, 38.0% of total cohort) were classified as moderate to severe. These patients tended to require significantly longer postoperative intensive care and mechanical ventilation. Among the 82 patients who completed follow-up exams, mitral valve surgery led to a significant reduction in relevant SDB (20.7%). The apnea-hypopnea index (from 11/h [4, 18] to 4/h [3, 14] (p = 0.04)), the oxygenation-desaturation index (from 8/h [3, 18] to 5/h [3, 12] (p = 0.008)) as well as the saturation time below 90% (from 32 min [13, 86] to 18 min [5, 36] (p = 0.005)), were all shown to be improved significantly. Conclusion: The prevalence of SDB is very high in patients with severe primary mitral regurgitation and may contribute to postoperative complications and prolonged intensive care. A significantly reduced but still high prevalence of SDB was observed 3 months after mitral valve surgery, highlighting the bidirectional relationship between SDB and heart failure.

Background: Acute type A aortic dissection (AAAD) is considered a fatal disease which requires an emergent surgical intervention. This study focuses onthe neurological outcome after surgical repair in cases of AAAD in comparison between elderly and young patients. Methods: a retrospective analysis of 368 consecutive patients who underwent emergency surgery of ascending aorta in moderate hypothermic circulatory arrest (MHCA) (20–24 °C) and antegrade cerebral perfusion after AAAD between 2001 and 2016. Patients were divided into two groups: those aged 75 years and older (68 (18.5%)) and those younger than 75 years (300 (81.5%)). Results: Comparing both groups, average age was 79.0 ± 3.2 vs. 59.2 ± 10.7 years (p &lt, 0.001), female gender represents 58.8% of elderly patients vs. 28.7% in younger patients (p &lt, 0.001). Intraoperatively, cardiopulmonary bypass time (155 min (131, 187) vs. 171 min (137, 220), p = 0.012), cross-clamping time (79 min (60, 105) vs. 93 min (71, 134), p = 0.001] and circulatory arrest time (29 min (22, 40) vs. 33 min (26, 49), p = 0.011) were significantly shorter in elderly than younger group. Postoperatively, there was no significant difference in delirium (11.8% vs. 20.5%, p = 0.0968) or stroke (11.8% vs. 16.1%, p = 0.369). The 30-day mortality was satisfactory for both groups but significantly higher in the elderly group (27.9% vs. 14.3%, p = 0.007). Conclusion: The current study concluded that surgical treatment of AAAD in elderly patients can be applied safely without increasing risk of neurological complication. However, minimizing operation time may help limit the occurrence of postoperative neurological complication.