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Importance: There is no ideal valve substitute for young adults requiring aortic valve replacement. Multicenter data supporting use of the Ross procedure with respect to long-term postoperative valve-related mortality and reintervention, as well as function of the autograft and pulmonary homograft, are needed., Objective: To determine the long-term clinical and echocardiographic outcomes in young and middle-aged patients undergoing the Ross procedure., Design, Setting, and Participants: A retrospective multicenter international cohort study with a median follow-up period of 9.2 years was conducted in 5 experienced centers regularly performing the Ross procedure. Consecutive patients aged 18 to 65 years were included by each center between 1991 and 2018., Main Outcomes and Measures: Survival and autograft-related and homograft-related reintervention. Serial echocardiographic measurements of valve function were analyzed using mixed-effects modeling., Results: During the study period, 1431 patients (74.3% men; n = 1063) were operated on at a median age of 48.5 years (mean [SD], 47.7 [9.5]; range, 18.1-65; interquartile range, 42.7-54.0). Implantation techniques were root inclusion in 355 (24.9%), root replacement in 485 (34.0%), and subcoronary implantation in 587 (41.1%). Right ventricular outflow tract reconstruction was performed with homografts in 98.6% (n = 1189) and bioprostheses in 1.4% (n = 17). Ten patients (0.7%) died before discharge. Median follow-up was 9.2 years (13 015 total patient-years). Survival after 10 and 15 years was 95.1% (95% CI, 93.8%-96.5%) and 88.5% (95% CI, 85.9%-91.1%), respectively. Freedom from autograft and homograft reintervention after 15 years was 92.0% and 97.2%, respectively. Late events were autograft endocarditis in 14 patients (0.11% per patient-year), homograft endocarditis in 11 patients (0.08% per patient-year), and stroke in 37 patients (0.3% per patient-year)., Conclusions and Relevance: Given its excellent short-term and long-term outcome in young and middle-aged adults in this study, the Ross procedure should be considered in young and middle-aged adults who require aortic valve replacement. Patients should be referred to an experienced center with a program dedicated to the Ross procedure.

Objectives: Timing of pulmonary valve replacement (PVR) remains one of the most heavily debated topics in congenital cardiac surgery. We aimed to analyse the temporal evolution of QRS duration before and after PVR., Methods: We included 158 consecutive patients who underwent PVR after previous correction with transannular patch. All 3549 available serial standard 12-lead surface QRS measurements of 158 (100%) patients were analysed with linear mixed-effect modelling., Results: PVR was performed at a mean age of 28.0 ± 10.7 years, 23.4 ± 8.4 years after correction. Hospital survival was 98.1%. A longer time interval between ToF correction and PVR (P < 0.001), and an older age at correction (P = 0.015) were predictive of progressive QRS prolongation after PVR. Women on average had a shorter QRS duration (P = 0.005) after PVR. The model predicted that in patients corrected early (model age 0.5 years), PVR within 17 years after correction leads to narrowing or stabilization of QRS width. PVR beyond 17 years was associated with prolongation of QRS duration. In a patient corrected late (model age 5 years), PVR has to be performed within 15 years after correction to prevent prolongation. Finally, a longer time period between correction and PVR was associated with an increased hazard of cardiac death (hazard ratio 1.097, 95% confidence interval 1.002-1.200)., Conclusions: Prolongation of QRS duration after PVR was associated with a longer time between correction and PVR, older age at correction and male sex. Prevention of progressive QRS prolongation by earlier PVR can potentially reduce the hazard of adverse events after PVR., (© The Author(s) 2020. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery.)

Objectives: Coarctation of the aorta (CoA) is rarely diagnosed and treated in adults and nowadays mostly treated with percutaneous techniques. The objective of this study is to report the long-term outcomes and health-related quality of life in a unique cohort of patients treated with an open surgical repair for their primary adult CoA., Methods: Ninety adult patients underwent primary surgical repair of CoA at our tertiary referral centre between 1961 and 2008 when the treatment strategy for adult CoA was exclusively surgical., Results: The median age at surgery was 24 years (interquartile range 20-36 years), and 39 patients (43%) were asymptomatic at presentation. CoA was located paraductally in most patients (64%), and bicuspid aortic valve was present in 39 (43%) patients. Surgical reconstruction of CoA with an end-to-end anastomosis was performed in majority of the patients (57%). Overall, in-hospital mortality occurred in 1 patient (1%). There was no in-hospital stroke, spinal cord ischaemia, renal replacement therapy or respiratory failure. The cumulative survival was 97.7%, 89.5%, 82.6%, 70.9% and 61.4% at 10, 20, 30, 40 and 50 years, respectively. Thirty-one patients (34%) required an additional cardiac surgery during follow-up. The majority of patients (77%) suffered from refractory hypertension even after decades of surgery. Compared with the matched Dutch population, patients reported a lower social functioning, mental health, vitality and general health with a higher body pain., Conclusions: Patients with native adult CoA have low in-hospital morbidity and mortality when treated with an open surgical reconstruction. However, refractory hypertension and impaired quality of life remain important challenges during follow-up., (© The Author(s) 2019. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: This study aims to explore male-female differences in baseline and procedural characteristics, and outcomes of patients undergoing isolated or concomitant tricuspid valve (TV) surgery., Methods: All TV procedures registered between 2007 and 2016 in the database of the Netherlands Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery were analysed. Logistic regression analyses with interaction terms were used to determine whether sex was associated with hospital mortality., Results: Five thousand five hundred and eighty-two patients underwent TV surgery [isolated: N = 685 (49% male), TVrepair: N = 5286 (50% male) and TVreplacement: N = 250 (46% male)]. In the TVrepair group, females were significantly older, had less prior percutaneous/surgical coronary interventions, less extracardiac arteriopathies, a lower prevalence of renal impairment, less endocarditis, a lower prevalence of preoperative critical condition, less recent myocardial infarction, less concomitant coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) and, in case of concomitant mitral valve surgery, less concomitant mitral valve repair compared to males. In the TVreplacement group, females more often had a history of prior valve surgery and less prior CABG. Hospital mortality for males and females was 7.0% (N = 183) and 6.1% (N = 163), P = 0.241 in the TVrepair group and 2.6% (N = 3) and 8.8% (N = 12), P = 0.074 in the TVreplacement group. Sex was not associated with hospital mortality (odds ratio (OR) 1.14, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.88-1.48; P = 0.322). Sex demonstrated a significant interaction with the parameter 'critical preoperative condition' (OR 0.44, 95% CI 0.22-0.90; P = 0.026)., Conclusions: Substantial differences in patient and procedural characteristics existed between male and female patients undergoing TV surgery, although sex was not a derterminant for hospital mortality. Nevertheless, sex interacted with a critical preoperative condition, indicating the usefulness of separate risk factor models for males and females requiring TV surgery., (© The Author(s) 2018. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery. All rights reserved.)

Objectives: Reduction of blood loss after cardiac surgery remains challenging. The effectiveness of adherence to a protocol on cessation of anticoagulants and platelet-inhibiting medications was investigated together with the influence of protocol violations on blood loss after surgery, use of blood products, surgical re-explorations and 30-day mortality., Methods: Between 2009 and 2013, data were collected prospectively for all elective cardiac surgery procedures in adult patients (n = 1637). Two groups were distinguished: Group 1 adhered to the protocol for cessation or continuation of medication (n = 1287, 79%) and Group 2 violated the protocol (n = 350, 21%)., Results: Median blood loss was 300 ml (interquartile range 175-500 ml). Eighty patients underwent re-exploration due to blood loss (5%). Thirty-day mortality was 2% (n = 27). Protocol violation was associated with increased blood loss [median 275 ml (175-475 ml) vs 350 ml (250-612); P ≤ 0.001] and with increased average use of fresh frozen plasma (226 ml vs 139 ml; P  << 0.00001), red blood cell transfusion (115 ml vs 87 ml; P = 0.081) and thrombocyte transfusions (52 ml vs 37 ml; P = 0.0082). The number of re-explorations (4% vs 6%; P = 0.39) and mortality risk (1% vs 2%; P = 0.72) did not differ., Conclusions: Balancing the benefit of continuing platelet inhibitors or anticoagulants versus cessation before surgery remains challenging. Adherence to the protocol will lead to lower blood loss and in a lower consumption of blood products although the decision to go for re-exploration and 30-day mortality does not differ compared with the protocol violation. Stopping medication does not lead to thromboembolic events.

Background and Aim of the Study: Infective endocarditis (IE) is associated with significant mortality and morbidity. The aim of the present study was to assess the long-term survival of patients with IE, and to assess objectively the mortality in these patients by comparing their survival with that of an age- and gender-matched sample of the general population., Methods: A retrospective observational cohort study of adults with IE, as determined by the modified Duke criteria, was admitted to a tertiary referral center between January 1998 and December 2007. Cumulative survival was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method. The log-rank test was used to compare the different groups, and multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression analyses were carried out to identify predictors of long-term, all-cause mortality., Results: A total of 191 consecutive patients with IE was evaluated (176 left-sided, 15 right-sided). Cardiac surgery was performed in 72% of cases, and the median follow up was 6.3 years. The cumulative long-term survival was 59% after 10 years of follow up, the main causes of death being congestive heart failure (28%) and different type of malignancy (17%). Age- and gender-matched survival in the general population was 98%, 92%, and 80% after follow up periods of one, five, and ten years, respectively. The main predictor of long-term mortality was cancer, while surgery had a positive effect on long-term survival., Conclusion: Despite diagnostic and therapeutic advances, IE is associated with a high long-term mortality. Compared to the general Dutch population, the survival of patients with IE was significantly lower. Even in the event of IE being cured, the survival of these patients may be diminished compared to that of the general population. Hence, a careful follow up of these patients is warranted.

Background: Infective endocarditis (IE) remains associated with high in-hospital and long-term mortality. The outcome of patients with IE who are operated on has never been put into perspective by comparing it to the age-matched and gender-matched general population. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the long-term mortality of patients with IE who undergo operation in relation to the age-matched and gender-matched general population., Methods: A retrospective observational cohort study of 138 patients with IE who underwent consecutive operations (1998-2007) was conducted. Cumulative survival was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method. Comparison of patient survival with the general population was done using the Dutch population life table. The standardized mortality ratio was used to assess the degree of late deaths., Results: The observed in-hospital mortality risk was 10.9%. The observed long-term survival was 85% (95% confidence interval, 78% to 90%), 74% (95% confidence interval, 65% to 79%), 71% (95% confidence interval, 62% to 78%) after 1, 5, and 10 years, respectively. Age-matched and gender-matched survival in the general population was 99%, 93%, and 80% after a follow-up period of 1, 5, and 10 years, respectively. The standardized mortality ratio was 0.99 (95% confidence interval, 0.67 to 1.31)., Conclusions: Although mortality of IE patients who have undergone operation remains considerable during the immediate postoperative period, the mortality of hospital survivors is, with increasing follow-up time, comparable with the general population., (Copyright © 2011 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

The introduction of the Duke criteria and transesophageal echocardiography has improved early recognition of infective endocarditis but patients are still at high risk for severe morbidity or death. Whether an exclusively antibiotic regimen is superior to surgical intervention is subject to ongoing debate. Current guidelines indicate when surgery is the preferred treatment, but decisions are often based on physician preferences. Surgery has shown to decrease the risk of short-term mortality in patients who present with specific symptoms or microorganisms; nevertheless even then it often remains unclear when surgery should be performed. In this review we i) systematically reviewed the current literature comparing medical to surgical therapy to evaluate if surgery is the preferred option, ii) performed a meta-analysis of studies reporting propensity matched analyses, and iii), briefly summarized the current indications for surgery.