Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery atrial clipping for atrial fibrillation.

The majority of thrombi that arise due to atrial fibrillation occur in the left atrial appendage. Eliminating this cul-de-sac within the left atrium reduces the risk of stroke in these patients. We present a unique case of left atrial appendage occlusion performed via video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery, using an Atriclip to occlude the left atrial appendage in a patient with atrial fibrillation in whom anticoagulation was contraindicated due to a history of recurrent upper gastrointestinal bleeding.

Persistent kidney injury at hospital discharge after cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass in patients with normal preoperative serum creatinine and normal estimated glomerular filtration rate.

OBJECTIVE: Acute kidney injury is a serious complication after cardiac surgery. Although it resolves in most cases, a significant portion of patients persistently have raised creatinine values at hospital discharge. These patients are at greater risk for developing chronic kidney disease and mortality. Therefore, the present study aimed to ascertain risk factors of persistent acute kidney injury after cardiac surgery in patients with normal preoperative renal function. DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SETTING: Tertiary heart centers. PARTICIPANTS: 2,181 adult cardiac surgical patients, predominantly Asian. INTERVENTIONS: Cardiac surgery between August 2008 and July 2012. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The incidence of acute kidney injury, as defined by the Acute Kidney Injury Network stage 1 criteria, was 21.7%. At discharge, 10.5% of these patients had persistent kidney injury, which was defined as a ≥ 26.4 µmol/L (≥ 0.3 mg/dL) difference between preoperative and discharge creatinine levels and/or a 50% rise in serum creatinine. These patients were more likely to be aged ≥ 70 years (relative risk = 2.232, 95% confidence interval = 1.326-3.757, p = 0.003), have a higher peak postoperative creatinine value within 48 hours (relative risk = 1.007, 95% confidence interval = 1.004-1.010, p<0.001), and have lower hemoglobin on intensive care unit arrival (relative risk = 0.759, 95% confidence interval = 0.577-0.998, p = 0.048). CONCLUSIONS: Age ≥ 70 years, higher peak postoperative creatinine within 48 hours, and lower hemoglobin on intensive care unit arrival are associated with persistent acute kidney injury. Strategies to improve hemoglobin on intensive care unit arrival potentially can reduce persistent acute kidney injury. The authors recommend that patients aged ≥ 70 years undergo further renal evaluation for better risk stratification.

Homocysteine is positively associated with cytokine IL-18 plasma levels in coronary artery bypass surgery patients.

Homocysteine, cytokines (IL-18, IL-6, IL-8) are involved in vascular inflammation and coronary artery disease. Homocysteine influences endothelial IL-6 and IL-8 cytokine expression and release, however, an association between homocysteine and IL-18 has not been previously investigated in endothelial/smooth muscle cells and or in coronary artery disease. We report in 9 coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG) patients a positive correlation r = 0.86 between homocysteine and IL-18 plasma levels (p < 0.05). Plasma IL-18 levels are significantly higher in those patients with elevated homocysteine compared to those with normal levels (p < 0.02; 153 +/- 19 pg/ml versus 116 +/- 14 pg/ml respectively). Our in vitro cell culture studies suggest that the source of IL-18 in CABG patients with elevated homocysteine is not from vascular smooth muscle or endothelial cells.