Polymorphism of the platelet glycoprotein IIIa gene in patients with coronary stenosis.

Based on genetic variability, structural differences in the glycoprotein IIb/IIIa platelet receptor for adhesive proteins result in individual differences in the thrombogenicity of platelets. Recent studies suggest a controversial association between a genetic polymorphism of the glycoprotein IIIa gene (PlA2) and the risk of coronary artery disease. In our study, the prevalence of the PlA2 allele in a group of patients undergoing percutaneous coronary revascularization was 37%, a value significantly higher than in controls [13%, odds ratio (OR) = 3.93, 95% CI, 1.84 to 8.53] suggesting a significant association between this polymorphism and documented coronary stenosis, which is strongest among <60 years old patients (OR = 12.30, 95% CI, 2.98 to 70.93). This polymorphism represents an inherited risk factor for severe cardiovascular disease due to coronary occlusion.

"No punch" technique of laparoscopic vertical banded gastroplasty for morbid obesity.

BACKGROUND: This report describes the technical details and an initial evaluation of laparoscopic vertical gastroplasty modified for morbid obesity. After a surgical experience in 150 patients with open vertical banded gastroplasty (Mason's procedure), it was decided to perform a modified banded vertical gastroplasty. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Six patients were treated by this laparoscopic approach in 1997-1998. All patients were women with a mean age of 28 years (range 20-46). The mean body weight was 128 kg (range 105-146), and the mean BMI was 42.7 kg/m2 (range 35.6-53.0). Four or five 10- or 12-mm trocars were used. For all the dissection we used atraumatic ultracision (harmonic scalpel). In this procedure the technique of laparoscopic gastroplasty is performed without a circular gastric window. During the operation, 3 omental openings were made and the vertical staple-line was constructed by using a 30-mm 3-row linear stapler twice, establishing the gastric pouch. The outflow stoma was reinforced by a Gore-Tex band and calibrated to have an internal diameter of 10-15 mm. The band was sutured to itself. RESULTS: There were no deaths or complications. Operating time was 200 min (150-240). The nasogastric tube was removed at 1-2 days. The postoperative course was characterized by normal respiratory function and minimal pain in all cases. Patients were discharged 5-6 days after operation. CONCLUSIONS: Our technique excluded the circular gastric window (i.e., "no-punch") technique in the development of an effective and simple laparoscopic procedure to treat morbid obesity.

Variables affecting BMI evolution at 2 and 5 years after vertical banded gastroplasty.

BACKGROUND: Vertical banded gastroplasty (VBG) has been found to result in significant reduction in body mass index (BMI) during the first postoperative year. We investigated the impact of some intrinsic and extrinsic factors on long-term BMI evolution in morbidly obese patients who underwent VBG, with the aim of establishing a long-term weight-loss prognosis. METHODS: 67 consecutive morbidly obese patients who underwent VBG were followed for 2 years; of these, 34 were followed 3 more years, for a total follow-up of 5 years. BMI was monitored and correlated with demographic (preoperative BMI, obese relatives, age and gender) and lifestyle variables (physical activity, habitual dietary transgression and occupational status). RESULTS: Global BMI fell from 47.5 at the time of the intervention to 32.1 when patients were examined 12 months after surgery. From the second year, an upward trend was observed, and at 5 years, mean BMI was above 35, considered in the high-risk range. Modifiable variables affecting lifestyle have shown significantly favorable effects on BMI evolution. Among intrinsic variables, BMI before surgery and obese parents also affect long-term evolution. CONCLUSION: Different variables should be considered in order to establish a long-term weight-loss prognosis for each patient, thus making it possible to act more specifically on modifiable variables.

Application of the POSSUM system in bariatric surgery.

BACKGROUND: The POSSUM system has been devised for physiologic and operative scoring. The scoring system produced assessment for morbidity and mortality rates, which did not significantly differ from observed rates. The authors have applied this system to bariatric surgery. PATIENTS AND METHODS: 20 patients were scored by the POSSUM system. All underwent elective bariatric surgery during 1997. All patients were scored at the time of surgery with the physiologic score (FIS) and at discharge with the operative severity score (IQ). The FIS score included age; cardiac signs; chest radiograph; respiratory history; blood pressure; pulse; Glasgow coma score; determinations of hemoglobin, leukocyte, urea, sodium, and potassium levels; and electrocardiogram. The IQ score included multiple procedures, total blood loss, peritoneal soiling, presence of malignancy, and mode of surgery. RESULTS: The mean POSSUM score was 23.9. The mean FIS was 13.95 (12-22), and the mean IQ was 9.4 (7-16). The distribution of patients was performed for BMI. The group with BMI 35-45 (n = 4 patients) had a mean POSSUM score of 22.75, a mean FIS of 13.75, and a mean IQ of 9.0. The group with BMI >45 (n = 16 patients) had a mean POSSUM score of 24.18, a mean FIS of 14.62, and a mean IQ of 9.5. The morbidities were gastric fistula with peritonitis and deep venous thrombosis. The two complications had similar POSSUM scores with different BMIs. No mortality was observed. CONCLUSIONS: According to this experience, the POSSUM scoring system appears to provide an indicator of minor risk of morbidity and mortality in bariatric surgery with vertical banded gastroplasty.

[Left atrial appendage as a source of stroke: to close (and how), or not to close (and why)]. / La orejuela izquierda como fuente de accidentes cerebrovasculares: cerrar (y cómo), o no cerrar (y por qué).

The left atrial appendage is considered the main source of emboli in strokes in patients with atrial fibrillation. Oral anticoagulant therapy significantly reduces the risk of cerebral embolic events compared to aspirin, but it is associated with bleeding complications, and is not always used. Closure of the left atrial appendage reduces the rate of thromboembolic events, and it is currently recommended in patients with atrial fibrillation submitted to mitral valve surgery. However, the formation of emboli in these patients may be due to other causes, as the role of the atrial appendage could be less important than is assumed. Moreover, not all patients are candidates for oral anticoagulation, and not all are kept in a proper therapeutic range, which could justify the formation of atrial thrombi. There are several methods for performing the closure of the appendage: direct suture in concomitant mitral surgery, epicardial exclusion by stapling or clips, or endovascular occlusion by percutaneous application. However, the results seem inconclusive with regards to their effectiveness for complete occlusion of the appendage, safety, and efficacy in preventing cerebral embolic events. To add to the confusion, some authors reveal no clear benefit in suture closure, and even describe an increased risk of thromboembolism. We present a review of left atrial appendage closure for the prevention of strokes, as well as the different procedures described above.

[Penetrating ascending aortic ulcer in an asymptomatic patient]. / Úlcera penetrante de aorta ascendente en un paciente asintomático.

Penetrating aortic ulcer (PAU) has been defined as an atherosclerotic plaque ulceration that breaks the internal elastic lamina of the aorta, which may progress to a wall hematoma or aortic dissection in the case of blood seeping into the middle layer. Although PAU is commonly located in the descending aorta, the involvement of the ascending aorta can be fatal. Therefore, surgery is indicated even in asymptomatic patients presenting an ascending PAU. We report on an asymptomatic patient with ascending PAU referred for replacement of the ascending aorta with a composite prosthetic graft.

[Atrial fibrillation surgery]. / Cirugía de la fibrilación auricular.

Atrial fibrillation surgery is based on creating scars in the atrium, in order to avoid re-entry phenomena that may initiate and perpetuate arrhythmia, and driving the normal stimuli from the sinus node to the atrio-ventricular node. The complexity and increased risk of the initial surgical technique, based on a "cut-and-sew" procedure, have enhanced other current procedures, in which different energies are used making it possible to perform scars in a safer and less invasive way. At present, atrial fibrillation surgery is not performed routinely in all cardiothoracic surgical centers, and there is no consensus in which is the best type of technique. Even if the results are good, they depend on multiples factors such as duration of arrhythmia, atrial size and type of technique employed. In addition, there is some variability in the description within the scientific community of the results and procedures used, which makes its analysis confusing. In this paper we review the different techniques described, the results and their application in minimally invasive surgery.

La orejuela izquierda como fuente de accidentes cerebrovasculares: cerrar (y cómo), o no cerrar (y por qué) / Left atrial appendage as a source of stroke: to close (and how), or not to close (and why)

La orejuela izquierda se considera la principal fuente de émbolos en los accidentes cerebrovasculares que se producen en pacientes con fibrilación auricular. El tratamiento con anticoagulantes orales reduce significativamente el riesgo de accidentes embólicos cerebrales en relación con la aspirina, pero se asocia a riesgo de complicaciones hemorrágicas, por lo que no siempre son utilizados. Se ha descrito que el cierre de la orejuela izquierda reduce la tasa de accidentes tromboembólicos y en la actualidad se recomienda en pacientes en fibrilación auricular sometidos a cirugía mitral, pero la formación de émbolos en estos pacientes puede deberse a otras causas, y la implicación de la orejuela podría ser menor de la que se presupone. Además, no todos los pacientes son candidatos para la anticoagulación oral, y no todos se mantienen en un rango terapéutico adecuado, lo que podría justificar la formación de trombos auriculares. Existen diversos métodos para el cierre de la orejuela: sutura directa, exclusión epicárdica mediante grapadora o clip, u oclusión mediante los recientes dispositivos endovasculares de aplicación percutánea. Pero, según la bibliografía, la efectividad de estos métodos para ocluir completamente la orejuela, así como su seguridad y eficacia para la prevención de accidentes embólicos cerebrales, pueden presentar resultados dispares. Para aumentar la controversia, algunos métodos de cierre con sutura no revelan un claro beneficio e, incluso, en algunos se describe un aumento del riesgo de tromboembolismo. Se presenta una revisión sobre la necesidad de cierre de la orejuela izquierda para la prevención de accidentes vasculares cerebrales, así como los diversos procedimientos descritos(AU)

Left atrial appendage is considered the main source of emboli in stroke for patients with atrial fibrillation. Oral anticoagulant therapy significantly reduces the risk of cerebral embolic events as compared with aspirin, but it is associated with bleeding complications, and it is not considered an standard of care. Closure of the left atrial appendage reduces the rate of thromboembolic events, and currently it is recommended in patients with atrial fibrillation submitted to mitral valve surgery. However the formation of emboli in those patients may be due to other causes and the roll of the atrial appendage currently has not very well defined. Moreover, neither all patients are candidates for oral anticoagulation, nor patients with oral anticoagulant maintain a adequate therapeutic range, which could be justify the formation of atrial thrombi. There are several methods to perform the closure of the appendage: endocavitary suture in concomitant mitral surgery, epicardial exclusion by stapling or clips, or endovascular occlusion by percutaneous devices. However the results seem inconclusive in regards of their effectiveness for complete occlusion of the appendage, safety, and efficacy to prevent cerebral embolic events. To increase the confusion, some authors reveal no clear benefit in suture closure, and even more others described an increased risk of thromboembolism. We present a review of the left atrial appendage closure for prevention of stroke and the different procedures as previously described(AU)

Úlcera penetrante de aorta ascendente en un paciente asintomático / Penetrating ascending aortic ulcer in an asymptomatic patient

La úlcera penetrante de aorta (UPA) es la ulceración de una placa aterosclerótica que afecta a la lámina elástica interna de la aorta, y que puede evolucionar hacia un hematoma de pared o una disección aórtica si se produce el paso de sangre hacia la capa media. A pesar de que se localiza más frecuentemente en la aorta descendente, puede presentar una alta mortalidad en caso de situarse en la aorta ascendente, donde la cirugía está indicada aunque el paciente se encuentre asintomático. Presentamos el caso de un paciente sin sintomatología con úlcera penetrante de aorta ascendente (UPAA) ascendente sometido a sustitución de aorta ascendente por una prótesis vascular(AU)

Penetrating aortic ulcer (PAU) has been defined as an atherosclerotic plaque ulceration that breaks the internal elastic lamina of the aorta, which may progress to a wall hematoma or aortic dissection incase of blood seeping into the middle layer. Although PAU is commonly located in the descending aorta, the involvement of the ascending aorta can be fatal. Therefore, surgery is indicated even in asymptomatic patients presenting an ascending PAU. We report on an asymptomatic patient with ascending PAU referred for replacement of the ascending aorta with a composite prosthetic graft(AU)

Cirugía de la fibrilación auricular / Atrial fibrillation surgery

La cirugía de la fibrilación auricular se basa en la creación de cicatrices de aislamiento en la aurícula con el propósito de evitar los fenómenos de reentrada que inician y perpetúan la arritmia, permitiendo la reconducción del estímulo normal desde el nodo sinusal hasta el nodo auriculo-ventricular. La técnica quirúrgica inicialmente descrita (basada en incisiones y sutura), compleja y poco utilizada por el riesgo de complicaciones, potenció el desarrollo de otros procedimientos actuales, en los que se utilizan diversas energías que permiten realizar cicatrices de manera segura y menos invasiva. En la actualidad, la cirugía de fibrilación auricular no se realiza rutinariamente en todos los centros quirúrgicos; tampoco existe un consenso en relación con los tipos de técnicas utilizadas. Aunque, en general, los resultados son buenos, dependen de diversos factores como la duración de la arritmia, el tamaño de la aurícula y el tipo de cirugía realizada. Además, existe cierta variabilidad en la descripción de la comunidad científica de los resultados y los procedimientos utilizados, lo que hace que su análisis sea confuso. Proponemos una revisión de las diferentes técnicas descritas, los resultados y su aplicación en técnicas mínimamente invasivas(AU)

Atrial fibrillation surgery is based on creating scars in the atrium, in order to avoid re-entry phenomena that may initiate and perpetuate arrhythmia, and driving the normal stimuli from the sinus node to the atrio-ventricular node. The complexity and increased risk of the initial surgical technique, based on a “cut-and-sew” procedure, have enhanced other current procedures, in which different energies are used making it possible to perform scars in a safer and less invasive way. At present, atrial fibrillation surgery is not performed routinely in all cardiothoracic surgical centers, and there is no consensus in which is the best type of technique. Even if the results are good, they depend on multiples factors such as duration of arrhythmia, atrial size and type of technique employed. In addition, there is some variability in the description within the scientific community of the results and procedures used, which makes its analysis confusing. In this paper we review the different techniques described, the results and their application in minimally invasive surgery(AU)

Síndrome de Moebius / The Moebius syndrome

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