Risk Factors and Impact on Clinical Outcome of Multidrug-Resistant Acinetobacter Baumannii Acquisition in Cardiac Surgery Patients.

OBJECTIVES: Acinetobacter baumannii recently has emerged as an important nosocomial pathogen. The aim of this study was to assess the impact on mortality of multidrug-resistant A. baumannii (MDR-AB) infection/colonization in patients undergoing cardiac surgery and to investigate microbiologic characteristics, epidemiologic spread of this pathogen, and the relative containment measures. DESIGN: Single-center, retrospective cohort study of prospectively collected data. SETTING: Cardiac surgery tertiary-care center. PARTICIPANTS: Patients with positive MDR-AB cultures from September 1, 2009 to December 31, 2011. INTERVENTIONS: Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed to individualize the risk factors for MDR-AB-infections in cardiac surgery patients. To evaluate the MDR-AB attributable mortality, a retrospective matched cohort study was performed. Incidence density ratio (IDR) was calculated to compare the MDR-AB infection/colonization before and after the introduction of preventive measures adopted following the first cases. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: MDR-AB acquisition occurred in 14 patients (0,6%) of 2385 patients. At the multivariate analyses, preoperative use of inotropic drugs (OR 18.2, 95% CI 4.6-71.9) and logistic EuroSCORE (OR 1.09, 95% CI 1.06-1.13) were found as independent risk factors. Patients with MDR-AB had 57% cumulative in-hospital mortality; no statistical differences in mortality were observed in the matched group. IDR revealed a significantly decreased incidence of infection/colonization (0.3 per 1,000 days of stay compared with 0.03/1,000 days of stay, p = 0.0001) after the containment measures became effective. CONCLUSIONS: Sicker patients are more susceptible to be infected by A. baumannii, but mortality is not significantly higher compared with other patients with similar characteristics. Adequate measures are fundamental to control the spread of the infection.

Surgical repair and replacement for native mitral valve infective endocarditis.

AIMS: The clinical benefits of mitral valve repair over replacement in the setting of mitral infective endocarditis are not clearly established. METHODS: Data of patients who underwent cardiac surgery for infective endocarditis over a 20-year period (2001-2021) at two cardiac centres were reviewed. Among them, 282 patients underwent native mitral valve surgery and were included in the study. Nearest-neighbour propensity-score matching was performed to account for differences in patients' profile between the repair and replacement subgroups. RESULTS: Mitral valve replacement was performed in 186 patients, while in 96 cases patients underwent mitral valve repair. Propensity match analysis provided 89 well matched pairs. Mean age was 60 ±â€Š15 years; 75% of the patients were male. Mitral valve replacement was more commonly performed in patients with involvement of both mitral leaflets, commissure(s) and mitral annulus. Patients with lesion(s) limited to P2 segment formed the majority of the cases undergoing mitral valve repair. There was no difference in terms of microbiological findings. In-hospital mortality was 7% with no difference between the repair and the replacement cohorts. Survival probabilities at 1, 5 and 10 years were 88%, 72% and 68%, respectively after mitral repair, and 88%, 78% and 63%, respectively after mitral replacement (log-rank P  = 0.94). CONCLUSIONS: Mitral valve repair was more commonly performed in patients with isolated single leaflet involvement and provided good early and 10-year outcomes. Patients with annular disruption, lesion(s) on both leaflets and commissure(s) were successfully served on early and mid-term course by mitral valve replacement.

Results and insights after 413 TAVI procedures performed by cardiac surgeons on their own.

OBJECTIVES: Current evidence on transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has been generated exclusively by cardiology studies and no operative data from cardiac surgeons are available. Here, we describe the development of our TAVI programme and report the results of transfemoral (TF) TAVI done by cardiac surgeons on their own. METHODS: This study included all the TAVI procedures on native valve performed at Cardiac Surgery Unit, Ospedali Riuniti di Ancona, during the period October 2018 to July 2022. Relevant prospectively collected preoperative, intraprocedural and postoperative data were retrieved from the Institutional database. RESULTS: A total of 413 patients were included in the study. Mean patients' age was 82 years and among them 44% (180/413) were male. STS score was 3.1% (2.2-4.4). Eighty patients underwent transapical TAVI and 333 patients had a TF approach. We progressively moved from transapical TAVI towards TF procedures that are now routinely performed on conscious sedation and using a fully percutaneous approach. After TF TAVI, 30-day mortality rate was 1%, cerebral stroke occurred in 2% of the cases, permanent pacemaker implantation was necessary in 23% of the patients and in 6% of the cases there was a moderate/severe degree of aortic regurgitation. There was no association between operators performing TAVI and 30-day mortality. CONCLUSIONS: The acquisition of catheter-based skills and an adequate training allowed cardiac surgeons to perform on their own awake and fully percutaneous TF TAVI with similar results when compared with major randomized clinical trials and registries' experiences.

Minimally invasive approach: is this the future of aortic surgery?

Median sternotomy incision has shown to be a safe and efficacious approach in patients who require thoracic aortic interventions and still represents the gold-standard access. Nevertheless, over the last decade, less invasive techniques have gained wider clinical application in cardiac surgery becoming the first-choice approach to treat heart valve diseases, in experienced centers. The popularization of less invasive techniques coupled with an increased patient demand for less invasive therapies has motivated aortic surgeons to apply minimally invasive approaches to more challenging procedures, such as aortic root replacement and arch repair. However, technical demands and the paucity of available clinical data have still limited the widespread adoption of minimally invasive thoracic aortic interventions. This review aimed to assess and comment on the surgical techniques and the current evidence on mini thoracic aortic surgery. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12055-021-01258-2.

[One-year outcomes of surgical aortic valve replacement: a single, high-volume center experience]. / Risultati ad un anno dopo chirurgia sostitutiva della valvola aortica: esperienza di un centro ad alto volume.

BACKGROUND: The introduction of transcatheter aortic valve replacement (AVR) mandates attention to outcomes after surgical AVR (SAVR). The aim of this study was to assess 1-year outcomes in a contemporary large cohort of patients undergoing AVR. METHODS: Data from 520 patients who underwent isolated SAVR between October 2016 and April 2019 were prospectively collected. RESULTS: The mean age of the study population was 72.8 ± 10.1 years and the average EuroSCORE II was 1.8 ± 1.5%. SAVR was performed using minimally invasive approaches (MI-AVR) in 306 patients (58.9%). However, the rate of MI-AVR considerably increased over the observational period from 47.9% to 86.7% (p<0.001). MI-AVR patients received rapid deployment valves in 40% of cases, minimally invasive extracorporeal circulation system in 34.4% and ultra fast track anesthetic management with table extubation in 38.2%. Overall 30-day mortality was 0.4% (n=2). The rates of postoperative stroke and atrioventricular block requiring pacemaker implantation were 0.6% (n=3) and 3.8% (n=20), respectively. At 1 year, the estimated survival, stroke and rehospitalization rates were 97.3%, 1% and 4.5%, respectively. Overall, the estimated incidence of the composite endpoint - death, stroke and rehospitalization - was 7%. CONCLUSIONS: Contemporary SAVR in a high-volume center yields excellent clinical outcomes with very low mortality and morbidity. In this setting, the extensive use of minimally invasive approaches combined with the modern techniques and technologies demonstrated to improve clinical outcomes and increase patient and family satisfaction.

[Surgical treatment of aortic valve disease: early results of a 360° minimally invasive approach]. / Trattamento chirurgico della valvulopatia aortica: esperienza iniziale di un approccio mini-invasivo a 360°.

BACKGROUND: Over the years, with the introduction of minimally invasive techniques and technologies aimed at reducing surgical trauma, aortic valve surgery has considerably developed and improved. Our approach includes: reduced incisions (upper "J" ministernomy or anterior right minithoracotomy), "ultra fast-track" anesthesia protocols, sutureless and rapid deployment valve prostheses and miniaturized circuits of extracorporeal circulation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical outcomes associated with this multidisciplinary approach. METHODS: Between October 2016 and November 2018, 429 patients underwent isolated aortic valve replacement at the Cardiac Surgery Unit of the "Ospedali Riuniti" of Ancona, Italy. Overall, 91 patients (21.2%) were operated according to our minimally invasive approach. A severe aortic valve stenosis was the indication for surgery in 90.1% of patients, aortic valve insufficiency in the remaining 18.7%. RESULTS: There were neither in-hospital deaths nor major or minor neurological events. Atrial fibrillation was the main postoperative complications (n=26, 28.6%). Four patients (4.4%) underwent permanent pacemaker implantation due to third-degree atrioventricular block, and a surgical bleeding revision was performed in 3.3%. No episodes of respiratory failure were reported. The median length of hospital stay was 6 days (5-8 days). CONCLUSIONS: Our initial experience with a 360° minimally invasive approach for the treatment of patients undergoing aortic valve replacement shows encouraging clinical outcomes; this approach may lead to an improved perception of surgery both by patients and their families. However, further clinical studies are needed to evaluate the long-term results.

Mini Bentall operation: technical considerations.

Bentall operation via median sternotomy has been largely shown to be safe and long-term efficacious and currently represents the "gold standard" intervention in patients presenting with aortic valve and root disease. However, over the last years, minimally invasive techniques have gained wider clinical application in cardiac surgery. In particular, minimally invasive aortic valve replacement through ministernotomy has shown excellent outcomes and becomes the first choice approach in numerous experienced centers. Based on these favorable results, ministernotomy approach has also been proposed for complex cardiac procedures such as aortic root replacement and arch surgery. Herein, we present our technique for minimally invasive Bentall operation using a ministernotomy approach.

Prevention of atrial fibrillation and inflammatory response after on-pump coronary artery bypass using different statin dosages: a randomized, controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: This randomized controlled trial aimed to evaluate the effects of seven-day preoperative treatment with two different dosages of atorvastatin on the incidence of postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) and release of inflammatory markers such as high-sensitive C-reactive protein (hsCRP) and interleukin-6 in patients undergoing elective first-time on-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). METHODS: The cohort study comprised 212 consecutive patients, already taking statins, who underwent elective first-time CABG with cardiopulmonary bypass without history of atrial fibrillation (AF). Patients were randomly divided into two groups: those who received atorvastatin 40 mg (TOR40 group, 111 patients) and those who received 80 mg (TOR80 group, 101 patients) once a day for 7 days before the planned operation. The primary endpoint was the incidence of AF. The secondary endpoints were the postoperative variations of inflammatory markers, hospital length of stay, and the incidence of major adverse cardiac and clinical events. RESULTS: A total of 26 patients (23.6 %) pretreated with atorvastatin 40 mg and 16 (15.8 %) patients pretreated with atorvastatin 80 mg had postoperative AF but the difference did not reach the statistical significance (p = 0.157). Median values of interleukin-6 and hsCRP at 12 and 24 h did not have differences between the two groups. No statistically significant differences in the other secondary endpoints were detected. CONCLUSIONS: According to our result, 7-day preoperative treatment with a high dose of atorvastatin is associated with a trend to a decrease in the incidence of POAF compared with treatment at a lower dose, although it does not impact on the level of inflammatory markers. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: European Clinical Trials Database (EudraCT: 2006-005757-30).

'Early' and 'late' timing for renal replacement therapy in acute kidney injury after cardiac surgery: a prospective, interventional, controlled, single-centre trial.

OBJECTIVES: Acute kidney injury after cardiac surgery (CS-AKI) is strongly associated with in-hospital mortality and morbidity. We aimed to investigate whether 'early' or 'late' initiation of renal replacement therapy (RRT) in patients with CS-AKI is associated with a survival benefit or more favourable outcomes. METHODS: All patients who had undergone cardiac surgery at 'Ospedali Riuniti' of Ancona from July 2011 to February 2013 were prospectively enrolled and divided into two treatment groups: the 'early' approach was used during the first 10 months, and the 'late' approach during the next 10 months. 'Early' RRT was started after 6 h of urine output less than 0.5 ml/kg/h, whereas in the 'late' group, therapy started on the basis of persistent (>12 h) oliguria. A total of 1658 patients were enrolled in the trial. The primary outcome was operative mortality, and the secondary outcomes were length of intensive care unit and hospital stay. RESULTS: The total number of patients treated with RRT was 59 (3.6%): 46 (5.5%) in the 'early' group and 13 (1.6%) in the 'late' group (P < 0.0001). Although RRT was significantly less utilized in the 'late' group, no significant difference in the primary and secondary outcomes was found, but a trend towards a better outcome in the 'late' group was observed. Furthermore, we found a significant difference in mortality between the two approaches in the subgroups of patients with preoperative renal dysfunction and in patients suffering from CS-AKI with a clear advantage of the late strategy. CONCLUSIONS: Our results do not support the use of early RRT in CS-AKI. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: This trial is registered in the clinicaltrial.gov registry: NCT01961999.

Aortic valve-sparing surgery for aortic root aneurysm.

BACKGROUND: Replacement of the aortic valve and ascending aorta with a composite graft is the most common surgical treatment for aortic root aneurysms with or without aortic regurgitation (AR). In the early 90's reconstructive procedures of the aortic root have been described with encouraging results. This paper presents our experience with this technique. METHODS: Between January 2001 and May 2003, 28 patients (25 males, 3 females, mean age 60 years) with aortic root aneurysm were treated with reimplantation of the aortic valve. Twenty-two patients had AR > 2+, 5 had Marfan syndrome, 5 had an aortic arch aneurysm, 4 had type A aortic dissection, 2 patients had associated coronary artery disease, and one had mitral valve insufficiency. The only contraindication was primitive disease of the aortic leaflets. RESULTS: There was one perioperative death (type A aortic dissection) and 1 patient was discharged with mild to moderate AR requiring aortic valve replacement. The cardiopulmonary bypass and aortic cross-clamping times were 230 and 184 min respectively. No neurological events were recorded. During follow-up (mean 16.7 months, range 3-32 months) 1 patient died and one had mild AR. Freedom from reoperation and from AR at 24 months was 94 and 89% respectively. At multivariate analyses we did not find any correlation between Marfan syndrome, type A aortic dissection, grade of preoperative AR, and recurrence of AR. CONCLUSIONS: In our experience, valve-sparing surgery was feasible with a low mortality and morbidity and with good early results. It should be applied to all patients requiring aortic root surgery for aortic root aneurysm, a diseased aortic valve being the only contraindication.

[Mortality risk estimation in cardiac surgery]. / Previsione del rischio operatorio in cardiochirurgia.

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to compare the ability of three risk models to predict operative mortality after cardiac surgery. METHODS: Risk factors of 3111 patients (73% male, mean age 65.2 +/- 10.7 years) were derived from our institutional database at the Cardiac Surgery Department of the G.M. Lancisi Hospital, Ancona, Italy. The predicted mortality was derived from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons risk score (STS), the EuroSCORE (ES) and the Northern New England Cardiovascular Disease Study Group score (NE). RESULTS: The observed mortality in the myocardial revascularization population (1995 patients) was 2.2% (43 patients). The mean predicted mortality by STS, ES and NE was 1.9, 4.2 and 1.9%, respectively. The predictive ability of the models was measured by means of the ROC curve. Curves were respectively of 0.82, 0.77 and 0.78. CONCLUSIONS: All tested models proved e good accuracy level but ES showed a constant overestimation of mortality at all risk levels.

[Does cardiac surgery in women carry a higher risk than in men?]. / La cardiochirurgia nella donna: rischio più alto?

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of death in women, and female patients exhibit peculiar features as to symptoms, diagnosis and treatment. This sex difference is also observed in cardiac surgery, with mortality and morbidity being higher in female patients. Whether female gender is an independent variable for mortality still remains controversial. This review summarizes the data available in the literature on cardiac surgery in the female population.

Absorption of carbon dioxide during endoscopic vein harvest.

OBJECTIVES: Carbon dioxide (CO(2)) insufflation was used by some devices for endoscopic vein harvest to create a subcutaneous tunnel and facilitate the vein harvest. In the literature, some cases of CO(2) micro- and macro-embolisms or hypercarbia during this procedure are described. The purpose of this study was to evaluate if the use of an open CO(2) system rather than a sealed system might be associated with different CO(2) absorption during the procedure. METHODS: Patients were randomized into two groups: those patients in the first group were submitted to endoscopic vein harvest using a sealed CO(2) insufflation; in the second group, the harvest was undertaken with an open CO(2) insufflation. Partial pressure of CO(2) in the arterial blood (PaCO(2)) and end-tidal CO(2) (ETCO(2)) was recorded following anaesthesia induction and before the endoscopic procedure (T0), every 10 min during the endoscopic step (T1) and end after 10 min from the CO(2) insufflation termination (T2). RESULTS: A total of 60 patients were enrolled. PaCO(2) increased significantly between T0, T1 and T2 in both groups (P = 0.0001) during the endoscopic harvest, but the PaCO(2) level was significantly higher in the group that used the sealed system (44.5 ± 7.9 vs 39.7 ± 7.9 mmHg) at the end of the procedure (P = 0.01). No significant differences between end-tidal CO(2) measured at the same intervals between groups were detected. CONCLUSIONS: There was a constant increase in the blood gas concentration compared with the basal pre-procedure values. Sealed systems were associated with a significantly higher CO(2) concentration at the end of the procedure compared with the open ones.

Left superior vena cava draining into the left atrium, associated with partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection: surgical correction.

A persistent left superior vena cava draining into the left atrium may produce a symptomatic right-to-left shunt. Although intra-atrial rerouting techniques, in patients with no connecting vein, have proved to be reliable and successful, in many cases the extracardiac repair is preferable. We report a case of a 5-month-old patient with a not connected left superior vena cava draining into the left atrium, associated with atrial septal defect and partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection. The correction has been achieved by rerouting the pulmonary venous return into the left atrium and by transposition of the left vena cava on the right appendage.