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.

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.

Normothermic frozen elephant trunk without circulatory arrest.

We describe our technique for total aortic arch replacement with stenting of the descending thoracic aorta allowing normothermic cardiopulmonary bypass and avoiding hypothermic circulatory arrest. Supplementary information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12055-023-01536-1.

Improved Early Outcomes in Women Undergoing Aortic Valve Interventions.

Surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in female patients has been associated with higher mortality (up to 3.3-8.9%) and postoperative complication rates when compared with their male counterparts. In recent years, TAVI has been shown to provide a greater benefit than SAVR in women. We sought to assess the early outcomes of the contemporary aortic valve intervention practice (surgical and transcatheter) in patients referred to our cardiac surgery unit. The data of consecutive patients who underwent isolated aortic valve intervention for aortic valve stenosis during the 2018-2022 period were retrieved from our internal database. Several preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative variables were analyzed, including the predicted risk of a prosthesis-patient mismatch. Nine hundred and fifty-five consecutive patients-514 women and 441 men-were included. Among them, 480 patients-276 female and 204 male-received a transcatheter procedure, and 475-238 women and 237 men-had conventional SAVR. The women were older and had higher EuroSCORE II, while the male patients presented a higher incidence of cardiovascular comorbidities. There was no difference in mortality or major postoperative complication rates after either the surgical or transcatheter procedures between the female and male populations. The availability and targeted use of different techniques and technologies have enabled the safe and effective treatment of female patients treated for severe symptomatic aortic valve stenosis with similar results when compared with their male counterparts.

Allogenic blood transfusion in cardiac surgery.

Blood transfusion carries benefits and risks. Adult cardiac surgery accounts for a significant proportion of all red blood cells transfusions. However, the identification of the patient, who will truly benefit from transfusions, is still controversial. This review provides an overview on allogenic blood transfusions in adult cardiac surgery.

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.

Mitral valve damage after an aortic balloon valvuloplasty in an infant.

The case of a 2-year-old infant admitted to our Institution with a diagnosis of severe aortic valve stenosis is presented. After a balloon valvuloplasty with no results in terms of gradient reduction, an echocardiogram showed a moderate mitral regurgitation. The patient underwent surgical repair of both the aortic and mitral valves. Inspection of the mitral valve showed a 5-mm hole in the posterior leaflet at the P2 scallop. Probably, the dilation tore a secondary cord, pulling away a piece of the leaflet. A quadrangular resection was performed with good results.

[Transcatheter cerebral embolic protection in open heart surgery: our initial experience in Ancona, Italy]. / Protezione cerebrale transcatetere in cardiochirurgia: la nostra esperienza in Ancona.

BACKGROUND: Neurological events after cardiac surgery or transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) have a dramatic effect on patients' prognosis. Recent development of transcatheter cerebral protection systems aims to reduce their incidence, even if their use is currently limited to TAVI. Here we report our initial experience with transcatheter cerebral protection devices used in patients at high brain embolic risk undergoing cardiac surgery. METHODS: Between December 2018 and March 2020, at the Cardiac Surgery Unit of Lancisi Cardiovascular Center in Ancona, Italy, 9 patients (mean age 77 years; median EuroSCORE II: 2.2%) underwent cardiac surgery using a transcatheter cerebral protection system (Sentinel, Claret Medical, Santa Rosa, CA, USA). In all cases, a preoperative computed tomography scan highlighted the presence of severely calcified ascending aorta. RESULTS: The brain protection system was successfully implanted in all patients. Total time for device implantation and removal was less than 10 min in all cases. Four patients underwent aortic valve replacement, 2 mitral surgery, whereas 3 received combined valve surgery. Calcified debris were found within filters in 100% of patients. Postoperatively, there were neither neurological events nor major complications. CONCLUSIONS: In our experience, transferring transcatheter brain protection techniques and technologies to cardiac surgery allowed us (with excellent results) to avoid palliative percutaneous or medical management in patients with severe aortic calcifications. Waiting for more solid evidence, we believe that our example supports the concept of hybrid surgery as a therapeutic approach capable of extending traditional surgical indications with improved patients' outcomes.

Catheter-based cerebral protection system in open cardiac surgery: An example of true hybrid surgery.

Postoperative stroke after cardiac surgery is an ominous complication. Clinical manifestations range from cognitive disturbances and altered states of consciousness to focal neurological deficits. Stroke is also a well-documented risk of catheter-based cardiac interventions. Recently, the growth of transcatheter procedures has led to the increasing development of devices that are designed to minimize neurological events during valve implantation.  In this video tutorial we demonstrate how to transfer a catheter-based cerebral protection technology into an open cardiac surgical intervention. The operation shown in this tutorial was an aortic valve replacement and the cerebral protection device implanted was the  Sentinel Cerebral Protection System (Boston Scientific, Marlborough, MA, USA).

Conduction disorders after aortic valve replacement: what is the real impact of sutureless and rapid deployment valves?

BACKGROUND: Although sutureless and rapid deployment aortic valve replacement (SURD-AVR) has been associated with an increased rate of permanent pacemaker (PPM) implantation compared to conventional AVR (c-AVR), the predictors of new conduction abnormalities remain to be clarified. This study aimed to identify risk factors for conduction disorders in patients undergoing AVR surgery. METHODS: Data from 243 patients receiving minimally invasive AVR were prospectively collected. SURD-AVR was performed in 103 (42.4%) patients and c-AVR in 140 (57.6%). The primary endpoint was the occurrence of new-onset conduction disorders, defined as first degree atrioventricular (AV) block, advanced AV block requiring PPM implantation, left anterior fascicular block (LAFB), left bundle branch block (LBBB) and right bundle branch block (RBBB). RESULTS: The unadjusted comparison revealed that SURD-AVR was associated with a higher rate of advanced AV block requiring PPM when compared with c-AVR (10.5% vs. 2.1%, P=0.01). After adjusting for other measured covariates (OR: 1.6, P=0.58) and for the estimated propensity of SURD-AVR (OR: 5.1, P=0.1), no significant relationship between type of AVR and PPM implantation emerged. On multivariable analysis, preoperative first-degree AV block (OR: 6.9, P=0.04) and RBBB (OR: 6.9, P=0.03) were independent risk factors for PPM. Subgroup analysis of patients with normal preoperative conduction revealed similar incidence of PPM between SURD-AVR and c-AVR (1.3% vs. 1.9%, P=0.6). When compared with c-AVR, SURD-AVR was associated with a greater incidence of postoperative new onset LBBB (18.1% vs. 3.2%, P<0.001). This finding was confirmed after adjusting for the estimated propensity of SURD-AVR (OR: 6.3, P=0.009). CONCLUSIONS: Our study revealed that the risk of PPM implantation in patients receiving surgical AVR is heavily influenced by the presence of pre-existing conduction disturbances rather than the type of valve prosthesis. Conversely, SURD-AVR emerged as an independent predictor for LBBB and was associated with an increased risk of PPM in patients presenting with RBBB.

Minimally invasive aortic valve replacement with a catheter-based cerebral protection system: transferring percutaneous technologies into a surgical intervention.

Patients with severe aortic valve stenosis are currently treated with 2 different interventional techniques: surgical aortic valve replacement or transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI). Both have strengths and limitations. On the one hand, TAVI represents a valuable option in high- and intermediate-risk patients and is commonly preferred over surgical aortic valve replacement in subjects with porcelain or severely calcified aorta, on the other, the lack of data on valve durability raises concerns on its use in young, low-risk patients. We present herein the case of a low-risk 71-year-old patient with a severely calcified ascending aorta. We successfully combined our minimally invasive surgical approach with the use of a percutaneous cerebral protection system commonly employed during TAVI procedures. We believe that cardiac surgeons could adopt transcatheter technology to improve operative results.

[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.

Ultra fast-track minimally invasive aortic valve replacement: going beyond reduced incisions.

Aortic valve replacement (AVR) via a median sternotomy approach has been largely reported to be safe and long-term efficacious, and currently represents the 'gold standard' approach for aortic stenosis treatment. However, aortic valve surgery has undergone continuous development over the last years, involving less invasive techniques and new technologies to reduce the traumatic impact of the intervention and extend the operability toward increasingly high-risk patients. Indeed, minimally invasive AVR and transcatheter aortic valve replacement caseload have steadily increased leading to a paradigm shift in the treatment of aortic valve disease. In this setting, we have established a multidisciplinary minimally invasive programme to treat patients who require AVR. Herein, we present our approach including (i) reduced chest incision (through a J ministernotomy), aiming to reduce the traumatic impact of the surgical procedure, to decrease blood loss, postoperative pain and wound complications and to increase patient's satisfaction; (ii) rapid-deployment AVR, to reduce operative times, to facilitate minimally invasive approach and to improve haemodynamic outcomes; (iii) minimal invasive extracorporeal circulation system, to improve end-organ protection, to decrease systemic inflammatory response and to promote fast-track anaesthesia and (iv) ultra fast-track anaesthesia, to decrease the rate of postoperative complications and assure better and earlier recovery.

[Early and mid-term results of the transapical aortic valve Symetis Acurate TA: a viable solution in high-risk patients with severe vascular disease]. / Risultati a breve e medio termine della valvola aortica transapicale Symetis Acurate TA: valida soluzione nei pazienti vasculopatici ad alto rischio.

BACKGROUND: Aortic valve stenosis is the most common valvular disease in the elderly. Transcatheter aortic valve implantation represents a viable alternative to conventional aortic valve replacement. In our Department, the transapical approach is the preferred method in patients with severe peripheral vascular disease. The aim of this study was to analyze the early and midterm results of Symetis Acurate TA implantation in our series. METHODS: From June 2013 to January 2017, 21 patients with severe peripheral vascular disease (11 male, mean age 78 ± 2.8 years) underwent transapical implantation of the Symetis Acurate TA device. Mean logistic EuroSCORE I was 21.9 ± 8.6, mean left ventricular ejection fraction was 51.9 ± 12.2%, and mean aortic gradient was 46.7 ± 12.3 mmHg. Valve implantation was performed through a left anterior minithoracotomy. Patients were followed up on a regular basis. Cardiac echocardiographic assessment was performed at 6 months post-implantation. RESULTS: Valve implantation was successful in all patients. Valve sizes were as follows: 7 size S, 6 size M, and 8 size L. Two patients died before hospital discharge (9.5%). Among survivors, 2 patients showed more than mild aortic regurgitation at discharge. Mean aortic gradient was 13.1 ± 4.3 mmHg (p<0.01). Median follow-up was 11.3 months. Mean NYHA class at follow-up was 1.9 ± 0.4 (p<0.05). Mean actuarial survival was 80%. CONCLUSIONS: Our series, even if small, demonstrates that transapical implantation of the Symetis Acurate TA device represents a viable solution in patients with severe peripheral vascular disease carrying a high operative risk. The relatively high operative mortality may be attributable to the learning curve of our team.

Cardiac Paraganglioma Arising From the Right Atrioventricular Groove in a Paraganglioma-Pheochromocytoma Family Syndrome With Evidence of SDHB Gene Mutation: An Unusual Presentation.

Primary cardiac paragangliomas are extremely rare. Recently this neoplasm has been associated with a familiar syndrome as a result of mutation of genes that encode proteins in the mitochondrial complex II. We report a case of a 46-year-old woman having cases of vertebral paraganglioma in her family showing an unusual anatomic and clinical presentation of cardiac paraganglioma and expressing a genetic mutation never associated before with cardiac localization of this neoplasm.

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.

Sternal wrapping: developments and results.

BACKGROUND: Postoperative sternal wound complications are infrequent events that negatively affect recovery and may have serious consequences. Sternal wrapping, a technique of sternal care, has hemostatic properties without bone wax, and offers mechanical and microbiologic protection. METHODS: From February 1998 to December 2011, 258 patients in 2 Italian institutions underwent various cardiac surgery procedures with sternal wrapping in place, and were followed up for no less then 6 months. RESULTS: Two (0.8%) extremely compromised patients with ischemic sternal osteonecrosis and deep sternal wound infection required a sternal stabilizing procedure. Four (2%) other patients developed sternal wound complications that were treated entirely medically; 3 of them were very trivial, and 1 was an atypical mediastinitis without sternal involvement. Overall, 46.1% of patients (45.3% of isolated coronary artery bypass, 49.3% of isolated on-pump coronary artery bypass, and 18.2% of off-pump coronary artery bypass patients) were transfused. None of the complications was related to sternal wrapping, bleeding from the sternal edge, or sternal wound problems. CONCLUSIONS: Sternal wrapping showed a very low incidence and severity of sternal wound complications, with good prevention of sternal osteomyelitis. Hemostatic properties were satisfactory, with transfusion rates within an acceptable range.