Development of a pulsatile cadaver-based simulation for training of open abdominal vascular surgery skills.

OBJECTIVE: Developing competence in open aortic surgery is increasingly challenging in vascular surgery training programs. Although static cadaver models provide an opportunity for dissection and exposure, the lack of pulsatility limits further education in managing blood vessels. We developed an affordable pulsatile cadaver simulation model to improve training in open abdominal aortic surgery with the primary objective of determining whether it incorporated the fidelity required to teach critical surgical techniques. METHODS: The University of Minnesota Bequest program supported a pilot project to develop a fresh pulsatile cadaver. A written pretest on exposure of the aorta in various locations was given to all trainees. The external iliac artery was exposed, cannulated, then perfused in a pulsatile fashion using normal saline and a pump. Trainees were then evaluated and timed on location of the aorta, retractor placement, dissection, and creation of an aortic anastomosis. RESULTS: Twenty-six pulsatile cadaver procedures were performed with five fellows over 13 months. All procedures were performed under the supervision of the same faculty member. Total cost over the study period was $8800. Four abdominal aortic aneurysms were found (15%). With bilateral iliac artery ligation, adequate pulsatility was created for blind supraceliac aortic dissection. Abdominal wall and organ relationships were ideal for teaching proper retractor placement and techniques for vascular dissection, endarterectomy, and anastomosis. Although 100% of fellows documented written understanding of the steps for procedures on the pretest, no fellow successfully placed a supraceliac aortic clamp, properly positioned retractors for proper open AAA exposure, or placed all proximal aortic back wall sutures transmurally on the initial assessment. After training for a variable number of cases, all were able to place a supraceliac clamp blindly within 4 minutes from skin incision. Retractor placement and suturing technique improved significantly for all trainees during the study period. CONCLUSIONS: The implementation of a pulsatile cadaver-based simulation model for abdominal vascular surgery has the potential to be both affordable and provide necessary haptics and fidelity for training fellows in critical abdominal vascular techniques.

The design and use of an optical mapping system for the study of intracardiac electrical signaling.

Fluorescent optical mapping of electrically active cardiac tissues provides a unique method to examine the excitation wave dynamics of underlying action potentials. Such mapping can be viewed as a bridge between cellular level and organ systems physiology, e.g., by facilitating the development of advanced theoretical concepts of arrhythmia. We present the design and use of a high-speed, high-resolution optical mapping system composed entirely of "off the shelf" components. The electrical design integrates a 256 element photodiode array with a 16 bit data acquisition system. Proper grounding and shielding at various stages of the design reduce electromagnetic interference. Our mechanical design provides flexibility in terms of mounting positions and applications (use for whole heart or tissue preparations), while maintaining precise alignment between all optical components. The system software incorporates a user friendly graphical user interface, e.g., spatially recorded action potentials can be represented as intensity graphs or in strip chart format. Thus, this system is capable of displaying cardiac action potentials with high spatiotemporal resolution. Results from cardiac action potential mapping with intact mouse hearts are provided. It should be noted that this system could be readily configured to study isolated myocardial biopsies (e.g., isolated ventricular trabeculae). We describe the details of a versatile, user-friendly system that could be employed for a magnitude of study protocols.

Effects of Ablation (Radio Frequency, Cryo, Microwave) on Physiologic Properties of the Human Vastus Lateralis.

OBJECTIVE: Ablative treatments can sometimes cause collateral injury to surrounding muscular tissue, with important clinical implications. In this study, we investigated the changes in muscle physiology of the human vastus lateralis when exposed to three different ablation modalities: radiofrequency ablation, cryoablation, and microwave ablation. METHODS: We obtained fresh vastus lateralis tissue biopsy specimens from nine patients (age range: 29-73 years) who were undergoing in vitro contracture testing for malignant hyperthermia. Using leftover waste tissue, we prepared 46 muscle bundles that were utilized in tissue baths before and after ablation. RESULTS: After ablation with all the three modalities, we noted dose-dependent sustained reductions in peak force (strength of contraction), as well as transient increases in baseline force (resting muscle tension). But, over the subsequent 3-h recovery period, peak force improved and the baseline force consistently recovered to below its preablation levels. CONCLUSION: The novel in vitro methodologies we developed to investigate changes in muscle physiology after ablation can be used to study a spectrum of ablation modalities and also to make head-to-head comparisons of different ablation modalities. SIGNIFICANCE: As the role of ablative treatments continues to expand, our findings provide unique insights into the resulting changes in muscle physiology. These insights could enhance the safety and efficacy of ablations and help individuals design and develop novel medical devices.

Assessment of Ablative Therapies in Swine: Response of Respiratory Diaphragm to Varying Doses.

Ablation is a common procedure for treating patients with cancer, cardiac arrhythmia, and other conditions, yet it can cause collateral injury to the respiratory diaphragm. Collateral injury can alter the diaphragm's properties and/or lead to respiratory dysfunction. Thus, it is important to understand the diaphragm's physiologic and biomechanical properties in response to ablation therapies, in order to better understand ablative modalities, minimize complications, and maximize the safety and efficacy of ablative procedures. In this study, we analyzed physiologic and biomechanical properties of swine respiratory diaphragm muscle bundles when exposed to 5 ablative modalities. To assess physiologic properties, we performed in vitro tissue bath studies and measured changes in peak force and baseline force. To assess biomechanical properties, we performed uniaxial stress tests, measuring force-displacement responses, stress-strain characteristics, and avulsion forces. After treating the muscle bundles with all 5 ablative modalities, we observed dose-dependent sustained reductions in peak force and transient increases in baseline force-but no consistent dose-dependent biomechanical responses. These data provide novel insights into the effects of various ablative modalities on the respiratory diaphragm, insights that could enable improvements in ablative techniques and therapies.

Erythrocyte aging as a mechanism of anemia and a biomarker of device thrombosis in continuous-flow left ventricular assist devices.

BACKGROUND: Blood trauma caused by continuous-flow left ventricular assist devices (CF-LVADs) has been associated with device thrombosis and anemia. Accurate in vivo quantification of erythrocyte turnover and its contribution to CF-LVAD complications have yet to be elucidated. METHODS: We investigated the age (lifespan) of circulating erythrocytes in subjects with CF-LVAD. Erythrocyte lifespan is a quantitative indicator of in vivo erythrocyte turnover that can be accurately derived from measurement of the exhaled carbon monoxide (CO) level. Sixty non-smoking subjects were prospectively enrolled: 25 had a CF-LVAD without thrombosis; 10 had a CF-LVAD with thrombosis; and 25 were normal controls. End-tidal breath CO levels were measured and used to calculate erythrocyte lifespan. RESULTS: The mean erythrocyte lifespan was significantly shorter in CF-LVAD subjects with (29.7 ± 14.9 days) compared to those without (65.0 ± 17.3 days) device thrombosis (p < 0.0001). The lifespans in these 2 groups were significantly shorter compared with normal controls (96.0 ± 24.9 days, both p < 0.0001). A receiver operator curve demonstrated high sensitivity-specificity for use of erythrocyte lifespan to detect device thrombosis (AUC = 0.94). In addition, all CF-LVAD subjects had low hemoglobin (11.8 ± 2.0 g/dl), and their anemia was normochromic normocytic with elevated mean reticulocyte counts. Erythrocyte lifespan correlated significantly with mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (r = 0.56, p = 0.0005) and red cell distribution width (r = -0.65, p < 0.001), but not with reticulocyte count (r = 0.27, p = 0.32). CONCLUSIONS: Erythrocyte lifespan is substantially reduced in subjects with a CF-LVAD, which was more pronounced in the presence of device thrombosis. The etiology of anemia in CF-LVAD was primarily due to accelerated erythrocyte aging. Further studies are needed to determine whether erythrocyte lifespan could provide a practical means of detecting subtle pre-clinical thrombosis.

Cardiovascular effects of spinal cord stimulation in hypertensive patients.

BACKGROUND: Several animal and clinical studies have shown that thoracic spinal cord stimulation (SCS) may decrease mean arterial pressure (MAP). A previous study in normotensive participants demonstrated a small reduction in MAP during SCS at the T5-T6 spinal level. It has also been demonstrated that chronic SCS at the subthreshold stimulation level significantly improved angina attacks and 6-minute hall walk distance in drug refractory angina patients. OBJECTIVES: To determine if thoracic SCS at 2 different stimulation strengths would decrease blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR) during baseline conditions and during activation of the sympathetic system by the cold pressor test (CPT). METHODS: Six hypertensive participants and 9 normotensive participants were evaluated. The SCS leads were implanted under sedation (midazolam and fentanyl) 3 days prior to the study. The SCS device was not implanted at the time of lead implantation; the exteriorized leads were connected to an external programmer at the time of the study. MAP was measured at the finger using beat-to-beat photoplethysmographic recordings at rest and during CPT with a Finometer (Model 1, Finapress Medical Systems, Amsterdam, The Netherlands). SCS at threshold (100%, SCS100) and subthreshold (80%, SCS80) intensities were randomly performed in the T5-T6 region of the spinal cord during normal conditions as well as during CPT. Each participant had 3 CPTs with the placebo (control, no SCS) CPT always performed first. CPT was performed by immersing the right hand into ice water for 90 seconds. Thirty seconds of beat-to-beat data prior to starting each CPT (baseline) was analyzed. During the 90 second CPT, the median values of the last 30 seconds of data were used for analysis. Heart rate variability (HRV) during baseline and SCS was computed using Kubios HRV Version 2.0 software (University of Kuopio, Kuopio, Finland). Since the median values of HR, MAP and their changes did not follow a normal distribution, groups were compared with a non-parametric Friedman's or Wilcoxon's signed rank test. The HRV data were normally distributed and a repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used. RESULTS: SCS did not significantly alter MAP or HR at baseline nor did it appear to blunt changes in MAP or HR in response to CPT. In the normotensive group, MAP was significantly elevated by a median value of 16 mmHg (P<0.001) during the placebo phase, and by 18 and 10.5 mmHg during the SCS80 and SCS100 phases, respectively. In the hypertensive group, an enhanced response to the CPT was observed. In these participants, the MAP was significantly elevated by a median value of 26.8 mmHg (P<0.001) during the placebo phase, and by 20 and 17 mmHg during the SCS80 and SCS100 phases, respectively. There was a non-significant trend for the CPT-induced increase in BP to be attenuated during SCS80. HRV tended to decrease in both the time and frequency domain in hypertensive participants, although this decrease was not statistically significant. LIMITATIONS: This was a pilot study including a limited number of participants CONCLUSIONS: Acute SCS at the T5-T6 region did not significantly alter MAP or HR compared to baseline (no SCS) in participants without sedation, supporting our previous findings in sedated patients. Hypertensive participants had a heightened response to transient cold stress, consistent with the literature. The observation of the tendency for a reduction in HRV in both the time and frequency domain in hypertensive participants is also consistent with the literature. In contrast to acute SCS, the hemodynamic effects of chronic SCS should be explored in the future.