Report of Accidental Anchoring of an Impella Device to a Perceval Bioprosthesis in a Patient.

We herein report a case in which we encountered complications when placing an Impella CP ventricular assist device (catheter-based ventricular assist device) in a patient with a Perceval bioprosthetic valve (sutureless valve). Specifically, the catheter-based ventricular assist device became anchored to the sutureless valve and needed to be removed under cardiopulmonary bypass. (Level of Difficulty: Advanced.).

Propensity-matched comparison of cryoballoon and radiofrequency ablation for atrial fibrillation in elderly patients.

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary vein isolation (PVI) with a cryoballoon (CB) is an effective treatment for atrial fibrillation (AF). The efficacy of CB PVI for elderly patients with AF remains unclear. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to analyze the clinical outcomes of CB ablation compared with radiofrequency (RF) ablation in elderly patients with AF. METHODS: This was a single-center retrospective study of 305 patients older than 75 years with paroxysmal and persistent AF who underwent PVI between January 2012 and August 2017. Patients were matched according to propensity scores in a logistic regression model. The end point of this study was AF/atrial tachycardia recurrence at 12-month follow-up. RESULTS: In total, 198 patients (99 matched pairs) were analyzed. The ratio of paroxysmal AF was 83%, and the mean age was 78 ± 2 years. The mean procedure time was significantly lower in the CB group (134 ± 62 minutes vs 190 ± 51 minutes; P < .001). There was no significant difference between the groups in terms of success rate at 12 months after the procedure (CB 80.5% vs RF 79.4%; P = .72) or incidence of complications (CB 12% vs RF 16%; P = .80). Kaplan-Meier estimates revealed no significant difference between clinical outcomes after PVI with a CB or RF for elderly patients with non-pulmonary vein foci that were all successfully ablated (CB 68.8% vs RF 68.4% at 12 months; P = .835). CONCLUSION: The efficacy of PVI with a CB might be comparable to that of PVI with RF in AF patients older than 75 years and involve a shorter procedure time.

Thermostabilized ovalbumin that occurs naturally during development accumulates in embryonic tissues.

We have reported that ovalbumin accumulates without digestion in various tissues during embryonic development of the chicken. There are different types of ovalbumin with respect to thermal stability and one of them, which was named "HS-ovalbumin" in the present study, was found to have a T(m) value of 83 degrees C and to be present dominantly in albumen, egg yolk, amniotic fluid, and serum of fertilized eggs. HS-ovalbumin, arising physiologically from its native form (N-ovalbumin), is reminiscent of the previously described intermediate form appearing during the production processes of the so-called S-ovalbumin, which disappeared shortly in fertilized eggs. We showed that HS-ovalbumin is distinguishable from S-ovalbumin by a monoclonal antibody and also from N-ovalbumin by the stability to heating. At the late stages of development, ovalbumin of amniotic fluid seems to be swallowed through pharynx, carried in the intestine through stomach, and absorbed in the blood. Analyses by monoclonal antibody and heat treatment indicated that the HS-form occupies the largest fraction of ovalbumin that accumulates in the embryonic tissues. The current findings suggest that HS-ovalbumin is crucial for embryogenesis.