Bilateral surgical reconstruction for internal jugular veins disease in patients with chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency and associated multiple sclerosis.

Chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency (CCSVI) is a vascular condition characterized by morphologic alterations involving efferent cerebral vascular paths. CCSVI has been implicated as a contributing factor to multiple sclerosis (MS) but this theory is highly controversial. We report 3 cases of CCSVI patients with MS who had undergone internal jugular veins (IJVs) angioplasty to restore vessels patency. All patients reported significant symptomatic improvement after angioplasty until symptoms recurred after restenosis of the treated IJVs. Surgical IJVs reconstruction was performed. Patients' symptoms gradually improved and the benefits were maintained at the 1-year follow-up.

Stress-ECG vs. CT coronary angiography for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease: a "real-world" experience.

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of stress electrocardiogram (ECG) and computed tomography coronary angiography (CTCA) for the detection of significant coronary artery stenosis (> or =50%) in the real world using conventional CA as the reference standard. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 236 consecutive patients (159 men, 77 women; mean age 62.8+/-10.2 years) at moderate risk and with suspected coronary artery disease (CAD) were enrolled in the study and underwent stress ECG, CTCA and CA. The CTCA scan was performed after i.v. administration of a 100-ml bolus of iodinated contrast material. The stress ECG and CTCA reports were used to evaluate diagnostic accuracy compared with CA in the detection of significant stenosis > or =50%. RESULTS: We excluded 16 patients from the analysis because of the nondiagnostic quality of stress ECG and/or CTCA. The prevalence of disease demonstrated at CA was 62% (n=220), 51% in the population with comparable stress ECG and CTCA (n=147) and 84% in the population with equivocal stress ECG (n=73). Stress ECG was classified as equivocal in 73 cases (33.2%), positive in 69 (31.4%) and negative in 78 (35.5%). In the per-patient analysis, the diagnostic accuracy of stress ECG was sensitivity 47%, specificity 53%, positive predictive value (PPV) 51% and negative predictive value (NPV) 49%. On stress ECG, 40 (27.2%) patients were misclassified as negative, and 34 (23.1%) patients with nonsignificant stenosis were overestimated as positive. The diagnostic accuracy of CTCA was sensitivity 96%, specificity 65%, PPV 74% and NPV 94%. CTCA incorrectly classified three (2%) as negative and 25 (17%) as positive. The difference in diagnostic accuracy between stress ECG and CTCA was significant (p<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: CTCA in the real world has significantly higher diagnostic accuracy compared with stress ECG and could be used as a first-line study in patients at moderate risk.

COVID-19 therapies and their impact on QT interval prolongation: A multicentre retrospective study on 196 patients.

BACKGROUND: SARS-CoV-2 infection has caused a global pandemic. Many of the medications identified to treat COVID-19 could be connected with QTc prolongation and its consequences. METHODS: Non-ICU hospitalized patients of the three centres involved in the study from the 19th of March to the 1st of May were included in this retrospective multicentre study. Relevant clinical data were digitally collected. The primary outcome was the incidence of QTc prolongation ≥ 500 ms, the main secondary outcomes were the Tisdale score ability to predict QTc prolongation and the incidence of ventricular arrhythmias and sudden deaths. RESULTS: 196 patients were analysed. 20 patients (10.2%) reached a QTc ≥ 500 ms. Patients with QTc ≥ 500 ms were significantly older (66.7 ± 14.65 vs 76.6 ± 8.77 years p: 0.004), with higher Tisdale score (low 56 (31.8%) vs 0; intermediate 95 (54.0%) vs 14 (70.0%); high 25 (14.2%) vs 6 (30.0%); p: 0.007) and with higher prognostic lab values (d-dimer 1819 ± 2815 vs 11486 ± 38554 ng/ml p: 0.010; BNP 212.5 ± 288.4 vs 951.3 ± 816.7 pg/ml p < 0.001; procalcitonin 0.27 ± 0.74 vs 1.33 ± 4.04 ng/ml p: 0.003). After a multivariate analysis the Tisdale score was able to predict a QTc prolongation ≥ 500 ms (OR 1,358 95% CI 1,076-1,714p: 0,010). 27 patients died because of COVID-19 (13.7%), none experienced ventricular arrhythmias, and 2 (1.02%) patients with concomitant cardiovascular condition died of sudden death. CONCLUSIONS: In our population, a QTc prolongation ≥ 500 ms was observed in a minority of patients, no suspected fatal arrhythmias have been observed. Tisdale score can help in predicting QTc prolongation.

Exploring the mental health of black men who have sex with men.

Current research indicates that black men who have sex with men (MSM) are disproportionately burdened by depressive distress and anxiety disorders as compared to their white gay and heterosexual counterparts. This study utilizes focus groups to qualitatively explore issues surrounding the mental health status of this population in an attempt to shed light on potential influencing and determinant factors. Twenty-two self-identified black, or multi-racial including black, MSM residing in Atlanta, Georgia participated in two focus groups--11 subjects each, respectively. Categories that emerged from data analysis include: knowledge/experiences, attitudes/beliefs, societal action/behavior, identity development, relationship functionality, and mental health status. Overarching themes for each category were delineated.

Transición de adolescentes en el Hospital Garrahan: 24 años de recorrido / Transition of adolescents at Garrahan Hospital: 24 years of experience

Este escrito presenta un recorrido retrospectivo de la transición de pacientes del Hospital de Pediatría "Dr. Juan P. Garrahan", centro de referencia nacional, a centros asistenciales de adultos. Se describen sus antecedentes y se destacan dos hitos que consideramos centrales como inicio de una trayectoria hospitalaria en transición de ya 24 años: la conformación de la Unidad de Adolescencia y Transición y la creación del Comité de Transición. A continuación se describen acciones que se desarrollaron en forma transversal en toda la institución, entre ellas programas de investigación, becas de formación, realización de jornadas, publicaciones institucionales y producciones artísticas. Finalmente planteamos un horizonte para este recorrido y los desafíos para la proyección futura de la transición de pacientes (AU)

This paper presents a retrospective review of the transition of patients from the Hospital de Pediatría "Dr. Juan P. Garrahan," a national reference center, to adult care centers. It describes the background and highlights two milestones that we consider central to the beginning of a 24-year hospital transition trajectory: the creation of the Adolescence and Transition Unit and the establishment of the Transition Committee. We then describe actions developed transversally throughout the institution, including research programs, training fellowships, conferences, institutional publications, and artistic productions. Finally, we propose a vision for this journey and discuss the challenges for the future projection of patient transition (AU)

Experiencia en la transición de adolescentes con enfermedad neuromuscular en el Hospital Garrahan / Experience in the transition of adolescents with neuromuscular disease at Garrahan Hospital

El desarrollo de nuevos abordajes terapéuticos ha generado un aumento en la esperanza de vida de los pacientes con enfermedades neuromusculares (ENM). Se trata de un grupo de enfermedades heterogéneas desde la clínica y los posibles tratamientos. La transición en los pacientes con ENM, implica un gran desafío por presentar niveles intelectuales dentro de rangos promedio, compromisos motor, respiratorio y cardiológico progresivos que resulta en aumento de la dependencia física conforme aumenta la necesidad de autonomía emocional del adolescente. La descripción de transiciones exitosas en ENM incluye intervenciones psicosociales individuales o grupales con un enfoque multidimensional e interdisciplinario, que contemple la participación de la familia para reducir la ansiedad y la preocupación sobre sus hijos. En el Hospital Garrahan los pacientes con ENM son atendidos dentro del Programa de Atención, Docencia e Investigación de Pacientes con Enfermedad Neuromuscular desde 2008. En este trabajo nos proponemos describir la experiencia en transición pre y post pandemia, de los adolescentes con ENM en seguimiento en el Hospital de Pediatría Garrahan (AU)

The development of new care and therapeutic approaches has generated an increase in the life expectancy of patients with neuromuscular diseases (NMD), a group of heterogeneous diseases from a clinical point of view. The transition in patients with MND involves a great challenge due to progressive motor, respiratory and cardiological compromises that result in an increase in physical dependence as the adolescent needs emotional autonomy. The description of successful transitions in patients with MND includes individual and psychosocial interventions with a multidimensional and interdisciplinary approach with family participation. Since 2008, we developed a Care, Teaching and Research Program for Patients with NMD Disease at the Garrahan Hospital. The objective of this work is to describe the pre- and post-pandemic transition experience of adolescents with NMD follow-up in our hospital (AU)

Adolescencia, adherencia y transición: Experiencia de un centro de trasplante renal pediátrico / Adolescence, adherence, and transition: Experience from a pediatric renal transplant center

Con el advenimiento de nuevas técnicas quirúrgicas y medicaciones inmunosupresoras la sobrevida de los niños trasplantados mejoró, llegando a la adultez. La continuidad de su tratamiento requiere un proceso planificado que permita su tránsito a un sistema de salud orientado al adulto. El objeto de este trabajo es mostrar la transición a centros de adultos en una cohorte de pacientes trasplantados renales en el Hospital Garrahan, describir sus características clínicas y demográficas, su evolución, y oportunidades de mejora implementadas. Debido a cambios médicos y su abordaje desde la interdisciplina, se dividió a la población en tres periodos: era 1 (1988-1999), era 2 (2000-2009), y era 3 (2010- 2023). En la era 1, 179 adolescentes continuaron su atención médica en un centro de adultos, 212 en la era 2 y 201 en la era 3. En la era 1 el seguimiento estaba coordinado por el nefrólogo de cabecera y eran consultados los servicios de Urología, Servicio Social y Salud Mental. En la era 2, se fortaleció el trabajo en interdisciplina y aún más a partir del 2011. Surgieron centros de trasplante de adultos que recibían adolescentes y médicos dedicados a ellos en forma preferencial. En la actualidad la transición comienza a los 12 años y progresa hasta los 18. El modelo implementado es la transición directa, entre el nefrólogo pediatra y el de adultos, con varias consultas secuenciales en ambos centros. Si bien la sobrevida del paciente e injerto mejoraron, el rechazo, asociado a no adherencia, es una asignatura por mejorar (AU)

With the advent of new surgical techniques and immunosuppressive medications, the survival of transplanted children has improved, allowing them to reach adulthood. The continuity of their treatment requires a planned process that facilitates their transition to an adult-oriented healthcare system. The aim of this study was to examine the transition to adult centers in a cohort of renal transplant patients at Garrahan Hospital, describing their clinical and demographic characteristics, their evolution, and the improvement opportunities implemented. Based on medical changes and the interdisciplinary approach, the population was divided into three periods: era 1 (1988- 1999), era 2 (2000-2009), and era 3 (2010-2023). In era 1, 179 adolescents continued their medical care in an adult center, 212 in era 2, and 201 in era 3. In era 1, follow-up was coordinated by the attending nephrologist with consultations from Urology, Social Services, and Mental Health Services. In era 2, interdisciplinary work was strengthened, and even more so since 2011. Adult transplant centers were created to receive adolescents with physicians dedicated to their care on a preferential basis. Currently, the transition begins at 12 years of age and progresses up to 18. The implemented model involves direct transition between the pediatric nephrologist and the adult nephrologist, with several sequential consultations in both centers. Although patient and graft survival have improved, rejection associated with non-adherence remains an area for improvement

Red de formación y de cuidados para la transición de adolescentes con inmunodeficiencias primarias / Care and training network for the transition of adolescents with primary immunodeficiencies

En este escrito nos proponemos relatar y sistematizar los aspectos centrales de la estrategia de gestión, formación y atención diseñada por el Servicio de Inmunología y Psicología Institucional del Hospital Garrahan junto a los Hospitales Durand y Posadas para la transición de adolescentes con inmunodeficiencias primarias a la atención de adultos. La formalización de las primeras transiciones comenzó en 2007 con el Hospital Durand y progresivamente se fueron complejizando y expandiendo los procesos y actores participantes, sumándose el Hospital Posadas y otros centros de atención que reciben un porcentaje menor de pacientes. El eje central de la estrategia fue la implementación de un sistema de rotaciones para los residentes del último año de la especialidad de adultos por el servicio de pediatría. La formalización de la estrategia también readecuó de manera gradual aspectos internos de la atención de los adolescentes en el hospital pediátrico. En una etapa posterior se implementaron encuentros por videoconferencia con centros de adultos para redefinir acuerdos entre los servicios. Además, la asociación civil de pacientes (Asociación de Ayuda al Paciente con Inmunodeficiencias Primarias - AAPIDP) cumplió un rol relevante desde los primeros años de la estrategia. Estas acciones propiciaron la creación de una red de formación y cuidados en inmunodeficiencias primarias para la transición (AU)

In this article, we aim to describe and systematize the central aspects of the management, training, and care strategy designed by the Departments of Immunology and Institutional Psychology of the Garrahan Hospital, in collaboration with the Durand and Posadas Hospitals, for the transition of adolescents with primary immunodeficiencies to adult care. The first transitions were formalized in 2007 with the Durand Hospital. Over time, the processes and actors involved have become more complex and expanded, incorporating the Posadas Hospital and other care centers that receive a smaller percentage of patients. The central axis of the strategy was the implementation of a rotation system for residents in their final year of the adult specialty in the Department of Pediatrics. The formalization of the strategy also led to gradual readjustments in the internal aspects of adolescent care within the pediatric hospital. In a later stage, videoconference meetings with adult centers were implemented to redefine agreements between departments. Additionally, the patient association (Asociación de Ayuda al Paciente con Inmunodeficiencias Primarias - AAPIDP) has played a significant role since the early years of the strategy. These actions have led to the creation of a network for training and care in primary immunodeficiencies for the transition (AU)

Cardiac arrest in a patient with a mobile right atrial thrombus in transit and amyloidosis.

Primary amyloidosis is a rare disorder in which insoluble fibers are deposited in tissue and organs, impairing their function. Cardiac involvement occurs in up to 50% of patients with primary amyloidosis. We describe a case of a 75-year-old admitted to our department after he had a sudden cardiac arrest due to massive bilateral thrombotic occlusion of the pulmonary arteries. The echocardiogram revealed many atrial thrombi swirling inside the right atrium and protruding into the tricuspid valve partly occluding it. Severe concentric hypertrophy of the left ventricle was also present with a preserved ejection fraction. The right ventricle was dilated, hypertrophic and ipokinetic with a severe tricuspidal insufficiency that permitted estimation of a severe pulmonary hypertension. All these characteristics were highly suggestive for an infiltrative form of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. The final diagnosis was amyloidosis.

The efficacy and safety of extending the ischemic time with a modified cardioplegic technique for coronary artery surgery.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: The need to intermittently discontinue the administration of cardioplegia in order to complete the surgical procedure is a major drawback of antegrade warm blood cardioplegia. An ischemic time of 15 minutes is generally considered safe based on empirical observation. The aim of this study was the evaluation of the efficacy and safety of an intermittent warm blood cardioplegia with intervals between administrations prolonged to 25 minutes. METHODS: Ninety-seven patients undergoing primary elective coronary artery revascularization were prospectively randomized into two groups. The first, Intermittent Antegrade Warm Blood Cardioplegia (IAWBC) group, comprising 49 patients, received standard intermittent antegrade warm blood cardioplegia repeated every 15 minutes. The second, Modified Intermittent Antegrade Warm Blood Cardioplegia (M-IAWBC) group, comprising 48 patients, received intermittent antegrade warm blood cardioplegia supplemented with magnesium sulfate (MgSO(4)), delivered in volumes proportional to the ventricular mass and repeated every 25 minutes. The clinical outcomes were evaluated. The levels of creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB) isoenzyme, in addition to the echocardiographic assessment of septal dyskinesia and tricuspid annulus plane systolic excursion (TAPSE), have been used as markers of myocardial damage. RESULTS: There were no statistically significant differences in clinical outcomes, need for inotropes and vasodilators, length of stay in the intensive care unit, and postoperative levels of CK-MB between the two groups. Likewise, postoperative echocardiographic assessment showed no relevant differences. CONCLUSIONS: Administration of warm antegrade cardioplegic solution supplemented with MgSO(4), delivered in volumes proportional to ventricular mass every 25 minutes, provides adequate myocardial protection for coronary artery surgery.

Cardiac resynchronization therapy as an adjunct to conventional surgical treatment for heart failure.

From March 2004 through October 2007, we prospectively evaluated the benefits of cardiac resynchronization therapy as an adjunct to conventional procedures in patients who were undergoing surgery for heart failure.Twenty severely symptomatic patients (14 men and 6 women, with a mean age of 70 +/- 8 years) who displayed advanced cardiomyopathy, QRS duration > or =130 ms, or mechanical dyssynchrony, underwent isolated or combined coronary artery revascularization and mitral valve overreduction. In all patients, an epicardial lead was secured to the left ventricular wall at the end of the procedure and its extremity was brought into a subclavian pocket. In 5 patients, a resynchronization device was implanted at the time of surgery; in 8, it was implanted at a later date; the remaining 7 patients are awaiting implantation. One patient died postoperatively of low-output syndrome. There was 1 noncardiac late death. Eighteen patients were alive at a mean postoperative follow-up of 21.6 +/- 15.2 months (range, 1-43 mo). There were no subsequent hospital admissions after discharge. New York Heart Association functional class and left ventricular performance were significantly and lastingly improved when cardiac resynchronization therapy was added to the surgical procedure. Despite the limitations inherent in the small number of patients and the relatively short duration of follow-up, this study suggests that patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and left ventricular dyssynchrony in whom surgical correction is indicated may benefit from cardiac resynchronization therapy using a resynchronization device connected to an epicardial lead secured to the left ventricle at the time of surgery.

A miniaturized device for the measurement of sheet-metal formability using digital image correlation.

A laboratory-scale device to obtain forming-limit diagram data was designed to utilize the Marciniak and Kuczynski (MK) sample geometry. The design uses a high-resolution photographic camera, automatic trigger, and light-emitting diode (LED) lighting to record the time history of deformation calculated with the digital-image correlation technique. Because the testing device was miniaturized, it was possible to halt the forming experiments at intermediate strains and recrystallize the MK carrier blank. This permits large formability strains to be obtained without cracks developing at the carrier blank's central hole, an advantage over full-size specimens and conventional testing rates. A number of initial experiments were performed on a zinc alloy sheet (Zn-Cu-Ti) over the entire forming-limit range (-0.5 ≤ ε2/ε1 ≤ 1), and the strain fields reduced employing the Bragard criterion to obtain limit strains. These results are compared favorably to previous data of this material obtained with a hemispherical, Nakazima, punch and a circle-grid pattern.

A Randomized Trial to Assess the Contribution of a Novel Thorax Support Vest (Corset) in Preventing Mechanical Complications of Median Sternotomy.

OBJECTIVES: Mechanical complications of median sternotomy may cause significant morbidity and mortality in cardiac surgical patients. This study was aimed at assessing the role of Posthorax support vest (Epple, Inc., Vienna, Austria) in the prevention of sternal complications and the improvement of anatomical healing in patients at high risk for mechanical sternal dehiscence after cardiac surgery by mean of median sternotomy. METHODS: A prospective, randomized, study was performed and 310 patients with predisposing factors for sternal dehiscence after sternotomy for cardiac surgery were included. The patients were divided into two groups: patients who received the Posthorax support vest after surgery, and patients who did not. Primary variables assessed included the incidence of mechanical sternal complications, the quality of sternal healing, the rate of re-operation, the duration of hospitalization, rate and duration of hospital, re-admission for sternal complications. Secondary variables assessed were the post-operative pain, the number of requests for supplemental analgesia and the quality of life measured by means of the EQ-5D format. RESULTS: Patients using vest demonstrated a lower incidence of mechanical sternal complications, a better anatomical sternum healing, lower hospital stay, no re-operations for sternal dehiscence before discharge and lower re-admissions for mechanical sternal complication. In addition, patients using a vest reported a better quality of life with better freedom from limitations in mobility, self-care, and pain. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings demonstrate that the use of the Posthorax vest reduces post-sternotomy mechanical complications and improves the healing of the sternotomy, the clinical course, and the post-operative quality of life.

High thoracic epidural anesthesia in cardiac surgery: risk factors for arterial hypotension.

There is an interest in the use of high thoracic epidural anesthesia in cardiac surgery, because experimental and clinical studies have suggested that central neuroaxial blockade attenuates the response to surgical stress and improves myocardial metabolism and perioperative analgesia-thus enabling earlier extubation and a smoother postoperative course. Matters of major concern in the adoption of high thoracic epidural anesthesia in cardiac surgery are neurologic injury secondary to neuroaxial hematoma and hypotension secondary to sympatholysis. The risk associated with possible neuraxial hematoma caused by high thoracic epidural anesthesia has been thoroughly investigated and largely discounted, but scant attention has been devoted to the onset of hypotensive episodes in the same setting. We analyzed the hypotensive episodes that occurred in a series of 144 patients who underwent on-pump cardiac surgery procedures. Among the patient variables that we tested in a multivariate logistic-regression model, only female sex was found to be significantly correlated with hypotension. In order to decrease the incidence and severity of hypotensive episodes resulting from anesthetic blockade, anesthesiologists need to monitor, with special care, women patients who are under high thoracic epidural anesthesia. Further studies are needed in order to determine why women undergoing open heart surgery under high thoracic epidural anesthesia are at a relatively greater risk of hypotension.

Pharmacologic resolution of functional outflow tract obstruction after mitral valve repair.

A 74-year-old woman with mitral regurgitation secondary to ruptured chordae tendineae, complicated by a cleft in the posterior mitral leaflet and a severely calcified mitral annulus, underwent mitral valve repair by implantation of polytetrafluoroethylene chords and closure of the cleft, without the use of an annuloplasty ring. Immediately after the repair severe left ventricular outflow tract obstruction developed secondary to the systolic anterior motion of the mitral valve. Echocardiography identified the cause as functional, in the presence of a hypertrophic left ventricle with no significant preoperative intraventricular dynamic gradient. The obstruction was severe enough to render impossible the weaning of the patient from cardiopulmonary bypass. This problem was reversed by the infusion of beta-blocking agents into the extracorporeal circuit.