Heart Transplantation From DCD Donors in Australia: Lessons Learned From the First 74 Cases.

Heart transplantation from donation after circulatory death (DCD) donors has the potential to substantially increase overall heart transplant activity. The aim of this report is to review the first 8 y of our clinical heart transplant program at St Vincent's Hospital Sydney, to describe how our program has evolved and to report the impact that changes to our retrieval protocols have had on posttransplant outcomes. Since 2014, we have performed 74 DCD heart transplants from DCD donors utilizing a direct procurement protocol followed by normothermic machine perfusion. Changes to our retrieval protocol have resulted in a higher retrieval rate from DCD donors and fewer rejections of DCD hearts during normothermic machine perfusion. Compared with our previously reported early experience in the first 23 transplants, we have observed a significant reduction in the incidence of severe primary graft dysfunction from 35% (8/23) to 8% (4/51) in the subsequent 51 transplant recipients ( P < 0.01). The only withdrawal time interval significantly associated with severe primary graft dysfunction was the asystolic warm ischemic time: 15 (12-17) versus 13 (11-14) min ( P < 0.05). One- and 5-y survival of DCD heart transplant recipients was 94% and 88%, comparable to that of a contemporary cohort of donation after brain death recipients: 87 and 81% ( P -value was not significant). In conclusion, heart transplantation from DCD donors has become a major contributor to our overall transplant activity accounting for almost 30% of all transplants performed by our program in the last 2 y, with similar DCD and donation after brain death outcomes.

Cor Triatriatum Dexter: A Rare Cause of Aneurysmal Right Atrium.

Cor triatriatum dexter (CTD) is a rare congenital cardiac anomaly with a diverse presentation in every age group. We report a case of CTD in a 36-year-old female who presented with palpitations due to giant right atrium (RA), which we managed successfully with surgical excision of the membrane and RA reduction.

A rare case of total anomalous pulmonary venous connection with intact interatrial septum.

The presence of interatrial communication is considered obligatory in total anomalous pulmonary venous connection (TAPVC). Even a restriction in this communication leads to obstructive TAPVC. We report a rare case of obstructed supracardiac TAPVC with the absence of interatrial communication and with multiple ventricle septal defects (VSDs) in a 3-month-old child.

Intramural Aortic Course Should Always Be Considered for Anomalous Origin of the Left Coronary Artery From the Right Pulmonary Artery.

Anomalous origin of the left coronary artery (LCA) from the right pulmonary artery (ALCARPA) is an extremely rare subset of an already rare entity, anomalous origin of the LCA from the pulmonary artery. Whenever it is diagnosed preoperatively, one should be extremely vigilant about the potential intramural course of the descending part of the LCA in the aorta. Preoperative imaging frequently fails to delineate this intramural course. We report our experience with one such case where we had accidentally injured the LCA during dissection from the right pulmonary artery. Although it was successfully managed, it reinforces our aforementioned point concerning the importance of vigilance in seeking to identify intramurality as a component of this anomaly of coronary artery origin.

Surgical Removal of Embolized Ventricular Septal Occluder Device.

Ventricular septal defect (VSD) with valvar pulmonary stenosis (PS) is a combination of cardiac defects for which treatment by means of percutaneous catheter-directed intervention is sometimes considered. Septal occluder device embolization is a rare but potentially dreadful complication. Adequate precautions are of great importance, as operator-related and anatomical factors can contribute to the risk of device embolization. In this report, we present a case of a five-year-old patient with a perimembranous VSD and valvar PS with infundibular muscle hypertrophy. The PS was treated with balloon pulmonary valvotomy, and the VSD was closed with a catheter-directed duct occluder device. Soon after deployment, the device embolized to the aortic arch, possibly as a result of the single disc device being "milked" out of VSD by dynamic contractions of hypertrophied muscle in the right ventricular outflow tract. The embolized device was successfully retrieved and removed using cardiopulmonary bypass and a period of circulatory arrest.

Transposition of Great Arteries with Intramural Coronary Artery: Experience with a Modified Surgical Technique.

OBJECTIVE: Transposition of the great arteries is a common congenital heart disease. Arterial switch is the gold standard operation for this complex heart disease. Arterial switch operation in the presence of intramural coronary artery is surgically the most demanding even for the most experienced hands. We are presenting our experience with a modified technique for intramural coronary arteries in arterial switch operation. METHODS: This prospective study involves 450 patients undergoing arterial switch operation at our institute from April 2006 to December 2013 (7.6 years). Eighteen patients underwent arterial switch operation with intramural coronary artery. The coronary patterns and technique used are detailed in the text. RESULTS: The overall mortality found in the subgroup of 18 patients having intramural coronary artery was 16% (n=3). Our first patient had an accidental injury to the left coronary artery and died in the operating room. A seven-day old newborn died from intractable ventricular arrhythmia fifteen hours after surgery. Another patient who had multiple ventricular septal defects with type B arch interruption died from residual apical ventricular septal defect and sepsis on the eleventh postoperative day. The remainder of the patients are doing well, showing a median follow-up duration of 1235.34±815.26 days (range 369 - 2730). CONCLUSION: Transposition of the great arteries with intramural coronary artery is demanding in a subset of patients undergoing arterial switch operation. We believe our technique of coronary button dissection in the presence of intramural coronary arteries using coronary shunt is simple and can be a good addition to the surgeons' armamentarium.

A New Cost-effective Method of NPWT in Diabetic Foot Wound.

Diabetic foot wounds present a great challenge to surgeons. They are difficult to heal and are a significant risk factor for non-traumatic foot amputation besides being a huge financial burden. NPWT systems commercially available (VAC™ system, KCI Inc., USA) are costly precluding widespread use. To determine whether negative-pressure wound therapy (NPWT) would afford quicker wound recovery as compared to saline-moistened gauze in the treatment of diabetic foot wounds. Sixty patients were randomized into either the experimental NPWT group or conventional dressing group (control). All patients were given medical therapy for diabetes and antibiotics given according to culture and sensitivity patterns. All foot ulcers were surgically debrided prior to initiation of NPWT or conventional treatment. In the NPWT group, dressings were changed every 48-72 h. In the control group, conventional dressings were applied at the time of surgical debridement and changed twice a day thereafter. End point of study was when wound was ready for either skin grafting or secondary suturing. End point was achieved in the NPWT group in 17.2(SD ± 3.55) days, compared to 34.9 (SD ± 5.96) days in the control group (p < 0.001). Number of dressing applied were 7.46(SD ± 2.25) in NPWT group versus 69.8(SD ± 11.93) in conventional dressing group (p < 0.001). Ninety percent cases were successfully treated in NPWT Group as compared to 76.6 % in conventional group. Rate of healing of ulcer is faster in NPWT group as compared to conventional group. Economically modified NPWT is more cost-effective to the patients in our setup.

Hyperbilirubinemia after cardiac surgery: An observational study.

BACKGROUND: We aimed to assess the incidence and perioperative risk factors for hyperbilirubinemia after cardiac surgery, and determine its influence on early operative outcome. METHODS: This prospective observational study was conducted on 476 patients who underwent cardiac surgical procedures from January 2014 to March 2014. Postoperative hyperbilirubinemia was defined as serum total bilirubin >2.0 mg dL(-1). RESULTS: The overall incidence of postoperative hyperbilirubinemia was 25% (119 patients). Patients undergoing valve repair or replacement had the highest incidence of hyperbilirubinemia (36.2%), followed by coronary artery bypass grafting with concomitant valve surgery (34.1%), congenital heart surgery (23.1%), and coronary artery bypass alone (12.7%). Postoperative hyperbilirubinemia was associated with increased duration of inotropic support (p = 0.0001), mechanical ventilation (p = 0.0001), intensive care unit stay (p = 0.001), hospital stay (p = 0.006), and mortality (p = 0.014). The perioperative factors associated with postoperative hyperbilirubinemia were increased preoperative bilirubin level (p < 0.0001), preoperative prothrombin time (p < 0.0001), cardiopulmonary bypass time (p = 0.028), aortic crossclamp time (p = 0.004), and blood transfusion units (p = 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Postoperative hyperbilirubinemia is common in patients undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass and is associated with high hospital mortality. The factors associated with its occurrence are increased preoperative bilirubin level, preoperative prothrombin time, cardiopulmonary bypass time, aortic crossclamp time, and blood transfusion units. Persistent hyperbilirubinemia is associated with a worse outcome than early transient hyperbilirubinemia.

Transposition of Great Arteries with Intramural Coronary Artery: Experience with a Modified Surgical Technique

Abstract Objective: Transposition of the great arteries is a common congenital heart disease. Arterial switch is the gold standard operation for this complex heart disease. Arterial switch operation in the presence of intramural coronary artery is surgically the most demanding even for the most experienced hands. We are presenting our experience with a modified technique for intramural coronary arteries in arterial switch operation. Methods: This prospective study involves 450 patients undergoing arterial switch operation at our institute from April 2006 to December 2013 (7.6 years). Eighteen patients underwent arterial switch operation with intramural coronary artery. The coronary patterns and technique used are detailed in the text. Results: The overall mortality found in the subgroup of 18 patients having intramural coronary artery was 16% (n=3). Our first patient had an accidental injury to the left coronary artery and died in the operating room. A seven-day old newborn died from intractable ventricular arrhythmia fifteen hours after surgery. Another patient who had multiple ventricular septal defects with type B arch interruption died from residual apical ventricular septal defect and sepsis on the eleventh postoperative day. The remainder of the patients are doing well, showing a median follow-up duration of 1235.34±815.26 days (range 369 - 2730). Conclusion: Transposition of the great arteries with intramural coronary artery is demanding in a subset of patients undergoing arterial switch operation. We believe our technique of coronary button dissection in the presence of intramural coronary arteries using coronary shunt is simple and can be a good addition to the surgeons' armamentarium.