Train early and with deliberate practice: simple coronary surgery simulation platform results in fast increase in technical surgical skills in residents and students.

OBJECTIVES: The amount of intense and focused training with the specific goal to improve performance (i.e. deliberate practice) is a predictor of expert-level performance in multiple domains of psychomotor skill learning. Simulation training improves surgical skills in cardiac surgery. We established a training programme that enables early surgical exposure and assessment. We investigated the training effects in coronary surgery simulations in trainees with different levels of surgical experience. METHODS: The early surgical exposure and assessment programme comprises a low- and high-fidelity simulation, self-organized training, instructed workshops and a stepwise challenge increase. Performance was assessed with a multidimensional skill matrix using video recordings. Two groups of trainees [students (N = 7), 1-/2-year residents (N = 6)] completed introductory training (pretraining, level 1) and two 3-week training periods (levels 2 and 3). Fellows (N = 6) served as controls. Residents and students underwent deliberate practice training with specific training targets. Fellows performed regularly scheduled coronary surgery cases. Entry and exit assessments were conducted for levels 2 and 3. RESULTS: Fellows did not improve overall performance. Residents and students showed significant improvements in both technical accuracy and completion times. Residents reached an overall performance level comparable to fellows. Students reached similar accuracy of surgical skills with longer completion times [level 3 exit score/time: fellows 27 (24-29)/min; residents 27 (21-30)/min, P = 0.94; students 17 (17-25)/min, P = 0.068]. CONCLUSIONS: Deliberate practice training resulted in a fast and substantial increase in surgical skills in residents and students. Unexperienced residents reach performance levels of fellows. Deliberate practice simulation programmes should be a mandatory component of surgical training.

Wearable Cardioverter-Defibrillators following Cardiac Surgery-A Single-Center Experience.

BACKGROUND: A wearable cardioverter-defibrillator (WCD) can terminate ventricular fibrillation and ventricular tachycardias via electrical shock and thus give transient protection from sudden cardiac death. We investigated its role after cardiac surgery. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed all patients who were discharged with a WCD from cardiac surgery department. The WCD was prescribed for patients with a left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) of ≤35% or an explanted implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD). RESULTS: A total of 100 patients were included in this study, the majority (n = 59) had received coronary artery bypass graft surgery. The median wearing time of a WCD patient was 23.5 hours per day. LVEF was 28.9 ± 8% after surgery and improved in the follow-up to 36.7 ± 11% (p < 0.001). Three patients were successfully defibrillated. Ten patients experienced ventricular tachycardias. No inappropriate shocks were given. An ICD was implanted in 25 patients after the WCD wearing period. CONCLUSION: Ventricular arrhythmias occurred in 13% of the investigated patients. LVEF improved significantly after 3 months, and thus a permanent ICD implantation was avoided in several cases. Sternotomy did not impair wearing time of the WCD. A WCD can effectively protect patients against ventricular tachyarrhythmias after cardiac surgery.

The influence of less invasive ventricular assist device implantation on renal function.

BACKGROUND: End-stage heart failure is associated with severe after-effects such as heart valve insufficiency, cardiac arrhythmias or end-organ dysfunctions. Renal failure or 'cardiorenal syndrome' is a critical end-organ disorder associated with advanced heart failure, which occurs due to low-output failure. Drug therapy or surgical interventions involving left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation may impede the progress of heart insufficiency and its after-effects including renal failure. In this study, we investigated the impact of a minimally invasive ventricular assist device implantation through upper hemisternotomy combined with anterolateral thoracotomy on renal function, in patients with perioperative renal failure. METHODS: We analyzed data obtained from 103 patients (80 males, 23 females; mean age 53.8±11.7) who underwent LVAD implantation at our clinic within a 15-year interval (2001-2016) and were dialyzed due to renal dysfunction. 90 patients were operated with the conventional LVAD implantation technique (standard approach surgery, SAS) and 13 underwent less invasive approach implantation (less invasive surgery, LIS). RESULTS: For all patients, data analysis showed significant increase of glomerular filtration rate (GFR) (44.2±56.48 mL/min; 95% CI: 33.81-55.28; P<0.001) along with a significant decrease in the levels of creatinine (-1.08±1.83 mg/dL; 95% CI: 0.75-1.46; P<0.001) and urea (-4.62±13.66 mmol/L; 95% CI: 1.95-7.29; P<0.001). There was a considerable difference in change of renal parameters in patients treated with LIS in comparison to patients who underwent SAS, which was however not statistically significant (GFR: P=0.494; creatinine: P=0.543; urea P=0.918). CONCLUSIONS: LVAD implantation improves kidney function in patients with renal dysfunction. A considerable difference in the change of renal parameters was detected in patients with LIS as compared to SAS, which was not significant possibly due to the limited size of the patient cohort (n=13).