[Ascending-to-abdominal Aorta Bypass under Percutaneous Cardiopulmonary Support for Lower Body Organ Malperfusion Secondary to Acute Type B Aortic Dissection; Report of a Case].

A 66-year-old man was admitted to our hospital because of uncomplicated Stanford B acute aortic dissection. Antihypertensive therapy was initially started; however, he suddenly experienced vomiting, diarrhea, anuria, and paraparesis on the fourteenth hospital day. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT) revealed expansion of the false lumen and severe stenosis of the true lumen at the distal aortic arch, which caused malperfusion syndrome of the lower body. Percutaneous cardiopulmonary support (PCPS) was immediately initiated to restore lower body organ perfusion, and an extra-anatomic ascending-to-abdominal aorta bypass was performed with a 16-mm Dacron graft. Postoperative CECT revealed expansion and good patency of both of the true lumen and the bypass graft. His symptoms improved except for the paraparesis; he was eventually able to ambulate using a crutch after postoperative rehabilitation.

[Aortic valve-sparing operation for chronic dissecting aneurysm of the sinus of valsalva associated with redissection in a young woman who experienced out-of-hospital cardiac arrest].

A 38-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital because she experienced cardiopulmonary arrest at her wedding;her cardiac beats were resumed 20 min after cardiopulmonary resuscitation performed by her relatives and hotel staffs. Enhanced computed tomography revealed acute aortic redissection in chronic dissecting aneurysm in the right sinus of Valsalva, which was believed to have occurred in the 4th month of pregnancy 2 years before. Echocardiography showed moderate aortic regurgitation. We performed aortic valve-sparing operation and ascending aortic replacement with partial remodeling of the right sinus of Valsalva. She returned to work 2 months later without high-order dysfunction.

Relationship between circulating levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 and systolic dysfunction in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

BACKGROUND: Progression of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) to left ventricular dilatation and systolic dysfunction sometimes occurs. However, the mechanism of the transition from hypertrophy to dysfunction has not been elucidated. It has been reported that circulating levels of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1), which is a major factor promoting the accumulation of macrophages, are increased in patients with congestive heart failure. We measured circulating levels of MCP-1 in patients with HCM and examined whether MCP-1 was expressed in the myocardium of HCM patients. We also examined whether circulating levels of MCP-1 were correlated with left ventricular dysfunction. METHODS: Circulating levels of MCP-1 were measured by an enzyme immunoassay in 26 patients with HCM (60+/-2 years old) and 20 control subjects (57+/-2 years old). Cardiac function was evaluated by two-dimensional echocardiography and cardiac catheterization. RESULTS: HCM patients had significantly elevated levels of MCP-1 (HCM: 309+/-30 vs. control: 178+/-8 pg/ml, P<.001). MCP-1 levels in patients with systolic dysfunction were significantly higher than those in patients without systolic dysfunction (P<.05) and were also significantly higher than those in patients with outflow obstruction (P<.05). Immunohistochemical analysis revealed that MCP-1 was expressed in endomyocardial biopsy samples obtained from HCM patients with systolic dysfunction. Furthermore, MCP-1 levels were inversely correlated with fractional shortening (r=-.401, P<.05) and correlated with left ventricular end-diastolic pressure (r=-.579, P<.01). CONCLUSION: These results show that MCP-1 is associated with, and might be involved in the pathogenesis of, left ventricular systolic dysfunction in patients with HCM.

Risk factors indicating recurrent myocardial infarction after recovery from acute myocardial infarction.

Little is known of the risk factors of recurrent myocardial infarction (MI) among Japanese patients who have survived their first MI. The risk factors for the second MI were studied in 808 of 1,042 consecutive patients who recovered from an acute MI in Iwakuni National Hospital. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that only 3 of 21 variables measured were closely related with the recurrence of MI during a follow-up period of 3.2 +/- 4.3 years: (1) transient atrial fibrillation (relative risk (RR) 3.16), (2) previous cerebrovascular accident (RR 3.05), and (3) dyslipidemia (RR 2.19). Of the parameters of dyslipidemia, a low ratio of high-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (HDL-C) to low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-C) alone indicated subsequent MI. None of age, gender, location of the infarction, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, pulmonary congestion (Killip's class > or = 2), peak serum creatine kinase activity, serum total-cholesterol, HDL- and LDL-cholesterol levels, nor smoking habit on admission was a statistically significant predictor for the second MI. The result suggests that more intensive treatment is needed for patients with the 3 risk factors.