Nitric oxide: lifesaving measure for pulmonary vasospasm after modified Blalock-Taussig shunt.

Pulmonary vasospasm and hypertension may occur after repair or palliation of congenital cardiac defects, and can be fatal in spite of conventional treatment. Nitric oxide has been shown to improve pulmonary hypertension unresponsive to conventional measures after a variety of repairs, but use has infrequently been reported after palliative systemic to pulmonary artery shunts. We report a case of pulmonary hypertension and life threatening desaturation after a modified Blalock-Taussig shunt that responded rapidly to inhaled nitric oxide. Clinical use, further study, and prospective analysis of prophylactic use of nitric oxide appear warranted.

Cephalometric norms for orthognathic surgery for North India (Eastern Uttar Pradesh).

AIM: The present study was aimed at development of the cephalometric norms for orthognathic surgery for the population of eastern Uttar Pradesh in North India. SETTINGS AND DESIGN: This study was conducted at a dental college. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The study sample consisted of 50 males and 50 females. Each lateral cephalogram was taken in occlusion and subsequently traced. All reference points, landmarks, and measurements were made according to cephalometrics for orthognathic surgery (COGS) system. STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: The statistical analysis involved calculation of mean and standard deviation for each of the 23 parameters assessed for each subject. The data was subsequently compared with COGS study by using Normal (Z) test. RESULTS: The norms were derived for the purvanchal population of North India and these were found to be quite distinct compared to those obtained from COGS study with respect to specific parameters. CONCLUSION: Male subjects indicated greater prominence of chin relative to the face, decreased posterior divergence, infraeruption of upper and lower molar as well as lower incisors, decreased total effective length of the maxilla, tendency towards Class III occlusion, and procumbent lower incisors. Female subjects, however, indicated increased anterior cranial base length, greater prominence of chin relative to the face, prognathic maxilla and mandible, increased middle third facial height, infraerupted lower incisors, increased mandibular body length, and procumbent lower incisors.

Surgical management of coronary artery arising from the wrong coronary sinus, using standard and novel approaches.

OBJECTIVES: Patients with a coronary artery arising from the wrong sinus are susceptible to ischemia and sudden death. Risk is higher when the artery courses interarterially--between the pulmonary artery and aorta--has an intramural course, or has an abnormal orifice. In single coronary ostium without intramural course, unroofing and coronary reimplantation are inappropriate, and coronary artery bypass grafting is suboptimal. For this variant, we have devised pulmonary artery translocation. METHODS: A retrospective review of 18 patients undergoing repair between January 1999 and March 2005 was performed. Mean age was 8.1 years (range 6 weeks-16 years). All anomalous arteries coursed interarterially. Ten patients had a right coronary artery from the left coronary sinus; 8 had a left coronary artery from the right sinus. Eleven had an intramural course, and 4 had a single coronary ostium without an intramural course. Ten (56%) patients had symptoms: chest pain (9/10), syncope (3/10), or dyspnea (2/10). Repair was implemented by unroofing (n = 11), reimplantation (n = 3), or pulmonary artery translocation (1 lateral, 3 anterior). All patients were followed up clinically and echocardiographically. RESULTS: At a mean of 2.2 years (2 weeks-5 years), there was no mortality. Symptoms improved and function remained normal in all but 1 patient. He had sustained multiple infarcts in the anomalous artery's distribution and required transplantation despite repair. CONCLUSIONS: Repair is indicated in all patients with coronary insufficiency and in asymptomatic patients with high-risk morphologic abnormalities. We recommend unroofing when an intramural component (or slit-like orifice) is present, reimplantation for separate ostia without an intramural course, and pulmonary artery translocation for single ostium without an intramural course. Coronary artery bypass grafting is thus avoided.