Outcomes of treatment pathways in 240 patients with congenitally corrected transposition of great arteries.

OBJECTIVE: Congenitally corrected transposition of the great arteries (ccTGA) encompasses a diverse morphologic cohort, for which multiple treatment pathways exist. Understanding surgical outcomes among various pathways and their determinants are challenged by limited sample size and follow-up, and heterogeneity. We sought to investigate these questions with a large cohort of ccTGA patients presenting at different ages and representing the full therapeutic spectrum. METHODS: Retrospective review of 240 patients diagnosed with ccTGA from Cleveland Clinic coupled with prospective cross-sectional follow-up. Forty-six patients whose definitive procedure was completed elsewhere were excluded. Time-related survival was described among treatment pathways using actuarial, time-varying covariate, and competing risks analyses. Temporal trends in longitudinal valve and ventricular function were assessed using nonlinear mixed-effects models. RESULTS: Median follow-up was 10 years. Seventy-nine patients with ccTGA underwent anatomic repair, 45 physiologic repair, 24 Fontan palliation, and 6 primary transplant. Forty patients managed expectantly had excellent long-term survival when considered from time of presentation, but benefited from failures captured following transition to physiologic repair or transplant. Morphologic right ventricular dysfunction after physiologic repair increased from 68% to 85% after 5 years, whereas morphologic left ventricular function was stable in anatomic repair, especially with early surgery. Transplant-free survival at 15 years for anatomic and physiologic repair was 80% and 71%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Early anatomic repair may be preferable to physiologic repair for select ccTGA patients. Late attrition after physiologic repair represents failure of expectant management and progressive tricuspid valve and morphologic right ventricular dysfunction compared with anatomic repair, where morphologic left ventricular function is relatively preserved.

Position paper concerning the competence, performance and environment required for the practice of ablation in children and in congenital heart disease.

The population of patients with congenital heart disease (CHD) is continuously increasing, and a significant proportion of these patients will experience arrhythmias because of the underlying congenital heart defect itself or as a consequence of interventional or surgical treatment. Arrhythmias are a leading cause of mortality, morbidity and impaired quality of life in adults with CHD. Arrhythmias may also occur in children with or without CHD. In light of the unique issues, challenges and considerations involved in managing arrhythmias in this growing, ageing and heterogeneous patient population and in children, it appears both timely and essential to critically appraise and synthesize optimal treatment strategies. The introduction of catheter ablation techniques has greatly improved the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias. However, catheter ablation in adults or children with CHD and in children without CHD is more technically demanding, potentially causing various complications, and thus requires a high level of expertise to maximize success rates and minimize complication rates. As French recommendations regarding required technical competence and equipment are lacking in this situation, the Working Group of Pacing and Electrophysiology of the French Society of Cardiology and the Affiliate Group of Paediatric and Adult Congenital Cardiology have decided to produce a common position paper compiled from expert opinions from cardiac electrophysiology and paediatric cardiology. The paper details the features of an interventional cardiac electrophysiology centre that are required for ablation procedures in adults with CHD and in children, the importance of being able to diagnose, monitor and manage complications associated with ablations in these patients and the supplemental hospital-based resources required, such as anaesthesia, surgical back-up, intensive care, haemodynamic assistance and imaging. Lastly, the need for quality evaluations and French registries of ablations in these populations is discussed. The purpose of this consensus statement is therefore to define optimal conditions for the delivery of invasive care regarding ablation of arrhythmias in adults with CHD and in children, and to provide expert and - when possible - evidence-based recommendations on best practice for catheter-based ablation procedures in these specific populations.

Regionalization of Congenital Heart Surgery in the United States.

The objective of this study is to simulate regionalization of congenital heart surgery (CHS) in the United States and assess the impact of such a system on travel distance and mortality. Patients ≤18 years of age who underwent CHS were identified in 2012 State Inpatient Databases. Operations were stratified by the Risk Adjustment for Congenital Heart Surgery, version 1 (RACHS-1) method, with high risk defined as RACHS-1 levels 4-6. Regionalization was simulated by progressive closure of hospitals, beginning with the lowest volume hospital. Patients were moved to the next closest hospital. Analyses were conducted (1) maintaining original hospital mortality rates and (2) estimating mortality rates based on predicted surgical volumes after absorbing moved patients. One hundred fifty-three hospitals from 36 states performed 1 or more operation (19,064 operations). With regionalization wherein, all hospitals performed >310 operations, 37 hospitals remained, from 12.5% to 17.4% fewer deaths occurred (83-116/666), and median patient travel distance increased from 38.5 to 69.6 miles (P < 0.01). When only high-risk operations were regionalized, 3.9-5.9% fewer deaths occurred (26-39/666), and the overall mortality rate did not change significantly. Regionalization of CHS in the United States to higher volume centers may reduce mortality with minimal increase in patient travel distance. Much of the mortality reduction may be missed if solely high-risk patients are regionalized.

Updating EuroSCORE by including emotional, behavioural, social and functional factors to the risk assessment of patients undergoing cardiac surgery: a study protocol.

INTRODUCTION: Conventional risk assessment in cardiac surgery focus on medical and physiological factors and have been developed to predict mortality. Other relevant risk factors associated with increased risk of poor outcomes are not included. Adding non-medical variables as potential prognostic factors to risk assessments direct attention away from specific diagnoses towards a more holistic view of the patients and their predicament. The aim of this paper is to describe the method and analysis plan for the development and validation of a prognostic screening tool as a supplement to the European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation (EuroSCORE) to predict mortality, readmissions and prolonged length of admission in patients within 90 days after cardiac surgery, as individual outcomes. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: The development of a prognostic screening tool with inclusion of emotional, behavioural, social and functional factors complementing risk assessment by EuroSCORE will adopt the methods recommended by the PROGnosis RESearch Strategy Group and report using the Transparent Reporting of a multivariable prediction model for Individual Prognosis Or Diagnosis statement. In the development stage, we will use data derived from three datasets comprising 1143, 3347 and 982 patients for a prospective cohort study of patients undergoing cardiac surgery, respectively. We will construct logistic regression models to predict mortality, prolonged length of admission and 90-day readmissions. In the validation stage, we will use data from a separate sample of 333 patients planned to undergo cardiac surgery to assess the performance of the developed prognostic model. We will produce validation plots showing the overall performance, area under the curve statistic for discrimination and the calibration slope and intercept. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The study will follow the requirements from the Ethical Committee System ensuring voluntary participation in accordance with the Helsinki declarations. Data will be filed in accordance with the requirements of the Danish Data Protection Agency.

Impact of intraoperative high-volume autologous blood collection on allogeneic transfusion during and after cardiac surgery: a propensity score matched analysis.

BACKGROUND: Perioperative use of allogeneic blood products is associated with higher morbidity, mortality, and hospital costs after cardiac surgery. Blood conservation techniques such as acute normovolemic hemodilution (ANH) report variable success. We hypothesized that large-volume ANH with limited hemodilution would reduce allogeneic blood transfusion compared to the standard practice. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: Retrospective observational study of cardiac surgery patients at the University of Maryland Medical Center between January 2014 and September 2017. Using the institutional Society of Thoracic Surgeons database 91 autologous and 981 control patients who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting, aortic valve replacement, or both were identified. After propensity matching of 13 preoperative characteristics, 84 autologous and 84 control patients were evaluated. Our primary endpoint was avoidance of blood transfusion during index hospitalization, and secondary endpoints were postoperative bleeding and major adverse outcomes. RESULTS: The median harvest volumes in the ANH and control groups were 1100 mL and 400 mL, respectively. Of the ANH group, 25% received any transfusion versus 45.2% of the control group after propensity score matching (p < 0.006). When controlling for preoperative platelet count, the transfusion rate ratios for ANH were 0.58 (95% confidence interval, 0.39-0.88) for RBCs and 0.63 (0.44-0.89) for non-RBC components, which were both found to be statistically significant. There was no difference found in major adverse events. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that large-volume ANH is beneficial in reducing both RBC and non-RBC component usage in cardiac surgery. A further prospective validation is warranted.

Long-term survival and quality of life in Jehovah's witnesses after cardiac surgery: a case control study.

BACKGROUND: We previously analyzed morbidity and mortality in Jehovah's Witnesses patients after cardiac surgery compared to control population patients. Patients who were Jehovah's Witnesses were operated in accordance with their philosophical convictions and in respect of their refusal of transfusions. We propose to assess long-term survival and quality of life in the patients of this preliminary study. METHODS: We contacted 31 adult Jehovah's Witnesses patients who underwent heart surgery at the Brugmann hospital between 1991 and 2012 and compared them to a control population of 62 patients that had no transfusion restriction, and matched them for sex, age at the time of intervention and the type of surgery performed. We compared long-term quality of life in both populations through the MacNew software, a validated instrument to assess quality of life of patients with cardiovascular disease. The long-term survival of patients was analyzed by Kaplan Meier curves. RESULTS: Long-term quality of life and survival do not appear different between the two groups. Patient evaluation by MacNew software shows comparable physical (p = 0.54), emotional (p = 0.12), social (p = 0.21) and global (p = 0.25) scores between the two populations. The analysis of the actuarial survival curves shows no differences in terms of long-term survival of these patients (p = 0.37). CONCLUSIONS: Cardiac surgery in Jehovah's Witnesses can be performed with identical long-term quality of life and survival compared to surgery without blood transfusion restriction, if one follows rigorous blood conserving strategies. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT03348072 . Retrospectively registered 16 November 2017.

The CoCoS trial: Caloric Control in Cardiac Surgery patients promotes survival, an interventional trial with retrospective control.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Malnutrition is widespread among cardiac surgery patients and is independently related to an adverse postoperative evolution or outcome. We aimed to assess whether nutrition therapy (NT) could alter caloric deficit, morbidity, and mortality in patients scheduled for non-emergency coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) or aortic valve surgery. METHODS: 351 patients undergoing either elective CABG or aortic valve surgery were studied. Patients receiving NT were enrolled from January 2013 until December 2014. A retrospective control group (CT) consisted of 142 matched patients. The primary endpoint was to evaluate whether NT could limit caloric deficit (Intake to Need Deviation). Secondary endpoints addressed the potential effect of NT on morbidity and mortality. Patients were followed for one year after surgery. RESULTS: There was no significant difference in patient, laboratory or mortality profile between the groups. Caloric deficit could be limited in the intervention group, essentially by providing oral feeding and oral supplements. A minority of patients required enteral or parenteral nutrition during their hospital stay. Caloric deficit increased after the second postoperative day because more patients were switched to oral feeding and intravenous infusions were omitted. Combining CABG and aortic valve surgery, male patients in the NT group had significantly less arrhythmia than in the CT group (7% versus 31%; P = 0.0056), while females in the NT group had significantly less pneumonia than in the CT group (7% versus 22%; P = 0.0183). Survival was significantly higher in female NT patients compared to CT patients, both for CABG (100% versus 83%; P = 0.0015) and aortic valve surgery (97% versus 78%; P = 0.0337). CONCLUSION: The results suggest that NT beneficially affects morbidity and mortality in elective cardiac surgery patients. The impact of NT seems more pronounced in women than in men. Registration: Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT02902341.

Mortality and Cerebrovascular Events After Heart Rhythm Disorder Management Procedures.

BACKGROUND: Recognition of rates and causes of hard, patient-centered outcomes of death and cerebrovascular events (CVEs) after heart rhythm disorder management (HRDM) procedures is an essential step for the development of quality improvement programs in electrophysiology laboratories. Our primary aim was to assess and characterize death and CVEs (stroke or transient ischemic attack) after HRDM procedures over a 17-year period. METHODS: We performed a retrospective cohort study of all patients undergoing HRDM procedures between January 2000 and November 2016 at the Mayo Clinic. Patients from all 3 tertiary academic centers (Rochester, Phoenix, and Jacksonville) were included in the study. All in-hospital deaths and CVEs after HRDM procedures were identified and were further characterized as directly or indirectly related to the HRDM procedure. Subgroup analysis of death and CVE rates was performed for ablation, device implantation, electrophysiology study, lead extraction, and defibrillation threshold testing procedures. RESULTS: A total of 48 913 patients (age, 65.7±6.6 years; 64% male) who underwent a total of 62 065 HRDM procedures were included in the study. The overall mortality and CVE rates in the cohort were 0.36% (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.31-0.42) and 0.12% (95% CI, 0.09-0.16), respectively. Patients undergoing lead extraction had the highest overall mortality rate at 1.9% (95% CI, 1.34-2.61) and CVE rate at 0.62% (95% CI, 0.32-1.07). Among patients undergoing HRDM procedures, 48% of deaths directly related to the HDRM procedure were among patients undergoing device implantation procedures. Overall, cardiac tamponade was the most frequent direct cause of death (40%), and infection was the most common indirect cause of death (29%). The overall 30-day mortality rate was 0.76%, with the highest being in lead extraction procedures (3.08%), followed by device implantation procedures (0.94%). CONCLUSIONS: Half of the deaths directly related to an HRDM procedure were among the patients undergoing device implantation procedures, with cardiac tamponade being the most common cause of death. This highlights the importance of the development of protocols for the quick identification and management of cardiac tamponade even in procedures typically believed to be lower risk such as device implantation.

Effect of high-dose sodium selenite in cardiac surgery patients: A randomized controlled bi-center trial.

BACKGROUND & AIMS: Cardiac surgery is accompanied by oxidative stress and systemic inflammatory response, which may be associated with organ dysfunction and increased mortality. Selenium and selenoenzymes are important constituents of anti-oxidative defense. We hypothesized that high-dose sodium selenite supplementation can attenuate the postoperative inflammation and might, therefore, improve clinical outcome. METHODS: Randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blinded, bi-center study on 411 adult patients undergoing elective cardiac surgery. Patients received an intravenous bolus of 4000 µg selenium (in the form of sodium selenite) or placebo after induction of anesthesia and 1000 µg/d selenium or placebo during their intensive care unit (ICU) stay. Primary outcome measure was the Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) score on the second postoperative day. Secondary endpoints included the change in perioperative selenium levels, change of inflammatory and cardiac markers, use of vasoactive medication, incidence of acute kidney injury, ICU and hospital length of stay, and mortality. RESULTS: The perioperative administration of high-dose sodium selenite prevented the postoperative drop of blood and serum selenium levels, reduced the number of patients depending on postoperative vasoactive support but failed to reduce the postoperative SOFA score and its related organ-specific scores compared to placebo. Except for an increase of postoperative procalcitonin and bilirubin levels in the sodium selenite group, other inflammatory markers, organ function variables and clinical endpoints remained unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: The perioperative administration of high-dose sodium selenite in cardiac surgery patients prevented the postoperative fall of blood selenium levels and reduced the need for postoperative vasoactive support by a yet unknown mechanism. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registered under ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier no. NCT01141556.

Ten-year outcomes of monomorphic ventricular tachycardia catheter ablation in repaired tetralogy of Fallot.

BACKGROUND: Monomorphic ventricular tachycardia (MVT) is common in adults with repaired tetralogy of Fallot (TOF), and is associated with sudden cardiac death. Management of MVT is not defined, and results of catheter ablation (CA) are limited. AIMS: To evaluate long-term outcomes of MVT CA in repaired TOF. METHODS: Thirty-four patients (mean age 32±10.3 years; 59% male) with repaired TOF underwent CA for symptomatic MVT between 1990 and 2012 in our centre; direct-current ablation (DCA) was used in 6%, radiofrequency followed by DCA in 29% and radiofrequency alone in 65%. RESULTS: Right ventricular (RV) dysfunction was present in 35% and left ventricular (LV) dysfunction in 21%. Mean numbers of clinical and induced MVTs were 1 and 2, respectively. Mean VT rate was 225±95bpm. Ablation targeted a single site (range 1-2), which was RV outflow tract in 85%. Primary success, defined as ventricular tachycardia (VT) termination during CA and final non-inducibility, was obtained in 82%. Seven patients (21%) required redo ablation in the first 3 months (before 2004; DCA). No death related to CA occurred. Mean follow-up time was 9.5±5.2 years. Antiarrhythmic therapy was discontinued in 71%. There were two cases of sudden cardiac death and four VT recurrences. Freedom from death and arrhythmia recurrence was 94% at 5 years, 81% at 10 years and 70% at 20 years. Global survival was 91% at 20 years. Baseline LV ejection fraction<60% was significantly associated with ventricular arrhythmia recurrence (hazard ratio 16.4, 95% confidence interval 1.8-147; P=0.01). CONCLUSIONS: CA can safely address macroreentrant MVT in repaired TOF patients with an acceptable long-term rate of recurrence in this high-risk population. Anatomical classification of isthmuses with electroanatomical mapping provides reproducible endpoints for CA. Attention should be given to LV systolic function in risk assessment and selection of candidates for implantable cardioverter-defibrillator.

Potassium and Magnesium Supplementation Do Not Protect Against Atrial Fibrillation After Cardiac Operation: A Time-Matched Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Despite a lack of demonstrated efficacy, potassium and magnesium supplementation are commonly thought to prevent postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) after cardiac operation. Our aim was to evaluate the natural time course of electrolyte level changes after cardiac operation and their relation to POAF occurrence. METHODS: Data were reviewed from 2,041 adult patients without preoperative AF who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting, valve operation, or both between 2009 and 2013. In patients with POAF, the plasma potassium and magnesium levels nearest to the first AF onset time were compared with time-matched electrolyte levels in patients without AF. RESULTS: POAF occurred in 752 patients (36.8%). At the time of AF onset or the matched time point, patients with POAF had higher potassium (4.30 versus 4.21 mmol/L, p < 0.001) and magnesium (2.33 versus 2.16 mg/dL, p < 0.001) levels than controls. A stepwise increase in AF risk occurred with increasing potassium or magnesium quintile (p < 0.001). On multivariate logistic regression analysis, magnesium level was an independent predictor of POAF (odds ratio 4.26, p < 0.001), in addition to age, Caucasian race, preoperative ß-blocker use, valve operation, and postoperative pneumonia. Prophylactic potassium supplementation did not reduce the POAF rate (37% versus 37%, p = 0.813), whereas magnesium supplementation was associated with increased POAF (47% versus 36%, p = 0.005). CONCLUSIONS: Higher serum potassium and magnesium levels were associated with increased risk of POAF after cardiac operation. Potassium supplementation was not protective against POAF, and magnesium supplementation was even associated with increased POAF risk. These findings help explain the poor efficacy of electrolyte supplementation in POAF prophylaxis.

A randomized controlled trial of levosimendan to reduce mortality in high-risk cardiac surgery patients (CHEETAH): Rationale and design.

OBJECTIVE: Patients undergoing cardiac surgery are at risk of perioperative low cardiac output syndrome due to postoperative myocardial dysfunction. Myocardial dysfunction in patients undergoing cardiac surgery is a potential indication for the use of levosimendan, a calcium sensitizer with 3 beneficial cardiovascular effects (inotropic, vasodilatory, and anti-inflammatory), which appears effective in improving clinically relevant outcomes. DESIGN: Double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter randomized trial. SETTING: Tertiary care hospitals. INTERVENTIONS: Cardiac surgery patients (n = 1,000) with postoperative myocardial dysfunction (defined as patients with intraaortic balloon pump and/or high-dose standard inotropic support) will be randomized to receive a continuous infusion of either levosimendan (0.05-0.2 µg/[kg min]) or placebo for 24-48 hours. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The primary end point will be 30-day mortality. Secondary end points will be mortality at 1 year, time on mechanical ventilation, acute kidney injury, decision to stop the study drug due to adverse events or to start open-label levosimendan, and length of intensive care unit and hospital stay. We will test the hypothesis that levosimendan reduces 30-day mortality in cardiac surgery patients with postoperative myocardial dysfunction. CONCLUSIONS: This trial is planned to determine whether levosimendan could improve survival in patients with postoperative low cardiac output syndrome. The results of this double-blind, placebo-controlled randomized trial may provide important insights into the management of low cardiac output in cardiac surgery.

Impact of antioxidant supplementations on cardio-renal protection in cardiac surgery: an updated and comprehensive meta-analysis and systematic review.

This systematic review with meta-analysis sought to determine the strength of evidence in terms of the impact of common antioxidant supplementations, such as N-acetylcysteine (NAC), vitamin C, and polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) on perioperative outcomes after cardiac surgery with particular focus on the incidence of atrial fibrillation (AF) and acute kidney injury (AKI) with associated mortality. A total of 29 trials were identified that reported incidence of AF and 17 trials that reported incidence of AKI. Pooled analysis reported that NAC (OR=0.5; P=.001), vitamin C (OR=0.4; P=.001), and PUFA (OR=0.8; P=.01) administration were associated with significantly reduced incidence of AF. In terms of postoperative AKI, only NAC was shown to be a beneficial supplement that was able to significantly reduce the incidence of AKI (OR=0.7; P=.01), and NAC could also significantly decrease overall mortality (OR=0.3; P=.03) following cardiac surgery. The use of NAC in patients undergoing cardiac surgery should be strongly recommended due to its combined cardio-renal protective effects and reduced mortality. Also, PUFA and vitamin C might be able to significantly decrease the incidence of arrhythmia; however, reno-protective effects and impact on overall mortality of these supplements seem to be less impressive.

Harnessing Teams and Technology to Improve Outcomes in Infants With Single Ventricle.

Infants with single ventricle require staged cardiac surgery, with stage I typically performed shortly after birth, stage II at 4 to 6 months of age, and stage III at 3 to 5 years of age. There is a high risk of interstage mortality and morbidity after infants are discharged from the hospital between stages I and II. Traditional home monitoring requires caregivers to record measurements of weight and oxygen saturation into a binder and requires families to assume a surveillance role. We have developed a tablet PC-based solution that provides secure and nearly instantaneous transfer of patient information to a cloud-based server, with the capacity for instant alerts to be sent to the caregiver team. The cloud-based IT infrastructure lends itself well to being able to be scaled to multiple sites while maintaining strict control over the privacy of each site. All transmitted data are transferred to the electronic medical record daily. The system conforms to recently released Food and Drug Administration regulation that pertains to mobile health technologies and devices. Since this platform was developed in March 2014, 30 patients have been monitored. There have been no interstage deaths. The experience of care providers has been unanimously positive. The addition of video has added to the use of the monitoring program. Of 30 families, 23 expressed a preference for the tablet PC over the notebook, 3 had no preference, and 4 preferred the notebook to the tablet PC.

SodiUm SeleniTe Adminstration IN Cardiac Surgery (SUSTAIN CSX-trial): study design of an international multicenter randomized double-blinded controlled trial of high dose sodium-selenite administration in high-risk cardiac surgical patients.

BACKGROUND: Cardiac surgery has been shown to result in a significant decrease of the antioxidant selenium, which is associated with the development of multiorgan dysfunction and increased mortality. Thus, a large-scale study is needed to investigate the effect of perioperative selenium supplementation on the occurrence of postoperative organ dysfunction. METHODS/DESIGN: We plan a prospective, randomized double-blind, multicenter controlled trial, which will be conducted in North and South America and in Europe. In this trial we will include 1,400 high-risk patients, who are most likely to benefit from selenium supplementation. This includes patients scheduled for non-emergent combined and/or complex procedures, or with a predicted operative mortality of ≥ 5% according to the EuroSCORE II. Eligible patients will be randomly assigned to either the treatment group (bolus infusion of 2,000 µg sodium selenite immediately prior to surgery, followed by an additional dosage of 2,000 µg at ICU admission, and a further daily supplementation of 1,000 µg up to 10 days or ICU discharge) or to the control group (placebo administration at the same time points).The primary endpoint of this study is a composite of 'persistent organ dysfunction' (POD) and/or death within 30 days from surgery (POD + death). POD is defined as any need for life-sustaining therapies (mechanical ventilation, vasopressor therapy, mechanical circulatory support, continuous renal replacement therapy, or new intermittent hemodialysis) at any time within 30 days from surgery. DISCUSSION: The SUSTAIN-CSX™ study is a multicenter trial to investigate the effect of a perioperative high dosage sodium selenite supplementation in high-risk cardiac surgical patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION: This trial was registered at Clinicaltrials.gov (identifier: NCT02002247) on 28 November 2013.

Cardiac resource utilization in adults at a freestanding children's hospital.

OBJECTIVE: This article aims to give a comprehensive description of cardiac resource utilization in adults at a freestanding children's hospital. DESIGN: Retrospective chart review. SETTING: Large, tertiary, freestanding children's hospital. PATIENTS: Adults (18 years of age and older) seen within the heart center or evaluated by heart center personnel from January 1, 2006 through December 31, 2010. RESULTS: There were 2794 adults that utilized cardiology services during the study period. The mean patient age was 23.5 ± 8.4 years (18-70.5). The 1748 (62.6%) patients had a diagnosis of congenital heart disease. There were a total of 525 catheterization laboratory encounters and 104 cardiac surgical procedures performed on adult patients during the 5-year study period. The in-hospital mortality for all invasive encounters was 0%. The minor adverse event rate for all invasive encounters was 6.7% and 4.8%, respectively. Also, the overall major adverse event rates were 1.9% and 4.8%, respectively. There were 162 cardiology evaluations performed on adults in the emergency room. There were a total of 5489 adult cardiology clinic visits. The most common congenital heart disease diagnoses were: tetralogy of Fallot: 228 (13%), D-transposition of the great arteries: 208 (11.9%), single ventricle physiology: 187 (10.7%), atrial septal defect 128: (7.3%), and ventricular septal defect: 117 (6.7%). Overall, the complexity of congenital heart disease was: simple: 41%, moderate: 37%, and complex: 22%. CONCLUSIONS: A significant and growing number of adult patients are currently being cared for at pediatric institutions. Excellent outcomes have been achieved at these centers with dedicated adult congenital heart disease services, consisting of both cardiologists and other faculty trained in adult medicine. Others with training in adult medicine, whether they be staff or contracted consulting services, are also required to help manage adult comorbidities.

Percutaneous edge-to-edge repair in high-risk and elderly patients with degenerative mitral regurgitation: midterm outcomes in a single-center experience.

OBJECTIVE: The study objective was to report the midterm outcomes of MitraClip implantation in inoperable or high-risk surgical candidates with degenerative mitral regurgitation. METHODS: From October 2008, data of all high-risk or elderly patients with severe degenerative mitral regurgitation who underwent MitraClip implantation were prospectively collected. RESULTS: Forty-eight high-risk consecutive patients with severe degenerative mitral regurgitation underwent MitraClip implantation (mean age, 78.5 ± 10.8 years; 56.6% of the patients were aged ≥ 80 years). Mean Society of Thoracic Surgeons score was 12% ± 10%, and 71% were in New York Heart Association class III or IV. Mean left ventricular ejection fraction was 57% ± 11%. The device was successfully implanted in 47 of 48 patients (98%). In-hospital mortality was 2%. The median intensive care unit stay was 22 hours; patients were discharged from the hospital in an average of 4.5 ± 2.4 days. Predischarge echocardiography showed a mitral regurgitation reduction to grade 2+ or less in 43 of 47 patients (91.5%). Actuarial survival was 89% ± 5.2% and 70.2% ± 9% at 1 and 2 years, respectively (82% ± 9% in patients aged <80 years and 95% ± 4.4% in patients aged ≥ 80 years at 1 year; P = .9). Freedom from mitral regurgitation 3+ or greater was 80% ± 7% at 1 year and 76.6% ± 7% at 2 years. At 1 year, 93% of survivors were in New York Heart Association class I or II (100% of patients aged <80 years and 88% of patients aged ≥ 80 years; P = .4). Significant quality of life improvements were documented. A significant improvement in 6-minute walk test performance was observed. CONCLUSIONS: MitraClip therapy is a valuable alternative to surgery in high-risk and elderly patients with degenerative mitral regurgitation. Clinical benefits also are obtained in octogenarians.

Risk-adjusted prolonged length of stay as an alternative outcome measure for pediatric congenital cardiac surgery.

BACKGROUND: Morbid events after pediatric congenital cardiac surgery are increasingly used for better outcome measurement and quality comparisons. This study was undertaken to evaluate the relationship between a hospital's risk-adjusted prevalence of prolonged postoperative length of stay (PLOS) and its risk-adjusted mortality rate to investigate whether PLOS can serve as an appropriate quality measure for pediatric congenital cardiac surgery. METHODS: Risk-adjusted prevalence of prolonged PLOS for 12 programs in New York State was estimated using data from 4,776 operations in the New York State pediatric Cardiac Surgery Reporting System (2006-2009). We used logistic regression analysis to adjust for case mix and patient risk factors. The hospital-level correlation between risk-adjusted prolonged PLOS and risk-adjusted mortality rates was examined using Spearman correlation coefficient analysis. RESULTS: Risk-adjusted prevalence of prolonged PLOS ranged from 7.48% to 36.52% for pediatric cardiac programs in New York State during the study period. The Spearman correlation test showed a strong positive relationship between a hospital's risk-adjusted prolonged PLOS and mortality rate (r = 0.83; p = 0.0008). CONCLUSIONS: Prolonged PLOS can be used in lieu of risk-adjusted mortality rates when it is not practical to use mortality rates owing to low case volume or decreasing mortality rates of some procedures.

Arrhythmias and sudden death among older children and young adults following tetralogy of Fallot repair in the current era: are previously reported risk factors still applicable?

BACKGROUND: Young adult patients (pts) with repaired tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) remain at risk for arrhythmias (Ar) and sudden cardiac death (SCD). Based on past studies with earlier pt subsets, Ar/SCD events were associated with right ventricular (RV) systolic pressures >60 mm Hg, outflow tract gradients >20 mm Hg, and QRS duration >180 ms. However, there are limited recent studies to evaluate these risk factors in the current patient generation. METHODS: Patients with TOF followed over the past 50 years were grouped by presence of any arrhythmias (group 1), absence of arrhythmias (group 2), and presence of SCD or significant ventricular arrhythmias (group 3) and correlated with current pt age, gender, age at repair, repair types, echocardiogram, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, electrocardiogram/Holter, hemodynamics, and electrophysiology findings. RESULTS: Of 109 pts, 52 were male aged 17-58 years. Of these, 59 (54%) had Ar, two of whom had SCD. These 59 pts were chronologically older at the time of analysis, with repair at an older age and wider QRS duration (78-240, mean 158 ms) when compared with those without Ar. However, there was no correlation with surgical era, surgical repair, gender, RV pressure >60 mm Hg, right ventricular outflow tract gradient >20 mm Hg, or RV end-diastolic volume on CMRI. CONCLUSIONS: Ar/SCD risk continues to correlate with repair age and advancing pt age. QRS duration is longer in these patients but at a shorter interval (mean 158 ms) and less RV pressure (mean 43 mm Hg) than previously reported. In the current TOF patient generation, neither surgical era, type of repair, RV outflow gradient nor RV volume correlate with Ar/SCD. Electrophysiologic testing to verify and identify arrhythmias remains clinically effective.