RESUMEN
BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Having anecdotally noted a high frequency of lobar-restricted cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) mimicking cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) in patients with previous cardiac surgery (especially valve replacement) presenting to our transient ischaemic attack (TIA) clinic, we set out to objectively determine the frequency and distribution of microbleeds in this population. METHODS: We performed a retrospective comparative cohort study in consecutive patients presenting to two TIA clinics with either: (1) previous coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) (n=41); (2) previous valve replacement (n=41) or (3) probable CAA (n=41), as per the Modified Boston Criteria, without prior cardiac surgery. Microbleed number and distribution was determined and compared. RESULTS: At least one lobar-restricted microbleed was found in the majority of cardiac surgery patients (65%) and 32/82 (39%) met diagnostic criteria for CAA. Valve replacement patients had a higher microbleed prevalence (90 vs 51%, p<0.01) and lobar-restricted microbleed count (2.6±2.7 vs 1.0±1.4, p<0.01) than post-CABG patients; lobar-restricted microbleed count in both groups was substantially less than in CAA patients (15.5±20.4, p<0.01). In postcardiac surgery patients, subcortical white matter (SWM) microbleeds were proportionally more frequent compared with CAA patients. Receiver operator curve analysis of a 'location-based' ratio (calculated as SWM/SWM+strictly-cortical CMBs), revealed an optimal ratio of 0.45 in distinguishing cardiac surgery-associated microbleeds from CAA (sensitivity 0.56, specificity 0.93, area under the curve 0.71). CONCLUSION: Lobar-restricted microbleeds are common in patients with past cardiac surgery, however a higher proportion of these CMBs involve the SWM than in patients with CAA.
RESUMEN
In the development of a left ventricular assist device (LVAD), it is important to evaluate the LVAD's hemodynamic effect on the compromised left ventricle (LV) before surgical implantation. The mock circulatory loop (MCL) is widely accepted as an in vitro test platform to evaluate LVADs across a wide range of operational conditions as a way to examine how the device and the cardiovascular system interact. Unfortunately, most MCLs represent an oversimplified model of cardiac function, with disease states simulated through generalized changes in heart rate and stroke volume. Because heart failure (HF) severity varies substantially among patients, an MCL is needed that can mimic the pressure-volume loop of an individual patient. In this work, two numerical elastance models, derived from a specific pressure volume loop template, were used to control the LV simulator of the MCL to simulate different degrees of HF. The numerical elastance model was then scaled to change the slopes of the end-systolic (ESPVR) and end-diastolic (EDPVR) pressure volume relationship curves to simulate systolic and diastolic dysfunction. The resulting experimental pressure volume loops are consistent with theoretical loops, demonstrating the feasibility of creating an MCL that can be customized for the patient.