Treating a Large Thoracoabdominal Aneurysm With Aberrant Right Subclavian Artery With a Physician-Modified Graft.

CLINICAL IMPACT: Large thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms due to chronic aortic dissection in patients with connective tissue disorders such as Loeys-Dietz syndrome present a challenging scenario, particularly in cases of variant anatomy and when patients are not candidates for conventional open repair. We demonstrate how by combining and modifying off-the-shelf devices during a hybrid procedure, one can create an endovascular solution tailored to the patient's complex anatomy, making use of an aberrant right subclavian artery, and allow for good clinical outcomes.

Caution: Air Embolism Related to Heli-Fx EndoAnchor System in Zone 2 Thoracic Aneurysm Repair.

PURPOSE: We report a case of significant air embolization to the ascending aorta immediately following deployment of EndoAnchors in the aortic arch during a procedure to correct a type 1A endoleak. CASE REPORT: The novel Heli-Fx EndoAnchor system (Medtronic Vascular, Santa Rosa, CA, USA) was used to deploy helical anchors in the distal aortic arch during a procedure to correct a type 1A endoleak following Zone 2 thoracic endovascular aortic repair of a saccular proximal descending thoracic aorta aneurysm (DTAA). The patient developed ST-segment elevations principally in the inferior leads and severe hypotension moments after EndoAnchor deployment at the proximal edge of the endograft. Transesophageal echocardiogram revealed severe right ventricular hypokinesis and a large amount of air in the ascending aorta. Subsequent management and clinical and radiological 30-day follow-up is presented in addition to a review of the literature and ex vivo testing with the Heli-Fx system to examine potential causes and solutions. CONCLUSION: Precautions, such as pressurized saline infusion to the side port of guiding sheath, should be used whenever manipulating catheters and sheaths such as the EndoAnchor system in the aortic arch to prevent this potentially lethal complication.

Reoperative surgery on the thoracoabdominal aorta.

OBJECTIVE: Since the advent of endovascular repair for aortic aneurysms, many centers have justified the use of endovascular approaches in patients with previous open distal aortic repair by deeming these patients "high risk" because of their previous operation. We sought to determine whether patients who undergo reoperative repair for thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm (TAAA) have worse outcomes than patients who undergo non-reoperative repair. METHODS: We reviewed our data on 3379 TAAA repairs from 1986 to 2016. We compared patients' preoperative characteristics, surgical variables, and outcomes among reoperative (n = 726) and non-reoperative (n = 2653) cases. Furthermore, we examined reoperative indications to identify repairs performed because of repair failure (n = 93) and reoperations performed as an adjacent extension of repair (n = 633). A multivariable analysis was conducted to identify predictors of adverse events by using relevant preoperative and intraoperative factors. RESULTS: The operative mortality rate did not significantly differ between groups (8.1% for reoperative vs 7.3% for non-reoperative; P = .5); in addition, reoperative repair was not associated with an increased risk of adverse event. However, Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed that over the first 10 years, the reoperative groups fared significantly worse than the non-reoperative group (P < .001) (survival estimates at 10 years: 23.9% ± 4.9% for patients with repair failure, 28.4% ± 2.0% for those with extension of repair, and 40.1% ± 1.1% for non-reoperative repairs). CONCLUSIONS: We were unable to detect noteworthy differences in early outcomes between reoperative and non-reoperative TAAA repair. However, mid-term results indicate worse survival for patients who undergo reoperative surgery.

Single-Stage Hybrid Repair of Right Aortic Arch With Kommerell's Diverticulum.

Kommerell diverticulum is uncommon, and it carries risks of dissection or rupture. Hybrid aortic arch repair is being used increasingly for this pathology. We report the hybrid arch repair of Kommerell diverticulum in a 72-year-old woman known for muscular dystrophy and right aortic arch with aberrant left subclavian artery. Head-vessel debranching was performed through median sternotomy using a handmade, bifurcated, Dacron graft. Stent-grafting was performed from the ascending aorta to the proximal descending aorta. To our knowledge, this report is the first description of debranching using a custom-made graft for hybrid repair of Kommerell diverticulum.

Pseudoaneurysm as a Late Complication of Hybrid Aortic Arch Repair.

Hybrid aortic arch repair is increasingly used for the management of aortic arch aneurysm. Pseudoaneurysm is a newly described late complication of this procedure. A 57-year-old man underwent emergent supra-aortic debranching and aortic arch stent grafting after rupture of an arch aneurysm. Three years later, the patient presented with a pseudoaneurysm at the junction between the stent graft's proximal landing zone and the origin of the debranching graft. At reoperative repair, the proximal stent graft had eroded through the aortic wall at the junction of the endograft proximal landing zone and the proximal anastomosis of the debranching graft. The presence of a dilated, fragile ascending aorta at the initial procedure seemed to be a risk factor for development of the pseudoaneurysm. Replacement of the ascending aorta combined with supra-aortic debranching has become an accepted strategy in hybrid arch repair to establish a suitable landing zone for the endograft.

Selection of Valve Prostheses.

The lack of an ideal prosthetic heart valve leaves surgeons and their patients with a difficult choice at the time of valve replacement surgery. Current guidelines mainly emphasize patient age, contraindications to anticoagulation, and patient desires in their recommendations for the type of prosthesis to implant. Aortic valve replacement is the most frequently performed valve replacement, and 5 articles in recent years have presented important data on outcomes with different prosthesis types. The findings suggest that in young patients, transvalvular prosthesis gradients have an effect on long-term bioprosthesis durability. Use of the bioprosthesis with the best hemodynamic profile for each patient may improve prosthesis longevity and negate the advantages of mechanical valves. In older patients, the new sutureless bioprostheses appear to facilitate surgical aortic valve replacement and become an alternative to transcatheter technologies in medium- to high-risk patients.

Preoperative vascular imaging for predicting intraoperative modification of peripheral arterial cannulation during minimally invasive mitral valve surgery.

OBJECTIVE: Minimally invasive mitral valve surgery using peripheral cannulation for cardiopulmonary bypass (CBP) is increasingly prevalent. Although conceptually straightforward, peripheral CBP involves challenges and risks specific to this method of perfusion. The utility of preoperative vascular imaging in predicting these technical challenges and preventing vascular complications was studied. METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of 73 consecutive patients undergoing minimally invasive mitral valve surgery using femorofemoral CBP with intraluminal aortic occlusion balloon catheter. All patients underwent preoperative computed tomography angiogram or magnetic resonance angiography to study the iliofemoral axes. RESULTS: None of the patients operated with this technique was found to have arterial stenoses. Patients with a femoral artery diameter of less than 7.3 mm needed bilateral or side-graft arterial cannulation significantly more frequently than patients with larger femoral arteries (46.2% vs 9.1%, P = 0.001). There was a trend toward more frequent modification of arterial cannulation strategy in patients with body surface area less than 1.7 m compared with larger patients (body surface area, 1.7-2.0) (26.3% vs 8.3%, P = 0.07). Patients needing high CBP flow rate (>5 L/min) were no more likely to need dual arterial cannulation (18.2% vs 19.1%, P = 0.68). No patient experienced a vascular complication. CONCLUSIONS: This preliminary study suggests that preoperative vascular imaging and patient evaluation may predict difficulties with femoral cannulation and perfusion, which can lead to better preoperative planning and potentially prevent vascular complications. Further data will be accumulated and analyzed to confirm these findings.

Knowledge, attitudes, and practice patterns in surgical management of bicuspid aortopathy: a survey of 100 cardiac surgeons.

OBJECTIVE: Clinical practice guidelines have been established for surgical management of the aorta in bicuspid aortic valve disease. We hypothesized that surgeons' knowledge of and attitudes toward bicuspid aortic valve aortopathy influence their surgical approaches. METHODS: We surveyed cardiac surgeons to probe the knowledge of, attitudes toward, and surgical management of bicuspid aortopathy. A total of 100 Canadian adult cardiac surgeons participated. RESULTS: Fifty-two percent of surgeons believed that the mechanism underlying aortic dilation in those with bicuspid aortic valve was due to an inherent genetic abnormality of the aorta, whereas only 2% believed that altered valve-related processes were involved in this process. Only a minority (15%) believed that bicuspid valve leaflet fusion type is associated with a unique pattern of aortic dilatation aortic phenotype. Sixty-five percent of surgeons recommended echocardiographic screening of first-degree relatives of patients with bicuspid aortic valve. Most surgeons (61%) elected to replace the aorta when the diameter is 45 mm or greater at the time of valve surgery. Fifty-five percent of surgeons surveyed suggested that in the absence of concomitant valvular disease, they would recommend ascending aortic replacement at a threshold of 50 mm or greater. Approximately one third of surgeons suggested that they would elect to replace a mildly dilated ascending aorta (40 mm) at the time of valve surgery. The most common surgical approach (61%) for combined valve and aortic surgery was aortic valve replacement and supracoronary replacement of the ascending aorta, and only a minority suggested the use of deep hypothermic circulatory arrest and open distal anastomosis. More aggressive approaches were favored with greater surgeon experience, and when circulatory arrest was chosen, the majority (68%) suggested they would use antegrade cerebral perfusion. In the setting of aortic insufficiency and a dilated aorta, 42% of surgeons suggested that they would perform valve-sparing surgery. Of note, 40% of respondents used an index measure of aortic size to body surface area in addition to absolute aortic diameter in assessing the threshold for intervention. CONCLUSIONS: This large survey uncovered significant gaps in the knowledge and attitudes of surgeons toward the diagnosis and management of bicuspid aortopathy, many of which were at odds with current guideline recommendations. Efforts to promote knowledge translation in this area are strongly encouraged.

Decreased incidence of low output syndrome with a switch from tepid to cold continuous minimally diluted blood cardioplegia in isolated coronary artery bypass grafting.

OBJECTIVES: The optimal temperature for blood cardioplegia remains unclear. METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on 138 patients undergoing isolated myocardial revascularization by a single surgeon in our institution over a period of 2 years. Patients operated on early in the study period received tepid (29°C) continuous minimally diluted blood cardioplegia (minicardioplegia), delivered in an antegrade continuous fashion. Later, our surgeon began using cold (7°C) blood minicardioplegia in all patients. Data pertaining to clinical outcomes and postoperative biochemical data were obtained, and the two groups were compared. RESULTS: Low cardiac output syndrome, defined as the need for intra-aortic balloon pump counter pulsation or inotropic medication for haemodynamic instability, was more frequent in the tepid cardioplegia group than in the cold cardioplegia group (16.0 vs 2.4%, P = 0.006). There was no difference in the maximal serum creatine kinase MB between the two groups (cold 25.4 ± 3.21 µg/ml vs tepid 36.5 ± 7.10 µg/ml, P = 0.62), in the rates of perioperative myocardial infarction (cold 1.2% vs tepid 6.0%, P = 0.15) and the need for postoperative insertion of an intra-aortic balloon pump (cold 4.8% vs tepid 0.0%, P = 0.3). There was no other statistically significant difference between the two groups in the measured parameters. CONCLUSIONS: A higher rate of low cardiac output syndrome in the tepid cardioplegia group suggests inferior myocardial protection with the tepid cardioplegia. Cold cardioplegia may provide better protection than tepid cardioplegia when minicardioplegia is used.

Pure red cell aplasia and associated thymoma.

Pure red cell aplasia is a rare cause of anemia, caused by an absence of red blood cell precursors in the bone marrow. It is usually a paraneoplastic syndrome, associated most commonly with large-cell granular lymphocyte leukemia but also thymoma. For patients who present both pure red cell aplasia and thymoma, thymectomy leads to an initial remission of the aplasia in 30% of cases. However, sustained remission may require the addition of medications such as corticosteroids, cyclosporine, or cyclophosphamide. We present a case of pure red cell aplasia associated with a thymoma in an otherwise healthy 80 year-old woman.

Successful treatment of heart failure due to acute transplant rejection with the Impella LP 5.0.

Cardiogenic shock resulting from transplant rejection is a serious complication with high mortality and morbidity. Often resistant to maximal medical therapy, this condition frequently requires mechanical circulatory support until recovery or retransplantation. We present a 52-year-old patient with multiorgan failure secondary to acute graft rejection after orthotopic heart transplantation. Maximal medical therapy was not successful, and the patient was bridged to recovery with an Impella LP 5.0 (Abiomed Inc, Danvers, MA) left ventricular assist device (LVAD). The relative merits of this therapeutic approach are outlined and discussed. The patient was discharged 3 weeks after LVAD removal and remains clinically stable.

The Impella LP 5.0 as a bridge to long-term circulatory support.

Multi-organ failure (MOF) secondary to bi-ventricular cardiac dysfunction is a major therapeutic challenge. In addition to aggressive medical therapy, it frequently requires circulatory support with uni- or bi-ventricular assist devices. The Impella LP 5.0 is a new microaxial left ventricular assist device (LVAD). Microaxial LVADs have been used for short-term circulatory support in patients with cardiogenic shock due to myocarditis, post coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), or during high-risk percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI). We present a case of a patient in bi-ventricular failure successfully bridged to permanent circulatory support. Relative merits of this therapeutic approach are outlined and discussed.