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Background: In the absence of uniform European regulations, there have been many differences in the training of perfusionists across Europe. Furthermore, there has been no uniform or single European accreditation of the profession. One of the objectives of The European Board of Cardiovascular Perfusion (EBCP) is to standardise and monitor training of perfusionists across Europe whilst offering support in accordance with national regulations. This goal is particularly imminent as there have been numerous newly founded National perfusion societies, particularly from Eastern European countries, which are now established members of EBCP.Purpose: In this article, we provide an updated overview or 'snapshot' of current European perfusion training programs that were accessible in 2022. Nationally acquired data refers to 2022 unless stated otherwise. The last overview of Perfusion education in Europe was reported over 15 years ago including 20 countries.Research Design: For this report thirty-two national EBCP delegates plus representatives from Austria were contacted at the beginning of 2023 to complete a pro forma questionnaire about their national perfusion training programmes. The data has been summarized in this article and five additional derived parameters were calculated.Results: We received responses from 31 countries, providing specific national training characteristics which are summarized, listed and benchmarked by country in this article.Conclusion: There have been several national and supranational initiatives towards the recognition of perfusion as a profession in Europe, however so far without success for the majority of countries. For this reason, it remains essential for EBCP, as the only European professional perfusionist body, to define education standards and competencies for perfusionists and to monitor training by accreditation of dedicated perfusion schools across Europe.
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Transcatheter pulmonary valve implantation has been a well-known method for more than a decade, but there are still many challenging cases when a personalized solution is needed. We report a case of a 15-year-old female patient with tetralogy of Fallot, who underwent a surgical correction during infancy. Because of progressive pulmonary regurgitation, stenosis, and right ventricle dilatation, transcatheter pulmonary valve implantation in the native right ventricle outflow tract (RVOT) using Edwards SAPIEN valve was performed. A "landing zone" was created prior to the intervention of stenting the RVOT and the right pulmonary artery. The transcatheter approach for pulmonary valve replacement in a native RVOT is a reasonable alternative to the surgical approach.
RESUMEN
PURPOSE: Patients transferred from an intensive care unit (ICU) to a general ward are at risk for clinical deterioration. The aim of the study was to determine if an increase in National Early Warning Score (NEWS) value predicted worse outcomes in surgical ward patients previously treated in the ICU. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective observational study was conducted in a cohort of gastrointestinal surgery patients after transfer from an ICU/high dependency unit (HDU). NEWS values were collected throughout the ward admission. Clinical deterioration was defined by ICU readmission or death. The ability of NEWS to predict clinical deterioration was determined using a linear mixed effect model. RESULTS: We included 124 patients, age 65.9±14.5, 60% males with an ICU Simplified Acute Physiology Score II 33.8±12.7. No patients died unexpectedly at the ward and 20 were readmitted to an ICU/HDU. The NEWS values increased by a mean of 0.15 points per hour (intercept 3.7, P<0.001) before ICU/HDU readmission according to the linear mixed effect model. NEWS at transfer from ICU was the only factor that predicted readmission (OR 1.32; 95% CI 1.01-1.72; P=0.04) at the time of admission to the ward. CONCLUSION: Clinical deterioration of surgical patients was preceded by an increase in NEWS.
