Delayed Diagnosis of Pulmonary Artery Thrombosis in a Patient Undergoing Mitral Valve Replacement.

ABSTRACT: The occurrence of pulmonary artery thrombus in association with rheumatic mitral stenosis is a rare complication. Pulmonary artery thrombus formation may worsen pulmonary artery pressures, and this may precipitate acute right heart failure. The possible mechanisms behind pulmonary artery thrombus formation during mitral valve replacement surgery could be acute coagulopathy following surgery, the presence of chronic pulmonary thromboembolism, or chronic atrial fibrillation. We report an unusual case of pulmonary artery thrombus in a patient with rheumatic MS which was diagnosed with transoesophageal echocardiography after MVR.

Efficacy of Incisional Ropivacaine Infiltration by Presternal Multi-Orifice Catheter for Post-sternotomy Pain Relief in Pediatric Patients Undergoing Cardiac Surgery: A Prospective, Randomized, Controlled Study.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the efficacy of incisional ropivacaine infiltration by presternal multi-orifice catheter to manage poststernotomy pain in pediatric cardiac surgery. DESIGN: A prospective, randomized, and double-blind comparative study. SETTING: At a single-institution tertiary referral cardiac center. PARTICIPANTS: The study comprised 200 children undergoing cardiac surgeries through a midline sternotomy. INTERVENTIONS: Children were allocated randomly to 1 of 3 groups. Group A (n = 65) and group B (n = 64) received 0.375% ropivacaine infusion and intermittent bolus, respectively, by presternal multi-orifice catheter, whereas Group C (n = 64) did not receive any local anesthetic (LA) drug. Postoperatively, intravenous paracetamol was used for multimodal analgesia, and fentanyl was given as rescue analgesia, respectively. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Pain was assessed by a Modified Objective Pain Score (MOPS) for 48 hours postextubation. Group B had significantly lower early MOPS at the first hour, but in the later period, the mean MOPS was lower in group A. The requirement of the first rescue analgesia was 3 ± 1.51, 6.1 ± 2.26, and 2.6 ± 0.87 hours for groups A (n = 60), B (n = 60), and C (n = 60), respectively. The 48-hour fentanyl consumption was significantly lower (p < 0.001) in group A (0.5 ± 0.68 µg/kg) and group B (0.7 ± 0.86 µg/kg) than the control group (3.4 ± 0.68 µg/kg). The length of intensive care unit stay was lower (p < 0.001) in groups A and B than in group C; however, the length of hospital stay was comparable (p = 0.07). CONCLUSION: LA bolus and infusion through presternal multi-orifice catheter provided effective analgesia postoperatively. However, the bolus was more efficacious in the early phase but equivalent in later periods. Therefore, bolus and LA infusion can be used for steady poststernotomy pain relief in children undergoing cardiac surgeries.

Comparison of Left Ventricular Global Longitudinal Strain with Ejection Fraction as a Predictor for Peri-operative IABP Insertion in Patients Undergoing Off-Pump Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting: A Pilot Study.

Background: Prophylactic use of intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) mainly depends on left ventricular (LV) systolic function. Global longitudinal strain (GLS) is a robust prognostic parameter for LV strain. It has proved to be more sensitive than LV ejection fraction (EF) as a measure of LV systolic function and is a strong predictor of outcome. Aim: To determine whether GLS can be used as a reliable marker and its cut-off value for IABP insertion in patients undergoing elective off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCABG). Settings and Design: A prospective observational clinical study which included 100 adult patients scheduled for elective OPCABG. Materials and Methods: Two-dimensional (2D) speckle tracking echocardiography (STE)-estimated GLS was computed and compared with LV EF measured by three dimensional (3D) echocardiography for the insertion of IABP. The intensive care unit (ICU) parameters were correlated with echocardiographic parameters to predict early post-operative outcome. Results: IABP insertion correlates better with GLS (post-revascularization > pre-revascularization) than with 3D LV EF. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis revealed the highest area under the curve (AUC, 0.972) with a cut-off value of > -9.8% for GLS compared to 3D LV EF (AUC, 0.938) with a cut-off value of ≤ 44%. ICU parameters show better correlation with E/e'> GLS > WMSI than 3D LV EF. Conclusion: GLS is a better predictor of IABP insertion compared to 3D LV EF in patients undergoing OPCABG.

Williams-Beuren syndrome with pseudoaneurysm of aortic arch and infective vegetations for modified broms procedure: anesthetic concerns & Echocardiographic illustrations.

Williams-Beuren syndrome is a rare genetic malformation with predilection for supravalvular aortic stenosis. Apart from cardiovascular malformation, hypocalcemia, developmental delay, and elfin facies, challenging airway make perioperative management more eventful. Association of infective endocarditis within the aortic arch and pseudoaneurysm formation is infrequent. We, hereby report a case of pseudoaneurysm formation and infective vegetation within the aortic arch in a patient with Williams syndrome and the role of transthoracic echocardiography in its perioperative management.

Haemodynamic predisposition to acute kidney injury: Shadow and light!

Acute kidney injury (AKI) could well be regarded as a sentinel complication given it is relatively common and associated with a substantial risk of subsequent morbidity and mortality. On the aegis of 'prevention is better than cure', there has been a wide interest in evaluating haemodynamic predisposition to AKI so as to provide a favourable renoprotective haemodynamic milieu to the subset of patients presenting a significant risk of developing AKI. In this context, the last decade has witnessed a series of evaluation of the hypotension value and duration cut-offs associated with risk of AKI across diverse non-operative and operative settings. Nevertheless, a holistic comprehension of the haemodynamic predisposition to AKI has been a laggard with only few reports highlighting the potential of elevated central venous pressure, intra-abdominal hypertension and high mean airway pressures in considerably attenuating the effective renal perfusion, particularly in scenarios where kidneys are highly sensitive to any untoward elevation in the afterload. Despite the inherent autoregulatory mechanisms, the effective renal perfusion pressure (RPP) can be modulated by a number of haemodynamic factors in addition to mean arterial pressure (MAP) as the escalation of renal interstitial pressure, in particular hampers kidney perfusion which in itself is a dynamic interplay of a number of innate pressures. The present article aims to review the subject of haemodynamic predisposition to AKI centralising the focus on effective RPP (over and above the conventional 'tunnel-vision' for MAP) and discuss the relevant literature accumulating in this area of ever-growing clinical interest.

Is menstruation a valid reason to postpone cardiac surgery?

Background: Cancellation of any scheduled surgery is a significant drain on health resources and potentially stressful for patients. It is frequent in menstruating women who are scheduled to undergo open heart surgery (OHS), based on the widespread belief that it increases surgical and menstrual blood loss. Aims: The aim of this study was to evaluate blood loss in women undergoing OHS during menstruation. Settings and Design: A prospective, matched case-control study which included sixty women of reproductive age group undergoing OHS. Patients and Methods: The surgical blood loss was compared between women who were menstruating (group-M; n = 25) and their matched controls, i.e., women who were not menstruating (group-NM; n = 25) at the time of OHS. Of the women in group M, the menstrual blood loss during preoperative (subgroup-P) and perioperative period (subgroup-PO) was compared to determine the effect of OHS on menstrual blood loss. Results: The surgical blood loss was comparable among women in both groups irrespective of ongoing menstruation (gr-M = 245.6 ± 120.1 ml vs gr-NM = 243.6 ± 129.9 ml, P value = 0.83). The menstrual blood loss was comparable between preoperative and perioperative period in terms of total menstrual blood loss (gr-P = 36.8 ± 4.8 ml vs gr-PO = 37.7 ± 5.0 ml, P value = 0.08) and duration of menstruation (gr-P = 4.2 ± 0.6 days vs gr-PO = 4.4 ± 0.6 days, P value = 0.10). Conclusion: Neither the surgical blood loss nor the menstrual blood loss is increased in women undergoing OHS during menstruation.

Unforeseen rupture of pseudoaneurysm of common carotid artery: An arduous anesthetic challenge.

Pseudoaneurysm of the common carotid artery (CCA) is exceptionally unstable and unpredictable; it mandates quick medical attention in order to circumvent neurologic sequelae or hemorrhage. Unanticipated rupture is extremely lethal and a potential provocation for the anesthesia caregiver. It is an arduous challenge for an anesthetist to establish emergency airway when a huge bleeding pseudoaneurysm is compressing and deviating the trachea, securing invasive lines in collapsing vessels, volume and vasopressor resuscitation in deteriorating hemodynamics in order to maintain cerebral perfusion without compromising other vital organs, arranging huge amount of blood and blood products in a short span of time, and transferring an exsanguinating patient for the rapid institution of cardiopulmonary bypass. Not only preoperatively it also necessitates appropriate neuromonitoring and neuroprotection during and after surgery. The association of unforeseen rupture of common carotid artery pseudoaneurysm secondary to the tubercular spine and lifesaving management by the rapid institution of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) is a rare occasion. To the best of the authors' knowledge, there is not any similar case in the peer-reviewed literature. Therefore, the authors enumerate the clinical experience of an unexpected rupture of CCA pseudoaneurysm requiring lifesaving CPB and emphasize the "Timely Teamed Effort Approach" that can sustain a life in such an inevitable situation.

Perioperative myocardial injury and infarction following non-cardiac surgery: A review of the eclipsed epidemic.

The perioperative period induces unpredictable and significant alterations in coronary plaque characteristics which may culminate as adverse cardiovascular events in background of a compromised myocardial oxygen supply and demand balance. This "ischemic-imbalance" provides a substrate for perioperative cardiac adversities which incur a considerable morbidity and mortality. The propensity of myocardial injury is dictated by the conglomeration of various factors like pre-existing medical condition, high-risk surgical interventions, intraoperative hemodynamic management, and the postoperative care. Perioperative myocardial infarction (PMI) differs from myocardial infarction (MI) in a non-operative setting. PMI can often be notoriously "silent" demonstrating a conspicuous absence of the classic clinical symptoms. Moreover, myocardial injury following non-cardiac surgery (MINS) characterized by an elevation of the cardiac insult biomarkers has demonstrated an independent prognostic significance in the perioperative scenario despite the lack of a formal categorization as PMI. This has evoked interest in the meticulous characterization of MINS as a discrete clinical entity. Multifactorial etiology, varying symptomatology, close differential diagnosis, and a debatable management regime makes perioperative myocardial injury-infarction, a subject of detailed discussion.

Norepinephrine in Sepsis: Looking beyond Vasoconstriction!

How to cite this article: Magoon R, Kaushal B, Das D, Jangid SK. Norepinephrine in Sepsis: Looking beyond Vasoconstriction! IJCCM 2019;23(11):544.