Coronary pseudoaneurysm with a superficial mass and accompanying Brucella infection.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: To our knowledge, no previously reported clinical data of a coronary artery fistula forming a pseudoaneurysm and presenting as a anterior chest wall lump. We reported a rare case of Coronary pseudoaneurysm with a superficial mass and accompanying Brucella infection. The patient was successfully treated with surgery. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The patient case data was extracted from hospital records. RESULTS: A 64-year-old male presented with a history of paroxysmal left-sided chest pain and painful anterior chest wall lump. Coronary computed tomography (CT) angiography revealed the RCA pseudoaneurysm that showed a peripherally calcified soft-tissue mass in the anterior mediastinum and communicated with the chest wall lump through intercostal spaces. The patient underwent the resection of chest lump and RCA pseudoaneurysm under cardiopulmonary bypass, along with a combined antimicrobial therapy. The patient was discharged successfully after the surgery. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: We report this rare case and highlight the possible origin of the anterior mediastinal mass and anterior chest wall lump as a pseudoaneurysm formed by a coronary artery fistula.

The role of carotid artery stenosis in predicting stroke after coronary artery bypass grafting in a Chinese cohort study.

Current guidelines give priority to surgical treatment of carotid artery stenosis (CAS) before coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), especially in symptomatic patients. Carotid artery stenting is an alternative treatment for narrowing of the carotid arteries. This study sought to demonstrate the role of severe CAS in predicting stroke after CABG and assess the efficacy of carotid artery stenting in preventing postoperative stroke in a Chinese cohort. From 2015 to 2021, 1799 consecutive patients undergoing isolated CABG surgery were retrospectively recruited in a Chinese cohort. The predictive value of severe CAS in postoperative stroke and carotid stenting in preventing postoperative stroke was statistically analyzed. The incidence of postoperative stroke was 1.67%. The incidence of CAS with stenosis ≥ 50% and ≥ 70% was 19.2% and 6.9%. After propensity matching, the incidence of stroke was 8.0% in the severe CAS group and 0% in the non-severe CAS group. We successfully established an optimal predictive nomogram for predicting severe CAS in patients undergoing CABG. Carotid artery stenting was found ineffective in preventing postoperative stroke. The present study provides the incidence of CAS and postoperative stroke in a Chinese cohort, identifies severe CAS as an independent risk factor for postoperative stroke after CABG, constructs a nomogram predicting the incidence of severe CAS, and evaluates the effectiveness of carotid artery stenting in preventing postoperative stroke after CABG.