Comparison of post-operative and pulmonary morbidity due to subxiphoid and midaxillary chest drainage tubes after coronary artery bypass grafting.

AIM: pain and pulmonary morbidity in patients who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) using left internal thoracic artery (LITA) grafting. MATERIAL AND METHOD: The study was prospective and included 40 patients who underwent elective isolated CABG with pedicled LITA grafts. Patients were divided into two groups according to the method used to place chest drainage tubes. Group 1 (n=20) had the left chest drain tube inserted through the sixth intercostal space along the anterior axillary line (mid-axillary approach), and Group 2 (n=20) had the left chest drain tube inserted through the midline inferior to the xiphoid process (subxiphoid approach). We evaluated the groups in terms of postoperative pain, pulmonary morbidity, amount of chest tube drainage, need for analgesic agents, and length of hospital stay. RESULTS: In group 1, the pain was significantly higher during mobilization and drain removal (p<0.05) but was similar at rest. In Group 1 and Group 2, pulmonary morbidity rates were statistically similar for pleural effusion (2 vs. 5; p=0.40), atelectasis (2 vs. 5; p=0.40), and pneumothorax after drain removal (1 vs. 0; p=1.00). Two of the patients with pleural effusion in Group 2 underwent thoracentesis. There was no difference between the two groups regarding the amount of chest tube drainage, cumulative doses of an analgesic agent, and length of hospital stay (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: According to these results, both procedures can be used safely for chest drainage tube placement after CABG. KEY WORDS: Chest Pain, Chest Tubes, Coronary Artery Bypass, Complications, Drainage, Postoperative.

Sarcopenia is a risk factor for major adverse cardiac events after surgical revascularization for critical limb ischemia.

OBJECTIVES: We examined the effect of sarcopenia on early surgical outcomes in patients with critical limb ischemia (CLI) in terms of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) and major adverse limb events (MALE), as well as the value of inflammatory markers of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte (NLR) and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratios (PLR) as indicators of sarcopenia in CLI patients. METHODS: This was an observational retrospective single-center study. Patients who required surgical revascularization for CLI between October 2015 and December 2020 were identified. Psoas muscle areas were calculated from computed tomography images for psoas muscle index (PMI) calculations. Sarcopenia was defined as PMI < 5.5 cm2/m2 for men and PMI < 4.0 cm2/m2 for women. Risk factors for 30-day major adverse cardiac events (MACE) and major adverse limb events (MALE) were analyzed. NLR and PLR were compared between sarcopenic and non-sarcopenic patients. RESULTS: The mean age of 217 study patients was 61.5 ± 10.9, and 16 (7.4%) patients were female. 82 (37.8%) patients were sarcopenic. Patients with sarcopenia were older (65.1 ± 9.3 vs 59.4 ± 11.2, p < .001) and history of myocardial infarction was more frequent (23.2% vs 12.6%, p = 0.042) among sarcopenic patients. Sarcopenic patients more frequently encountered MACE (9.8% vs 0.7%, p = 0.002), but not MALE. Sarcopenia increased early postoperative MACE in our cohort with an odds ratio of 11.925. NLR was not different between the two groups, while PLR was higher (127.16 vs 104.06, p = 0.010) among sarcopenic patients. The platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio of 125.11 had a sensitivity of 53.7% and a specificity of 68.1% for differentiating sarcopenia. CONCLUSIONS: Sarcopenia was associated with more frequent 30-day MACE and perioperative mortality after revascularization for CLI. 30-day MALE was not increased in patients with sarcopenia. The use of PLR as a simple marker of sarcopenia is limited by its low sensitivity and specificity.

Prognostic value of TAPSE/PASP ratio in right ventricular failure after left ventricular assist device implantation: Experience from a tertiary center.

Background: In this study, we aimed to investigate the prognostic value of the tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE)/ pulmonary arterial systolic pressure (PASP) ratio in right ventricular failure patients undergoing left ventricular assist device implantation. Methods: Between February 2013 and February 2020, a total of 75 heart failure patients (65 males, 10 females; median age: 54 years; range, 21 to 66 years) were retrospectively analyzed. The prognostic value of TAPSE/PASP ratio was assessed using the multivariate Cox regression models and confirmed using the Kaplan-Meier analyses. Results: Forty-one (55.4%) patients had an ischemic heart failure etiology. The indication for assist device implantation was bridge to transplant in 64 (85.3%) patients. The overall survival rates at one, three, and five years following left ventricular assist device implantation were 82.7%, 68%, and 49.3%, respectively. Right ventricular failure was observed in 24 (32%) patients during follow-up. In the multivariate analysis, TAPSE/PASP was found to be independently associated with postoperative right ventricular failure (HR: 1.63; 95% CI: 1.49-2.23). A TAPSE/PASP of 0.34 mm/mmHg was found to be the most accurate predictor value, with lower ratios correlating with right ventricular failure. The Kaplan-Meier analysis showed a better overall survival using a TAPSE/PASP ≥ of 0.34 mm/mmHg (p<0.001). Conclusion: A lower TAPSE/PASP ratio, particularly lower values than 0.34 mm/mmHg, strongly predicts right ventricular failure after left ventricular assist device implantation in patients with advanced heart failure.

Surgical results of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary endarterectomy in our recently developed program.

BACKGROUND: In this case series, we aimed to present our diagnostic workup, surgical management, and results of the patients who underwent pulmonary endarterectomy. METHODS: In this case series, a total of 26 patients (8 males, 18 females; median age: 58 years; range, 34 to 67 years) who were evaluated by a multidisciplinary team and were diagnosed with chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension who underwent pulmonary endarterectomy in our clinic between November 2015 and December 2019 were included. Pulmonary endarterectomy procedure was performed in all cases under cardiopulmonary bypass and total circulatory arrest. The results of the procedures were analyzed retrospectively. RESULTS: Perioperative complications were observed in seven patients (26.9%) and in-hospital mortality rate caused by perioperative complications was 15.38%. At one-year of postoperative follow-up, the mean systolic pulmonary artery pressure decreased from 78±22 mmHg to 41±20 mmHg, pulmonary vascular resistance decreased from 698±10 dyn·s·cm-5 to 235±10 dyn·s·cm-5, 6-min walk distance increased from 345±10 m to 460±10 m and, arterial oxygen saturation increased from 85±3.5% to 95±4%. New York Heart Association functional class improvement from Class III-IV to Class I-II was observed in most patients, and one-year mortality rate was 19.23%. CONCLUSION: We suggest that patients diagnosed chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension should be referred to cardiac surgery centers for pulmonary thromboendarterectomy, early before irreversible arteriopathy occurs.

Reconstructive surgery of true aneurysm of the radial artery: A case report.

True radial artery aneurysms are uncommon pathologies and have an organic cause, unlike trauma-induced false aneurysms. A 52-year-old man presented with a pulsatile mass at the anatomical snuff box area of his left hand. The aneurysm was repaired with reconstructive procedure. Although many posttraumatic and iatrogenic cases of false aneurysm of the radial artery have been reported; there are a few reported cases of a true idiopathic aneurysm. A case of reconstructive surgery for true idiopathic radial artery aneurysm is reported in this paper.

Early and late results in surgical excision of primary cardiac tumors: Our single-institution experience.

BACKGROUND: In the present study, we present our experience for surgical excision for cardiac masses and to analyze survival characteristics of these patients. METHODS: Between January 2004 and December 2015, a total of 131 patients (88 females, 43 males; mean age 49.4±16.2 years; range, 1.2 months to 81 years) with primary cardiac tumors who underwent surgery in our center were included in this study. Demographic and other patient-related data were retrospectively reviewed from medical records of our center. RESULTS: All benign tumors were completely resected, whereas only palliative procedures were performed for malignant tumors. Pathology results revealed 88.5% (n=116) benign and 11.5% (n=15) malignant tumors. Tumors were most frequently located in the left atrium (76.3%, n=100), followed by the right atrium (11.5%, n=15), and the right ventricle (5.3%, n=7). Among all patients, 116 (88.5%) survived, while late mortality was seen in 15 patients (11.5%). The mean survival was 130.6±4.5 months. The latest mortality was observed at 124 months, whereby the cumulative survival rate was 79.2%. There was a statistically significant relationship between mortality and pathological characteristics of the tumor, and malignant cases had significantly higher mortality rates (p=0.002). CONCLUSION: Surgical resection of primary cardiac tumors can be performed with low morbidity and mortality rates. Although survival rates in benign tumors are satisfactory, patients with malignant tumors have poor prognosis. The main clinical predic.

Stent versus bypass: The reasons and risk factors for early readmission to hospital after myocardial revascularization.

OBJECTIVE: Though 30-day rates of readmission for coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) remain high, readmission rates and associated risk factors have not been well examined. The purpose of the present study was to determine the risk factors for and rates of readmission and to compare two revascularization methods on that basis. METHODS: The study included 2664 consecutive patients who underwent coronary revascularization either with CABG surgery or PCI. The study was performed retrospectively and a wide variety of risk factors related to readmission were selected for analysis, including demographic data, preoperative risk factors and postoperative complications. RESULTS: From the CABG group (Group 1, n=1103), 18.3% were readmitted, as were 15.2% of the PCI group (Group 2, n=1561). In multivariate analysis, age, gender, left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), diabetes mellitus (DM), length of stay (>10 days), body mass index (BMI), and creatinine level on admission were associated with early readmission for group 1 (Table 3). In group 2, age, gender, LVEF, DM, length of stay (>10 days), and creatinine level on admission were associated with early readmission. CONCLUSION: When two methods of revascularization were compared, rates of readmission were found to be similar. Patients with cited risk factors are prone to readmission in the first 30 days, so extra precautions should be taken at discharge. Neither method can be concluded to be superior with regard to readmission rates.