Is Systolic Right Ventricular Function Reduced after Thoracic Non-Cardiac Surgery? A Propensity Matched Echocardiographic Analysis.

PURPOSE: To assess whether thoracic non-cardiac surgery has an influence on right ventricular function (RVF) compared to known impaired postoperative RV function after cardiac surgery. METHODS: In all, 50 patients (mean age: 61 years), who underwent thoracic non-cardiac surgery were included and matched using propensity score to 50 patients, receiving coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) (CABGmatched). All patients had transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) including two-dimensional speckle tracking (2D-STE) and tissue Doppler imaging (TDI) pre- and 1 week postoperatively. RESULTS: No significant changes in RV measurements including tricuspid annular plane systolic excursion (TAPSE), tricuspid annular systolic velocity (TASV), RV fractional area change (RV-FAC), and 2D-STE of the RV and RV freewall within the thoracic non-cardiac surgery patients comparing pre- and postoperative values. Comparing RV TTE values between CABGmatched patients and thoracic surgery patients, only TAPSE differed between groups preoperatively (p <0.0001), where postoperatively, all RV measurements differed significantly between the two groups: TAPSE (p <0.0001), TASV (p <0.001), RVFAC (p = 0.005), and RV 2D-STE (p <0.0001) indicating impairment of RV function post-CABG surgery compared to thoracic non-cardiac surgery. CONCLUSION: Thoracic non-cardiac surgery including an opening of the pleural cavity did not influence RV function early postoperative, whereas CABG surgery with pericardiotomy led to an impaired global RV function.

Abscessing Infection by Streptococcus mitis Mimicking Metastatic Lesions in a 5-Year-Old Girl With Nephroblastoma: A Case Report.

Streptococcus mitis is a common pathogen causing infections in oncological patients. However, cases of abscesses caused by Streptococcus mitis in oncological patients have not been reported so far. We report on 5-year-old child with nephroblastoma and pulmonary and hepatic metastases at diagnosis who went into complete remission undergoing chemotherapy and nephrectomy, and who developed new round lesions in liver and lungs under continuous chemotherapy suggestive of new metastases. Biopsy of the lesions revealed abscesses with detection of Streptococcus mitis. The child was successfully treated with antibiotics, finished chemotherapy per protocol and has been in complete remission for 14 months. Infectious lesions involving organs of typical metastatic dissemination can easily be misdiagnosed as metastases, especially in the absence of symptoms. Histologic proof of lesions suspicious of metastases is mandatory if it leads to a change of prognosis and therapy. Streptococcus mitis can be a causative organism of pulmonary and hepatic abscesses in oncological patients.

Midterm outcomes after transcatheter aortic valve implantation.

OBJECTIVE: Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has become a therapeutic option for high-risk or nonoperable patients with severe symptomatic aortic valve stenosis. The best known and most frequently implanted prostheses are the CoreValve and SAPIEN prostheses. We report our experiences and analyze the results of our TAVI program. METHODS: A total of 357 patients underwent transfemoral (TF) and transapical (TA) TAVI in our center between January 2008 and October 2012. The procedure was performed in 190 patients with CoreValve, in 155 patients with SAPIEN, and in 12 patients with ACURATE TA prostheses. Transfemoral access was used in 190 patients. In 167 patients, TA access was used. The mean age was 80.2 ± 6.4 years. All patients were nonoperable or had a high risk for a conventional aortic valve replacement. The mean logistic EuroSCORE I was 25.92 ± 14.51%. The TF/CoreValve (190 patients) and TA/SAPIEN (155 patients) groups showed significant difference in the patients' mean age (81.7 ± 6.3 years vs. 79.5 ± 6.6 years, P = 0.002) and in mean logistic EuroSCORE I (22.16 ± 13.05% vs. 31.04 ± 16.40, P < 0.001). RESULTS: The overall 30-day mortality (357 patients) was 9.80% (TF, 8.42%; TA, 11.37%); overall 1-year mortality (275 patients), 21.45% (TF, 23.74%; TA, 19.12%); overall 2-year mortality (199 patients), 29.15% (TF, 35.96%; TA, 23.64%); overall 3-year mortality (133 patients), 37.59% (TF, 43.86%; TA, 32.89%); and overall 4-year mortality (38 patients), 39.47% (TF, 45%; TA, 33.33%). The rate of pacemaker implantation after TAVI was significantly higher in the CoreValve group than in the SAPIEN group: 44.74% (85/190 patients) versus 6.45% (10/155 patients), P < 0.001. Stroke rate was higher in the TF-CoreValve group than in the TA-SAPIEN group: 4.21% versus 0.64%, P = 0.045. CONCLUSIONS: Outcomes after TAVI were, in our population of nonoperable and high-risk patients, encouraging. The differences in midterm outcomes between the TF-CoreValve TAVI and the TA-SAPIEN TAVI were not significant.

Monitoring of lobectomy in cystic fibrosis with electrical impedance tomography - a new diagnostic tool.

Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a radiation-free technique generating cross-sectional images of the lung. EIT visualizes global and regional ventilation by illustrating the distribution of electrical bioimpedance. With an electrode belt around the patient's thorax, rotating injection-couples of a harmless alternating current allow voltage measurement of the remaining electrodes. This enables the reconstruction of a tomogram with highly dynamic changes within ventilation. We report on a female six-year-old patient with cystic fibrosis and complete destruction of the upper and middle lobe of the right lung. Lobectomy, a rare therapeutic option in patients with cystic fibrosis that needs to be considered in cases of severe localized destruction, was performed. We show a pre- and postoperative documentation of static (radiology) and dynamic investigation tools (spirometry) in correlation with EIT as a new non-invasive and radiation-free diagnostic tool for this patient group.

A new approach to the interventional therapy of tricuspid regurgitation.

Currently, there are no fully developed interventional approaches for the treatment of tricuspid regurgitation (TR). The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of orthotopic interventional placement of a biological prosthetic valve in the tricuspid position by inserting, with a transvenous approach, a self-expandable valve-bearing stent into the right atrium. Based on findings of computerized tomography (CT), a model of the porcine right heart was obtained. A self-expanding vascular endoprosthesis, carrying a prosthetic heart valve, was reshaped to fit the superior vena cava and the tricuspid annulus. Fenestrations were created to allow blood flow from the inferior vena cava and coronary sinus. This new device ("tricuspid endoprosthesis": TE) was implanted operatively into the superior vena cava, right atrium, and tricuspid annulus in six pigs. CT demonstrated proper fitting of the device, and echocardiography demonstrated correct positioning and function of the TE. Five animals were successfully weaned from cardiopulmonary bypass. Autopsy confirmed correct positioning of the TE without major trauma to surrounding tissues. These findings demonstrate a complete interventional approach for treating TR.

Takotsubo cardiomyopathy with concurrent multivessel obstructive coronary artery disease: proposition for a new clinical entity and first case surgical experience.

We present a seldom seen case of Takotsubo cardiomyopathy (TCM) with concurrent obstructive coronary artery disease (OCAD) and its first case surgical experience. We propose that TCM and OCAD can coexist and that the presence of OCAD should not be an exclusion criterion for the diagnosis of TCM.