Toward Transparency and Trust: Assessing and Addressing Key Ethical Concerns in Normothermic Regional Perfusion.

Normothermic Regional Perfusion, or NRP, is a method of donated organ reperfusion using cardiopulmonary bypass or a modified extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) circuit after circulatory death while leaving organs in the dead donor's corpse. Despite its potential, several key ethical issues remain unaddressed by this technology.

Perioperative Management of a Child with Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome of the Jehovah's Witness Faith Presenting for Hybrid Comprehensive Stage II Procedure.

Over the years, there has been a growing recognition of the potential negative sequelae of allogeneic blood products on postoperative outcomes following cardiac surgery. In addition, followers of the Jehovah's Witness (JW) faith have a religious restriction against receiving blood or blood components. Advances in perioperative care, cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB), and surgical technique have minimized the need for allogeneic blood products. Specific blood conservation strategies include maximizing the preoperative hematocrit and coagulation function as well as intraoperative strategies, such as acute normovolemic hemodilution and adjustments of the technique of CPB. We report a 7-month-old patient whose parents were of the JW faith who underwent a comprehensive stage II procedure for hypoplastic left heart syndrome without exposure to blood or blood products during his hospital stay. Perioperative techniques for blood avoidance are discussed with emphasis on their application to infants undergoing surgery for congenital heart disease.

Cirugía aórtica por laparoscopia: resultados a largo plazo / Laparoscopic aortic surgery: Long-term results

OBJETIVOS: Describimos los resultados a largo plazo de nuestra experiencia en cirugía aórtica por laparoscopia, total y asistida, en las lesiones arteriosclerosas oclusivas y en un aneurisma del sector aortoilíaco. MATERIAL Y MÉTODOS: Estudio prospectivo donde se analiza a los pacientes intervenidos de bypass del sector aortoiliacofemoral, desde noviembre de 2001 hasta octubre de 2003 y desde mayo de 2006 hasta septiembre de 2008, 7 y 14 pacientes respectivamente (21 en total), por lesiones de tipo D del Transatlantic Inter-Society Consensus (TASC) II y estadios II, III y IV de Fontaine y un aneurisma de aorta abdominal (AAA); 11 casos totalmente laparoscópicos y 10 asistidos. En la primera fase seguimos abordaje retroperitoneal y en la segunda,transperitoneal. RESULTADOS: Se estudió a un total de 21 pacientes, 20 hombres y una mujer, con una media de edad de 60 años (rango 41-76). Media de tiempo operatorio: 390 min (rango entre 220 y 570 min). Media de pinzamiento aórtico: 110 min. Mortalidad 0%. Complicaciones mayores postoperatorias: un infarto de miocardio (IAM) perioperatorio, una perforación duodenal, una hemorragia de sutura aórtica, una trombectomía de rama a las 12 h. Complicaciones en el seguimiento: una infección de prótesis, resuelta por ligadura aórtica y by-pass axilo-bifemoral. Reintervenciones: una trombosis de injerto por plicatura a los 5 meses y 2 trombectomías de rama y profundoplastia a los 7 meses, y 10 años respectivamente, un recambio de by-pass bifurcado a los 2 años, todos los pacientes seguían fumando. Hubo 5 fallecimientos a los 4, 5, 6, 7 y 10 años, solo uno relacionado con su enfermedad. En 2013 estaban vivos 16 pacientes, con permeabilidad del 100%. CONCLUSIONES: La dificultad de esta cirugía y la curva de aprendizaje propician mayores complicaciones en el postoperatorio inmediato; los resultados de permeabilidad asistida a largo plazo se equiparan a los excelentes resultados de la abierta

OBJECTIVES: To present the long-term results using total and assisted laparoscopic aortic surgery in arteriosclerotic occlusive lesions and an aneurysm in the aortic-iliac region. Material and methodmethods: A prospective study was conducted by analysing the data of 7 and 14 patients (a total of 21) operated on using aortoiliofemoral bypass from November 2001 to October 2003, and from May 2006 to September 2008, respectively. The lesions consisted of Transatlantic Inter-Society Consensus (TASC) II Type D lesions, and Fontaine stage II, III, and IV lesions, and one abdominal aortic (AAA) lesion, with 11 cases totally laparoscopic and 10 assisted. In the first period, a retroperitoneal approach was used, and in the second, transperitoneal. RESULTS: Of the 21 patients with a mean age of 60 years (range 41-76), 20 were males and one was female. The mean operating time was 390 min (range 222 to 570 min). The mean time using an aortic clamp was 110 min. There was no perioperative mortality, and the major complications were: one perioperative acute myocardial infarction (AMI), one duodenal perforation, one aortic stitch haemorrhage, and branch thrombectomy at 12 hours. The complications at follow-up included: one prosthesis infection (resolved by aortic ligature and axillo-bifemoral bypass. Further surgery was performed on one graft thrombosis due to plication at 5 months, 2 branch thrombectomies and a profundoplasty at 7 months and 10 years, respectively, and one bifurcated bypass replacement at 2 years, with all of them continuing to smoke. There were 5 deaths at 4, 5, 6, 7, and 10 years, with only one associated with its disease. In 2013, 16 patients are alive, with 100% patency. CONCLUSIONS: The difficulty of this surgery and the learning curve, can lead to major complications in the immediate post-operative period. The assisted patency results in the long-term are similar to the excellent results of open surgery

Bloodless pediatric cardiopulmonary bypass for a 3.2-kg patient whose parents are of Jehovah's Witness faith.

Patients and parents of Jehovah's Witness (JW) faith present multiple challenges to a medical team, especially in the neonatal and pediatric population. The medical team must balance honoring the parents' request of not receiving blood products and fulfilling our commitment as advocates for the child's wellbeing. A multidisciplinary approach to cardiac surgery must be embraced for bloodless cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) to be successful. At our institution, we have developed strategies and techniques for blood conservation that are used preoperatively, intraoperatively, and postoperatively for every CPB case with the goal of a bloodless procedure. These protocols include: preoperative erythropoietin, preoperative iron administration, selection of a CPB circuit specific to the patient's height and weight, acute normovolemic hemodilution, retrograde autologous prime and venous autologous prime, tranexamic acid administration, zero-balance ultrafiltration, flushing of the pump suckers post-CPB, modified ultrafiltration, and cell salvage. We present an 8-day-old, 3.2-kg patient of JW faith with aortic valve stenosis and regurgitation and a patent foramen ovale who underwent a bloodless left ventricle-to-aorta tunnel repair and aortic valve repair on CPB.

Repair of an ascending aortic aneurysm using reduction aortoplasty in a Jehovah's Witness.

Reduction ascending aortoplasty has been advocated as a possible alternative to traditional graft replacement for treatment of aneurysms of the ascending aorta and root. We report a case of a 58-year-old Jehovah's Witness female, with a 5.5-cm ascending aortic aneurysm and critical aortic stenosis. She underwent aortic valve replacement and reduction aortoplasty buttressed with a Dacron graft. We reviewed the history and contemporary applications of this technique and concluded that aortic reduction with externally supported aortoplasty may represent a viable option to treat Jehovah's Witness patients with ascending aorta and root aneurysm.

Tratamiento de los tumores renales localmente avanzados / Treatment of locally advanced renal tumors

Introducción: los tumores renales localmente avanzados presentan un alto porcentaje de progresión tras el tratamiento quirúrgico. El tratamiento quirúrgico de estos tumores renales presenta algunas peculiaridades en relación con la afectación de la glándula suprarrenal, de la vena cava o de la afectación de ganglios regionales. Objetivo: revisar el tratamiento actual de los carcinomas renales localmente avanzados. Material y métodos: se realiza una revisión de los distintos fármacos utilizados, así como de las distintas posibilidades terapéuticas en estos tumores. Resultados: el tratamiento sistémico con inhibidores de la angiogénesis puede mejorar la historia natural de estos pacientes. La pauta de tratamiento sistémico puede ser preoperatoria o adyuvante al tratamiento quirúrgico. Los primeros estudios realizados muestran una disminución de la masa tumoral cuando se realiza tratamiento preoperatorio, aunque no existen estudios prospectivos aleatorizados que nos den suficiente evidencia para recomendarla neoadyuvancia. Conclusiones: la aparición de los tratamientos sistémicos con inhibidores de la angiogénesis puede abrir un campo importante en el tratamiento de estos tumores, tanto en neoadyuvancia como en adyuvancia a la cirugía, pero en la actualidad no tenemos evidencias científicas suficientemente sólidas para recomendar su uso de forma indiscriminada. Probablemente serán los estudios aleatorizados con sunitinib y/o sorafenib los que marcarán la pauta a seguir cuando se completen los resultados definitivos (AU)

Introduction: Locally advanced renal tumors show a high progression rate after surgery. Surgical treatment of renal tumors has some unique characteristics related to involvement of the adrenal gland, vena cava, or regional lymph nodes. Objective: To review the current treatment of locally advanced renal tumors. Materials and methods: A review is made of both the different drugs used and the different therapeutic possibilities in these tumors. Results: Systemic treatment with angiogenesis inhibitors may improve the natural history of these patients. Systemic treatment may be administered before surgery or as an adjuvant to surgical treatment. Early studies showed a decrease in tumor mass when treatment is administered before surgery, but no prospective randomized studies providing adequate evidence for recommending neoadjuvant treatment are available. Conclusions: Availability of systemic treatment with angiogenesis inhibitors may open an important field in the treatment of these tumors in both the neoadjuvant setting and as adjuvants to surgery, but no sufficiently solid scientific evidence as to recommend their use is currently available. Randomized studies with sunitinib and sorafenib will probably suggest the adequate approach to be used when their final results are reported (AU)