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The intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) is the most widely available mechanical support device, but its use has been disputed in recent decades. Although several efforts have been made to reduce the associated complication rate, contemporary data on this matter is lacking. The present study aims to evaluate the differences in vascular complications between the sheathless and the sheathed IABP implantation technique in cardiac surgery patients. A retrospective multi-center cohort, consisting of patients treated in 8 cardiac surgical centers, was evaluated. Patients who underwent cardiac surgery with peri-operative IABP support were included. Primary outcome was a composite end point of vascular complications. Propensity score matching (PSM) was performed, and a multivariable regression model was applied to evaluate predictors of vascular complications. The unmatched cohort consisted of 2,615 patients (sheathless n = 1,414, 54%, sheathed n = 1,201, 46%). A total of 878 patients were matched (n = 439 for both groups). The composite vascular complication end point occurred in 3% of patients in the sheathless group, compared with 8% in the sheathed group (p

BACKGROUND: This study compared clinical and hemodynamic in-hospital outcomes of patients undergoing sutureless vs rapid deployment aortic valve replacement (SURD-AVR) in the large population of the Sutureless and Rapid Deployment International Registry (SURD-IR). METHODS: We examined 4695 patients who underwent isolated or combined SURD-AVR. The "sutureless" Perceval valve (LivaNova PLC, London, United Kingdom) was used in 3133 patients and the "rapid deployment" Intuity (Edwards Lifesciences, Irvine, CA) in 1562. Potential confounding factors were addressed by the use of propensity score matching. After matching, 2 well-balanced cohorts of 823 pairs (isolated SURD-AVR) and 467 pairs (combined SURD-AVR) were created. RESULTS: Patients who received Perceval and Intuity valves showed similar in-hospital mortality and rate of major postoperative complications. Perceval was associated shorter cross-clamp and cardiopulmonary bypass times. In the isolated SURD-AVR group, patients receiving Perceval were more likely to undergo anterior right thoracotomy incision. Postoperative transvalvular gradients were significantly lower for the Intuity valve compared with those of the Perceval valve, either in isolated and combined SURD-AVR. The Intuity valve was associated with a lower rate of postoperative mild aortic regurgitation. CONCLUSIONS: Our results confirm the safety and efficacy of SURD-AVR regardless of the valve type. The Perceval valve was associated with reduced operative times and increased anterior right thoracotomy incision. The Intuity valve showed superior hemodynamic outcomes and a lower incidence of postoperative mild aortic regurgitation. ispartof: ANNALS OF THORACIC SURGERY vol:114 issue:3 pages:758-+ ispartof: location:Netherlands status: published

ObjectiveThere is uncertainty about surgical procedures for adult patients aged 18–60 years undergoing aortic valve replacement (AVR). Options include conventional AVR (mechanical, mAVR; tissue, tAVR), the pulmonary autograft (Ross) and aortic valve neocuspidisation (Ozaki). Transcatheter treatment may be an option for selected patients. We used formal consensus methodology to make recommendations about the suitability of each procedure.MethodsA working group, supported by a patient advisory group, developed a list of clinical scenarios across seven domains (anatomy, presentation, cardiac/non-cardiac comorbidities, concurrent treatments, lifestyle, preferences). A consensus group of 12 clinicians rated the appropriateness of each surgical procedure for each scenario on a 9-point Likert scale on two separate occasions (before and after a 1-day meeting).ResultsThere was a consensus that each procedure was appropriate (A) or inappropriate (I) for all clinical scenarios as follows: mAVR: total 76% (57% A, 19% I); tAVR: total 68% (68% A, 0% I); Ross: total 66% (39% A, 27% I); Ozaki: total 31% (3% A, 28% I). The remainder of percentages to 100% reflects the degree of uncertainty. There was a consensus that transcatheter aortic valve implantation is appropriate for 5 of 68 (7%) of all clinical scenarios (including frailty, prohibitive surgical risk and very limited life span).ConclusionsEvidence-based expert opinion emerging from a formal consensus process indicates that besides conventional AVR options, there is a high degree of certainty about the suitability of the Ross procedure in patients aged 18–60 years. Future clinical guidelines should include the option of the Ross procedure in aortic prosthetic valve selection.

Objectives The aim of this study was to investigate the need for postoperative permanent pacemaker implantation (PPI) following sutureless and rapid-deployment aortic valve replacement (SuRD-AVR) in the context of a progress report from a large multicenter international registry (SURD-IR). Methods We retrospectively analyzed 4,166 patients who underwent SuRD-AVR between 2008 and 2019. The primary outcome was the need for PPI before discharge. The study population was analyzed separately according to the implanted prostheses (Su cohort and RD cohort). Each cohort was divided into two groups based on the operation date: an early group (“EG” = 2008–2016) and a late group (“LG” = 2017–2019). Results The rate of PPI decreased significantly in the Su cohort over time (EG = 10.8% vs LG = 6.3%, p Conclusions Our analysis showed a significant decrease in the PPI rate in patients who underwent Su-AVR over time. Patient selection as well as surgical improvements and a more accurate sizing could be correlated with this phenomenon. The RD cohort revealed no significant differences either in patient's characteristics or in PPI rate between the two time periods.

Permanent pacemaker implantation (PPI) represents a rare complication after cardiac surgery, with no uniform agreement on timing and no information on follow-up. A multi-center retrospective study was designed to assess pacemaker dependency (PMD) and long-term mortality after cardiac surgery procedures. Between 2004 and 2016, PPI-patients from 18 centers were followed. Time-to-event data were evaluated with semiparametric regression Cox models and semiparametric Fine and Gray model for competing risk framework. Of 859 (0.90%) PPI-patients, 30% were pacemaker independent (PMI) at 6 months. PMD showed higher mortality compared with PMI (10-year survival 80.1% +/- 2.6% and 92.2% +2.4%, respectively, log-rank p-value < 0.001) with an unadjusted hazard ratio for death of 0.36 (95% CI 0.20 to 0.65, p< 0.001 favoring PMI) and an adjusted hazard ratio of 0.19 (95% CI 0.08 to 0.45, p< 0.001 with PMD as reference). Crude cumulative incidence function of restored PMI rhythm at follow-up at 6 months, 1 year and 12 years were 30.5% (95% CI 27.3% to 33.7%), 33.7% (95% CI 30.4% to 36.9%) and 37.2% (95% CI 33.8% to 40.6%) respectively. PMI was favored by preoperative sinus rhythm with normal conduction (SR) (HR 2.37, 95% CI 1.65 to 3.40, p< 0.001), whereas coronary artery bypass grafting and aortic valve replacement were independently associated with PMD (HR 0.63, 95% CI 0.45 to 0.88, p = 0.006 and HR 0.807, 95% CI 0.65 to 0.99, p = 0.047 respectively). Time-to-implantation was not associated with increased rate of PMI. Although 30% of PPI-patients are PMI after 6 months, PMD is associated with higher mortality at long term. (C) 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Inc.

Purpose: Displacement forces ( DFs) identify hostile landing zones for stent graft deployment in thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR). However, their use in TEVAR planning is hampered by the need for time-expensive computational fluid dynamics (CFD). We propose a novel fast-approximate computation of DFs merely exploiting aortic arch anatomy, as derived from the computed tomography (CT) and a measure of central aortic pressure. Materials and Methods: We tested the fast-approximate approach against CFD gold-standard in 34 subjects with the “bovine” aortic arch variant. For each dataset, a 3-dimensional (3D) model of the aortic arch lumen was reconstructed from computed tomography angiography and CFD then employed to compute DFs within the aortic proximal landing zones. To quantify fast-approximate DFs, the wall shear stress contribution to the DF was neglected and blood pressure space-distribution was averaged on the entire aortic wall to reliably approximate the patient-specific central blood pressure. Also, DF values were normalized on the corresponding proximal landing zone area to obtain the equivalent surface traction ( EST). Results: Fast-approximate approach consistently reflected (r2=0.99, pConclusion: Requiring only a few seconds and quantifying clinically relevant biomechanical parameters of proximal landing zones for arch TEVAR, our method suits the real preoperative decision-making process. It paves the way toward analyzing large population of patients and hence to define threshold values for a future patient-specific preoperative TEVAR planning.

To assess the endograft displacement forces (DF), which quantify the forces exerted by the pulsatile blood flow on the vessel wall and transmitted on the terminal fixation site of the endograft after its deployment in proximal landing zones (PLZs) of the bovine aortic arch variant.Thirty healthy aortic computed tomographic angiographies of subjects with bovine arch configuration (10 per type of arch, I-III) were selected for the purpose of the study. A 3-dimensional model of the aortic arch lumen was reconstructed. Computational fluid dynamics modeling was then used to compute DF magnitude and orientation (i.e., x, y, and z axes) in PLZs of each case. DF values were normalized to the corresponding aortic wall area to estimate equivalent surface traction (EST).DF were highest in zone 0, consistently with the greater surface area. DF in zone 3 were much greater than in zone 2 because of a 3-fold greater upward component (z axis) (P 0.001), being therefore mainly oriented orthogonally to the aortic blood flow and to the vessel longitudinal axis in that zone. EST progressively increased from zone 0 toward more distal PLZs, with EST in zone 3 being much greater than that in zone 2 (P 0.001). The same pattern was observed after stratification by type of arch.The bovine arch is associated with a consistent fluid dynamic pattern, which identifies in zone 3 an unfavorable biomechanical environment for endograft deployment.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has profoundly affected all health care professionals. The outbreak required a thorough reorganization of the Italian regional local health care system to preserve resources such as ventilators, beds in intensive care units and surgical and anaesthesiological staff. Levels of priority were created, together with a rigorous triage procedure for patients with COVID-19, which led to postponement of all elective procedures. Urgent cases were discussed with the local heart team and percutaneous approaches were selected as the first treatment option to reduce hospital stay. COVID-19 and COVID-19-free pathways were created, including adequate preparation of the operating room, management of anaesthesiological procedures, transportation of patients and disinfection. It was determined that patients with chronic diseases were at increased risk of adverse outcomes. Systemic inflammation, cytokine storm and hypercoagulability associated with COVID-19 increased the risk of heart failure and cardiac death. In this regard, the early use of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation could be life-saving in patients with severe forms of acute respiratory distress syndrome or refractory heart failure. The goal of this paper was to report the Italian experience during the COVID-19 pandemic in the setting of cardiovascular surgery., Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a new pandemic infectious disease caused by a novel beta-coronavirus known as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) [1].

Objective Cardiac conduction system disturbances potentially leading to permanent pacemaker implantation are significant postoperative complications after aortic valve replacement. The aim of this study was to assess the impact of sutureless prosthetic valve oversizing on permanent pacemaker implantation rate. Methods This multicenter retrospective study included 306 patients who underwent minimally invasive aortic valve replacement with the Perceval sutureless valve. Oversizing was determined by the implanted valve size indexed to body surface area. Data were analyzed with a multivariable logistic regression model. Results This study confirmed excellent postoperative results for minimally invasive aortic valve replacement with right anterior minithoracotomy approach and rapid deployment sutureless valves. Mortality rate was 1%. Eighteen (5.9%) patients received a new permanent pacemaker. Multivariable logistic regression model ( P = 0.05) found oversizing as significant risk factor ( P = 0.017) for permanent postoperative pacemaker implantation independent of patient age. There was a significant negative correlation between the indexed implanted valve size and the mean and peak postoperative transvalvular gradients ( P < 0.001). Conclusions Oversizing of sutureless prosthetic aortic valves is a risk factor for postoperative permanent pacemaker implantation. Proper sizing of Perceval is important to avoid complications and ensure optimal valve performance.

The aim was to investigate whether the "bovine" aortic arch (i.e. arch variant with a common origin of the innominate and left carotid artery (CILCA)) is associated with a consistent geometric configuration of proximal landing zones for thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR).Anonymised thoracic computed tomography (CT) scans of healthy aortas were reviewed to retrieve 100 cases of CILCA. Suitable cases were stratified according to type 1 and 2 CILCA, and also based on type of arch (I, II, and III). Further processing allowed calculation of angulation and tortuosity of the proximal landing zones. Centre lumen line lengths of each proximal landing zone were measured in a view perpendicular to the centre line. All geometric features were compared with those measured in healthy patients with a standard arch configuration (n = 60). Two senior authors independently evaluated the CT scans, and intra- and interobserver repeatability were assessed.The 100 selected patients (63% male) were 71.4 ± 7.7 years old. Type 1 CILCA (62/100) was more prevalent than type 2 CILCA (38/100), and the two groups were comparable in age (p = .11). Zone 3 presented a severe angulation (i.e. 60°), which was greater than in Zone 2 (p .001), and a consistently greater tortuosity than Zone 2 (p = .003). This pattern did not differ between type 1 and type 2 CILCA. A greater tortuosity was also observed in Zone 0, which was related to increased elongation of the ascending aorta (i.e. Zone 0), than the standard configuration. The CILCA had an overall greater elongation, and Zone 2 also was specifically longer. When stratifying by type of arch, reversely from Type III to Type I, the CILCA presented a gradual flattening of its transverse tract, which entailed a consistent progressive elongation (p = .03) and kinking of the ascending aorta, with a significant increase of Zone 0 angulation to even a severe degree (p = .001). Also, from Type III to Type I, Zone 2 presented a progressively shorter length (p = .004), which was associated with increased tortuosity (p .05). Mean intra- and interobserver differences for angulation measurements were 1.4° ± 6.8° (p = .17) and 2.0° ± 10.1° (p = .19), respectively.CILCA presents a consistent and peculiar geometric pattern compared with standard arch configuration, which provides relevant information for TEVAR planning, and may have prognostic implications.

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE STUDY The aim of this meta-analysis was to compare short- and long-term outcomes of patients undergoing mitral annuloplasty (MA) with or without papillary muscle surgery (PMS) for the treatment of ischemic mitral regurgitation (IMR). METHODS A systematic review and meta-analysis in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) statement were performed. RESULTS Nine studies met the inclusion criteria. This meta-analysis identified 478 patients: 228 patients underwent MA alone and 250 patients underwent concomitant PMS. Early mortality was similar between two groups (odds ratio [OR] 1.14, 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.51-2.53; P = .75). PMS was associated at follow-up with a higher freedom from cardiac-related events (P = .050); moreover, although both surgical techniques had a positive impact on ventricular remodeling, the PMS group showed a significant higher reduction of left ventricle end-diastolic diameter (OR, 4.89, 95% CI, 2.77-7.01; P

Objective To report the early and mid-term results of patients who underwent minimally invasive aortic valve replacement (MI-AVR) with a sutureless prosthesis from an international prospective registry. Methods Between March 2011 and September 2018, among 957 patients included in the prospective observational SURE-AVR (Sorin Universal REgistry on Aortic Valve Replacement) registry, 480 patients underwent MI-AVR with self-expandable Perceval aortic bioprosthesis (LivaNova PLC, London, UK) in 29 international institutions through either minithoracotomy ( n = 266) or ministernotomy ( n = 214). Postoperative, follow-up, and echocardiographic outcomes were analyzed for all patients. Results Patient age was 76.1 ± 7.1 years; 64.4% were female. Median EuroSCORE I was 7.9% (interquartile range [IQR], 4.8 to 10.9). Median cardiopulmonary bypass and cross-clamp times were 81 minutes (IQR 64 to 100) and 51 minutes (IQR 40 to 63). First successful implantation was achieved in 97.9% of cases. Two in-hospital deaths occurred, 1 for noncardiovascular causes and 1 following a disabling stroke. In the early (≤30 days) period, stroke rate was 1.4%. Three early explants were reported: 2 due to nonstructural valve dysfunction (NSVD) and 1 for malpositioning. One mild and 1 moderate paravalvular leak were reported. In 16 patients (3.3%) pacemaker implantation was needed. Mean follow-up was 2.4 years (maximum = 7 years). During follow-up 5 explants were reported, 3 due to endocarditis and 2 due to NSVD. Follow-up stroke rate was 2.5%. Three structural valve deteriorations not requiring reintervention were reported. Five-year survival was 91.45%. Conclusions In this large prospective international registry, MI-AVR with Perceval valve confirmed to be safe, reproducible, and effective in an intermediate-risk population, providing excellent clinical recovery both in early and mid-term follow-up.

OBJECTIVES Although the intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) has been the most widely adopted temporary mechanical support device in cardiac surgical patients, its use has declined. The current study aimed to evaluate the occurrence and predictors of early mortality and complication rates in contemporary cardiac surgery patients supported by an IABP. METHODS A multicentre, retrospective analysis was performed of all consecutive cardiac surgical patients receiving perioperative balloon pump support in 8 centres between January 2010 to December 2019. The primary outcome was early mortality, and secondary outcomes were balloon-associated complications. A multivariable binary logistic regression model was applied to evaluate predictors of the primary outcome. RESULTS The study cohort consisted of 2615 consecutive patients. The median age was 68 years [25th percentile 61, 75th percentile 75 years], with the majority being male (76.9%), and a mean calculated 30-day mortality risk of 10.0%. Early mortality was 12.7% (n = 333), due to cardiac causes (n = 266), neurological causes (=22), balloon-related causes (n = 5) and other causes (n = 40). A composite end point of all vascular complications occurred in 7.2% of patients, and leg ischaemia was observed in 1.3% of patients. The most important predictors of early mortality were peripheral vascular disease [odds ratio (OR) 1.63], postoperative dialysis requirement (OR 10.40) and vascular complications (OR 2.57). CONCLUSIONS The use of the perioperative IABP proved to be safe and demonstrated relatively low complication rates, particularly for leg ischaemia. As such, we believe that specialists should not be held back to use this widely available treatment in high-risk cardiac surgical patients when indicated.

Sutureless aortic bioprostheses were introduced more than ten years ago, with the aim of decreasing cross-clamp time and thus becoming the first choice in older patients for many surgeons. However, published data are limited to a 5-year follow-up, and some cases of deterioration have already been described. High-risk patients who once have benefitted from a fast sutureless aortic replacement and now are experiencing a prosthesis dysfunction, could take advantage of a percutaneous Valve-in-Sutureless technique. Furthermore, thanks to technological improvement, new transcatheter prostheses have been designed, allowing a more precise positioning. In this report, we described the first Myval-in-Perceval case, which resulted in a safe and effective procedure.

After a median full sternotomy, cardiopulmonary bypass is installed in the usual manner. Apical ventriculotomy is performed through the infarcted myocardium. Polypropylene pledgeted mattress sutures are passed from the right to the left ventricular side through the ventricular septal defect, with the pledgets remaining on the right ventricle. Great care must be taken to place the suture on healthy myocardium and away from the edge of the ventricular septal defect; otherwise the chances of a recurrent postoperative ventricular septal defect would increase. The sutures are subsequently positioned through a heterologous patch, previously prepared to be appropriate for the ventricular septal defect closure. A collar of 3 to 4 cm is left on the external side of the patch. A 4-0 polypropylene running suture is placed through this collar and the left ventricle to further reinforce the ventricular septal defect closure. The left ventricular incision is closed with polypropylene 3-0 continuous sutures. For each ventricular edge, the running suture is passed through 2 polytetrafluoroethylene felts: one on the endoventricular side and the other on the epicardial side. Finally, the suture line is reinforced with a continuous 2-0 polypropylene suture, which is passed through the polytetrafluoroethylene felts, the ventricular wall, and the heterologous patch used to close the ventricular septal defect.

Contemporary guidelines on thoracic aortic repair provide inconsistent reporting standards for the definition of aortic arch classification in Types I, II and III. The different reported criteria cannot be used interchangeably, due to a very low level of concordance, and this finding has relevant implications for the comparisons between studies using different classifications, and between different datasets of multicentre trials, which are not consistently analyzed with the same criteria. Also, the reported definitions, which were originally proposed for predicting difficult carotid stenting and therefore were conceived for healthy aortic arches, can be influenced by the pathological derangements of the aortic wall, including aneurysms and dissections. In this respect, the Madhwal’s classification, which is based on the diameter of the left common carotid artery, appears to be the more suitable one for aortic arch classification in patients with thoracic aortic disease because it provides relevant clinical information along with an adequate reproducibility.

OBJECTIVES As aortic valve repair (AVr) for aortic insufficiency (AI) expands, minimally invasive (Mi) approaches are increasingly being applied. Cardiac surgical techniques can be more difficult through small incisions, and this report analyzes medium-term outcomes for MiAVr facilitated by geometric ring annuloplasty. METHODS Since 2013, 58 patients were selected for AVr through upper sternotomy third-interspace incisions. The average age was 58.9 ± 15.4 (mean ± SD) years, 71% were male, and preoperative AI grade was 3.6 ± 0.8. Sixty-two percent (36/58) had a proximal aortic replacement for ascending aortic aneurysms (n = 26) and/or remodeling grafts for aortic root aneurysms (n = 10). Annuloplasty rings were placed subannularly (69% trileaflet; 31% bicuspid), and leaflet procedures were performed in 70%. The average ring diameter was 21.6 ± 1.4 mm, and the average aortic clamp time was 113 ± 35 min. RESULTS After repair, AI grade fell to an average of 0.5 ± 0.6 (p

Atrial fibrillation is the most common type of arrhythmia with increasing burden for stroke and thromboembolic events. Medical treatment of atrial fibrillation has not shown promising results, so alternative method of treatment is emerging out. Cox-Maze procedure has been used for decades for the treatment of atrial fibrillation. Surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation with traditional Cox-Maze procedure is a complex and technically challenging procedure limiting its use in clinical practice. Recently, radiofrequency ablation is being used as a modification of Cox-Maze procedure. However, its effect in the treatment of atrial fibrillation in not reported uniformly and in large number of patients. Therefore, our aim of study was to assess the impact of concomitant radiofrequency ablation in the treatment of atrial fibrillation during cardiac surgery. We performed literature review on PubMed Central to evaluate effect of concomitant radiofrequency ablation for atrial fibrillation treatment. About 303 papers were found using the reported search, of which 15 represented suitable to fulfill our query. The authors, date, patient group, study type, relevant outcomes and results of these papers are tabulated. We conclude that radiofrequency ablation surgery of left atrium at the time of other cardiac procedures is a comparatively straightforward procedure with satisfactory freedom from atrial fibrillation, acceptable morbidity, mortality, and minor procedure related complications. Careful patients selection by sticking to the - Rule of 5, i.e. left atrial diameter less than 55 mm and atrial fibrillation duration no more than five years, is recommended to optimize the result of atrial fibrillation surgery.

OBJECTIVES: The impact of sutureless and rapid deployment (SURD) valves on the clinical outcomes of patients undergoing minimally invasive aortic valve replacement (MI-AVR) has still to be defined. The aim of this study was to assess clinical characteristics and in-hospital results of patients receiving SURD-AVR through less invasive approaches in the large population of the Sutureless and Rapid Deployment International Registry (SURD-IR). METHODS: Of the 1935 patients who received primary isolated SURD-AVR between 2009 and 2018, a total of 1418 (73.3%) underwent MI interventions and were included in this analysis. SURD-AVR was performed using upper ministernotomy in 56.4% (n = 800) of cases and anterior right thoracotomy in 43.6% (n = 618). Perceval S was implanted in 1011 (71.3%) patients and Edwards Intuity or Intuity Elite in 407 (28.7%) patients. RESULTS: Overall in-hospital mortality and stroke rates were 1.7% and 2%, respectively. A definitive pacemaker implantation was reported in 9% of cases and significantly decreased over the observational period, from 20.6% to 5.6% (P = 0.002). The Perceval valve was associated with shorter operative times and was more frequently implanted in patients receiving anterior right thoracotomy incision. The Intuity valve was preferred in younger patients and revealed superior postoperative haemodynamic results. CONCLUSIONS: SURD-AVR was largely performed through less invasive approaches and can be considered as a primary indication in MI surgery. In the SURD-IR cohort, MI SURD-AVR using both Perceval and Intuity valves appeared a safe and reproducible procedure associated with promising early results.

Objective: The aim of this multicenter study was to evaluated whether cold or warm cardioplegia are associated with postoperative atrial fibrillation (POAF) and the prognostic role of the latter on early stroke and neurological mortality.Method: This was a retrospective analysis of prospective collected data from 9 cardiac centers in Italy and the United States including patients undergoing surgery between 2010 and 2018. From the 9 institutional databases, 17,231 patients underwent isolated CABG on-pump, using either warm cardioplegia (n = 7730) or cold cardioplegia (n = 9501); among the latter group blood and crystalloid cardioplegia were used in 691 and 8810 patients, respectively. After matching, two pairs of 4162 patients (overall cohort 8324) were analyzed.Results: In matched population, the rate of POAF was 18% (1472 cases), 15% (608) in warm group versus 21% (864) in cold group (p < 0.001). Multivariable analysis confirmed that cold cardioplegia was associated with higher rate of POAF, along with age, hypercholesterolemia, LVEF, reoperation, preoperative IABP, previous stroke, cardiopulmonary and cross-clamp. Moreover, cold cardioplegia as well as POAF increased the rate of postoperative stroke as well as early mortality and neurological mortality Propensity-weighted cohort included 11,830 (70%) patients out of 17,231. After adjustment, both cold blood and cold crystalloid cardioplegia negatively influenced POAF, stroke and neurological mortality.Conclusions: Warm cardioplegia may reduce the rate of POAF in CABG patients with respect to cold cardioplegia, either blood or crystalloid. This has a prognostic impact on postoperative stroke and neurological mortality. (C) 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

OBJECTIVES Healthcare systems worldwide have been overburdened by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak. Accordingly, hospitals had to implement strategies to profoundly reshape both non-COVID-19 medical care and surgical activities. Knowledge about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cardiac surgery practice is pivotal. The goal of the present study was to describe the changes in cardiac surgery practices during the health emergency at the national level. METHODS A 26-question web-enabled survey including all adult cardiac surgery units in Italy was conducted to assess how their clinical practice changed during the national lockdown. Data were compared to data from the corresponding period in 2019. RESULTS All but 2 centres (94.9%) adopted specific protocols to screen patients and personnel. A significant reduction in the number of dedicated cardiac intensive care unit beds (−35.4%) and operating rooms (−29.2%), along with healthcare personnel reallocation to COVID departments (nurses −15.4%, anaesthesiologists −7.7%), was noted. Overall adult cardiac surgery volumes were dramatically reduced (1734 procedures vs 3447; P, The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is the world’s largest infectious disease crisis in the last 100 years.

Objective To report early and midterm results registry of patients undergoing repeated aortic valve replacement (RAVR) with sutureless prostheses from an international prospective registry (SURE-AVR). Methods Between March 2011 and June 2019, 69 patients underwent RAVR with self-expandable sutureless aortic bioprostheses at 22 international cardiac centers. Results Overall mortality was 2.9% with a predicted logistic EuroSCORE II of 10.7%. Indications for RAVR were structural valve dysfunction (84.1%) and infective prosthetic endocarditis (15.9%) and were performed in patients with previously implanted bioprostheses (79.7%), mechanical valves (15.9%), and transcatheter valves (4.3%). Minimally invasive approach was performed in 15.9% of patients. Rate of stroke was 1.4% and rate of early valve-related reintervention was 1.4%. Overall survival rate at 1 and 5 years was 97% and 91%, respectively. No major paravalvular leak occurred. Rate of pacemaker implantation was 5.8% and 0.9% per patient-year early and at follow-up, respectively. The mean transvalvular gradient at 1-year and 5-year follow-up was 10.5 mm Hg and 11.5 mm Hg with a median effective orifice area of 1.8 cm2and 1.8 cm2, respectively. Conclusions RAVR with sutureless valves is a safe and effective approach and provides excellent clinical and hemodynamic results up to 5 years.

Since their introduction, it has been demonstrated that minimally invasive aortic valve replacement (MIAVR) approaches are safe and effective for the treatment of aortic valve diseases. To date, the main advantage of these approaches is represented by the reduced surgical trauma, with a subsequent reduced complication rate and faster recovery. This makes such approaches an appealing choice also for frail patients [obese, aged, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD)]. The standardization of the minimally invasive techniques, together with the implementation of preoperative workup and anesthesiological intra- and post-operative care, led to an amelioration of surgical results and reduction of surgical times. Moreover, the improvement of surgical technology and the introduction of new devices such as sutureless and rapid deployment (SURD) valves, has helped the achievement of comparable results to traditional surgery. However, transcatheter technologies are nowadays more and more important in the treatment of aortic valve disease, also in low risk patients. For this reason surgeons should put new efforts for further reducing the surgical trauma in the future, even taking inspiration from other disciplines. In this review, we aim to present a review of literature evidences regarding minimally invasive treatment of aortic diseases, also reflecting our personal experience with MIAVR techniques. This review could represent a tool for a well-structured patient assessment and preoperative planning, in order to safely carrying out an MIAVR procedure with satisfactory outcomes.

Trans-catheter valve-in-valve (ViV) is a treatment option for patients affected by bioprosthetic heart valve (BHV) failure. Both aortic and mitral ViV procedures present several challenges compared to native valve replacement. To date, no data concerning the balloon-expandable MyVal (Meril, Vapi, India) trans-catheter heart valve (THV) use in ViV procedure have been provided. In this case series, we described for the first time its use in five different BHV failures.

Background: A minimally invasive approach (MIA) reduces mortality and morbidity in patients referred for aortic valve replacement (AVR). Sutureless technology facilitates a MIA. We describe our experience with the sutureless Perceval (LivaNova, Italy) aortic bioprosthesis through a right anterior mini-thoracotomy (RAMT) approach. Methods: Between March 2011 and October 2019, 1,049 patients underwent AVR with Perceval bioprosthesis. Five hundred and three patients (48%) were operated through a RAMT approach in the second intercostal space. Considering only isolated AVR (881), 98% of patients were operated with MIA, and Perceval in RAMT approach was performed in 57% of these patients. Eight patients (1.6%) had previously undergone cardiac surgery. The prosthesis sizes implanted were: S (n=91), M (n=154), L (n=218) and XL (n=40). Concomitant procedures were mitral valve surgery (n=6), tricuspid valve repair (n=1), mitral valve repair and tricuspid valve repair (n=1) and miectomy (n=2). Mean age was 78±4 years (range, 65–89 years), 317 patients were female (63%) and EuroSCORE II was 5.9%±8.4%. Results: The 30-day mortality was 0.8% (4/503). Cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and aortic cross-clamp times were 81.6±30.8 and 50.3±24.5 minutes respectively for stand-alone procedures. In two patients, early moderate paravalvular leakage appeared as a result of incomplete expansion of the sutureless valve due to oversizing of the bioprosthesis, requiring reoperations at two and nine postoperative days with sutured aortic bioprosthesis implantation. Permanent pacemaker implantation within the first thirty days was necessary in 26 (5.2%) patients. At the mean follow-up of 4.6 years (range, 1 month to 8.6 years), survival was 96%, freedom from reoperation was 99.2%, and mean transvalvular pressure gradient was 11.9±4.3 mmHg. Conclusions: AVR with the Perceval bioprosthesis in a RAMT approach is a safe and feasible procedure associated with low mortality and excellent hemodynamic performance. Sutureless technology facilitates a RAMT approach.

BACKGROUND: Benefits of sutureless and rapid deployment (SURD) bioprostheses in bicuspid aortic valves (BAV) are controversial. The aim of this study is to report the outcomes of patients undergoing aortic valve replacement (AVR) for BAV from the Sutureless and Rapid-Deployment Aortic Valve Replacement International Registry (SURD-IR). METHODS: Of the 4,636 patients who received primary isolated SURD-AVR between 2007 and 2018, 191 (4.1%) BAV patients underwent AVR with SURD valve. RESULTS: Overall 30-day mortality was 1.6%. The Intuity valve was implanted in 53.9% of cases, whereas the Perceval was implanted in 46.1%. Rate of stroke for isolated AVR was 4.2%. No case of endocarditis, thromboembolism, myocardial infarction, valve dislocation or structural valve deterioration was reported in the early phase. Rate of pacemaker implantation and moderate-severe aortic regurgitation (AR) were 7.9% and 3.7%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: BAV is not considered a contraindication for the implantation of SURD valves. However, detailed information of aortic root geometry as well as the knowledge of some technical considerations are mandatory for a good outcome. ispartof: ANNALS OF CARDIOTHORACIC SURGERY vol:9 issue:4 pages:298-304 ispartof: location:China status: published