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Background: Endovascular interventions for abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) are fast evolving; however, due to higher rates of reintervention and no survival benefits after 2 years, open surgical procedures are pivotal. Here, we present mortality and morbidity analysis of open surgical procedures requiring suprarenal cross clamping for AAA repair. Materials and Methods: The present study is a retrospective hospital record-based study selecting 34 cases that required suprarenal cross-clamping out of 200 abdominal aortic aneurysm surgeries. Out of the total 34 patients, 22 (64.7%) were males and 12 (35.3%) were females. The mean age of all participants was 58.05 years (with an 8.1 standard deviation). Out of 34 cases, 20 cases (58.8%) were classified as suprarenal and pararenal aneurysms and 14 cases were juxtarenal aneurysms (41.2%). Out of the 14 juxtrarenal aneurysm cases, 7 (50%) were atherosclerotic and 2 (14.3%) were Marfan's Syndrome, while inflammatory were 2 (14.3%) and infected were 2 (14.3%) and 1 was a case of Takayasu's arteritis (7.1%). Mortality and morbidity, including renal function decline, need for hemodialysis, acute pancreatitis, and hepatic and gastrointestinal (GI) complications, were recorded as early (up to 30 days) and late (up to 1 year). The results were recorded separately for suprarenal, pararenal, and juxtarenal aneurysm types and presented in that way, which is the highlight of our study. Results: Early mortality occurred in 3/34 (8.8%) cases, where late mortality happened in 2/34 (5.9%) cases, which are exclusive of early mortality cases. Considering the early mortality and complications, 2 out of 4 cases (50.0%) of the suprarenal group died early, renal dysfunction happened in 4/34 cases (11.8%), of which 3 (8.8%) required dialysis. No cases of pancreatitis, while acute liver failure complicated 3 out of 34 (8.8%) cases. GI bleed and mesentric ischemia each complicated 2 out of 34 cases (5.9%). Prolonged ileus was noticed as the most common GI complication complication. Early mortality was highest in the suprarenal group with renal dysfunction. Considering late mortality and complications, 1 out of 16 cases (6.3%) of the pararenal group died late, and 1 out of 14 cases (7.1%) of the juxta renal cases died late. There was no late mortality in the suprarenal group. Renal dysfunction happened in 2/34 cases (5.9%), of which none required dialysis. Complete data have been presented as per the aneurysm type. Conclusions: Patients requiring suprarenal aortic cross-clamping for open surgical repair of abdominal aorta aneurysm are usually high-risk surgical candidates, considering both early and late mortality and morbidity. Early mortality was maximum in the suprarenal group (50.0%), as were postoperative renal dysfunction and hemodialysis requirements. Visceral complications (acute liver failure and GI complications) were also maximum with the suprarenal group. Late mortality was recorded in the pararenal and juxtarenal groups, with renal dysfunction being recorded in the suprarenal and juxtarenal groups. Visceral complications were recorded in both pararenal and juxtarenal groups. One confounding factor could be the high early mortality in the suprarenal group, resulting in less number of survivors for late postoperative recording. Overall, we conclude that suprarenal aortic aneurysms carry the highest burden of early mortality with renal and visceral complications postoperative.

Introduction: Tobacco exposure during pregnancy has a negative influence on fetal growth. Maternal smoking causes placental vaso­constriction and fetal growth restriction (FGR). In India, the tobacco industry employs women to hand roll cigarettes called bidis. A bidi roller handles 120 g of tobacco and therefore 3 g of nicotine per day. Aim: To evaluate the effect of occupational tobacco handling by pregnant women on fetal growth and wellbeing. Methods: In this cohort study, 177 pregnant bidi rollers (exposed cohort) and 354 pregnant non-rollers (unexposed cohort) were followed up from 18-22 weeks of pregnancy until delivery with fetal sonogram and Doppler. Fetal surveillance data (including fetal biometry, Doppler indices, amniotic fluid index, biophysical profile and placentation) were recorded and compared. Maternal nicotine absorption was quantified by serum cotinine. Intergroup differences and relative risk (RR) were determined by Chi-square test (or Fisher exact when the count was ≤ 5), and adjusted odds ratio (OR) by binary logistic regression. Intrauterine growth trend was plotted. Results: Fetal surveillance results were ab­normal in 37.9% of the tobacco-exposed group, with a RR of 1.6 (p = 0.001) and adjusted OR of 1.8 (p = 0.005) in comparison with the unex­posed group. Nicotine absorption was evident in 28.4% of the bidi rollers that had abnormal fetal surveillance results. The mean estimated fetal weight and head circumference demonstrated a sustained deceleration, starting at 28-30 weeks of gestation, in the exposed group. Doppler data suggested fetal adaptation to maintain cerebral circulation. We found a higher frequency of oligohydramnios (statistically significant), pla­cental abruption (not statistically significant), and placenta previa (not statistically significant) in the tobacco-exposed group. Conclusions: Occupational tobacco handling in bidi rollers resulted in early-onset symmetric FGR and compromised wellbeing. Pregnant women with any form of tobacco exposure require vigilant fetal surveillance.

Background: Surgical repair of tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) consists of adequate ventricular septal defect closure and relief of right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT) obstruction to the greatest extent possible. The residual RVOT gradient can be due to dynamic and fixed obstruction, and high gradient is sometimes seen even after a satisfactory RVOT resection often confirmed with intraoperative TransEsophageal Echocardiogram (TEE). Aim: The present study was conducted to study the changes in RVOT residual gradient in the early postoperative period. We analyzed the change in residual gradient by invasive monitoring intraoperatively after separating from cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) in a case of intracardiac repair (ICR) for TOF and compared the readings 24 h after extubating the patients in intensive care unit (ICU). Materials and Methods: This was an observation study done in the Department of CTVS, Advanced Cardiac Centre, PGIMER, and Chandigarh from February 2018 to March 2019. A total of thirty patients with preoperative diagnosis of TOF were included in the study. After ICR for TOF, postseparation from CPB, RVOT gradient was measured using 23G needle connected to pressure transducer and compared with RVOT gradient measured 24 h postextubating using invasive line kept intraoperatively in pulmonary artery and RVOT. Results: There was a significant decrease in residual RVOT gradient postoperatively in ICU after 24 h of extubating, in comparison to intraoperative postbypass residual RVOT gradient. Postbypass residual RVOT gradient was 11.33 ± 1.39 that decreased to 7.81 ± 1.29 24 h after extubating (P < 0.05). Patients in whom pulmonary valve was preserved had greater postbypass residual RVOT gradient (12.44 ± 1.13) than patients with transannular patch (10.5 ± 0.90). However, both decreased after 24 h of extubating (9 ± 0.7 and 6.9 ± 0.8, respectively). Conclusion: Once satisfactory RVOT resection for fixed obstruction is done and is confirmed using TEE, the residual gradient, if marginally high, can be ignored as residual gradient significantly decreases after extubation and hemodynamic improvement is seen in postoperative period.

Objective: Axillary and innominate artery (IA) cannulation using side graft has some limitations in patients having ascending aortic dissection (AAD) with flap extending in major neck vessels. We retrospectively analyzed the outcomes of a direct under vision innominate ostial cannulation strategy for antegrade cerebral perfusion (ACP) using a retrograde balloon-tip cardioplegia cannula. Patients and Methods: This was a retrospective analysis of all patients who were operated on for AAD with a dissection flap extending into major neck vessels between November 01, 2020 and November 30, 2022. Demographic data were noted, and comorbidities were listed. The kind of surgery patients underwent was noted: three patients underwent modified Bentall's procedure, five had to ascend aortic replacement, and one patient underwent David's procedure. All patients had open distal anastomosis using moderate hypothermia with ACP by direct under vision cannulation of the true lumen of the IA using a balloon-tip retrograde cardioplegia cannula. Intraoperative parameters such as cross-clamp time, cardiopulmonary bypass time, temperature range during circulatory arrest, and total operative time were noted. The primary outcome was a comparison of the incidence of stroke, seizures, and psychosis and the secondary outcome was an analysis of end-organ malperfusion, intensive care unit (ICU) stays, total hospital stay, and 30-day mortality. Results: We retrospectively analyzed the surgical data of nine patients who were operated on between November 01, 2020 and November 20, 2022 by this technique and found that the incidence of stroke, seizures organ malperfusion, ICU stay, and hospital stay was comparable to other techniques of ACP (axillary artery/direct IA cannulation), but the operative time was a less, and local complications due to axillary cannulation such as shoulder pain and upper limb weakness and seroma were not seen. Conclusion: Direct vision cannulation of the true lumen of the IA using a retrograde balloon-tip cannula is a cost-effective and time-saving method. It evades the limitations of well-established ACP techniques such as direct IA cannulation using Seldinger's technique which is a blind procedure and also has no local complications of the cannulating right axillary artery. Our results show that this procedure is less time-consuming and is noninferior to the other two methods of ACP in patients getting operated on for AAD with open distal anastomosis under moderate hypothermia. Further studies with a larger sample size are needed to validate this preliminary study.

Background: Cannulation strategies in ascending aorta and arch surgeries are a matter of immense discussion. Majority of time deep hypothermic circulatory arrest (DHCA) is the preferred strategy, but it does come with its set of demerits. Double-arterial cannulation (DAC) may decrease DHCA time and avoid its related morbidity and mortality. Aim: The aim was to compare patients undergoing surgery in acute Type A dissection by DAC with antegrade cerebral perfusion under moderate hypothermia and single-arterial cannulation (SAC) technique under DHCA with respect to the primary outcome of stroke, seizure, and psychosis and the secondary outcome as malperfusion, hospital stay, and mortality. Materials and Methods: This study was a retrospective analysis of 64 patients operated for acute ascending aortic dissection (AAD) extending into arch and major vessels in the Department of CTVS, UN Mehta Institute of Cardiology and Research between July 2015 and July 2020. After screening through the hospital data, 30 patients operated by SAC and 34 patients operated by DAC technique were selected and their files were studied and analyzed. All patients were diagnosed using two-dimensional echocardiogram and computerized tomography aortogram to confirm the diagnosis. Forty-four patients who presented to emergency were stabilized before taking up for emergency surgery and 20 were operated semi-electively. Out of 64 patients, 40 patients underwent Bentall's procedure using composite mechanical valve, 10 patients underwent ascending aorta replacement, 7 patients underwent ascending aorta replacement with hemiarch, 2 patients underwent Bentall's with coronary artery bypass grafting, 2 patients underwent David's procedure, 2 patients underwent Yacoub's procedure, and 1 patient underwent Bentall's procedure using biological valve. Out of 30 patients operated by SAC, 25 patients had femoral cannulation and 5 patients had only right axillary cannulation. In the DAC group, all had right axillary artery and femoral cannulation. All patients were analyzed for primary and secondary outcomes. Results: A total of 64 patients diagnosed with Type A AAD with dissection flap extending into major vessels were included in the study. Those patients operated with DAC technique had a significantly lower incidence of stroke, malperfusion, and hospital mortality as compared to the patients with SACs. Conclusion: In AAD involving major arch vessel and femoral arteries, the idea is to provide rapid and safe blood inflow to arterial system in order to maintain cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and organ perfusion, which is of utmost iimportance. The idea is to provide rapid and safe blood inflow to arterial system in order to maintain cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and organ perfusion, which is of utmost importance. The right axillary artery is least involved in acute aortic dissection and when cannulated can provide uninterrupted flow to brain and also provide sufficient inflow to maintain CPB. Along with this, if femoral artery cannulation provides flow to abdominal organs and lower limb, it will prevent malperfusion syndrome. DAC is safe in complex Type A aortic dissection and aortic arch surgery and has better perioperative outcomes compared to SAC.

Introduction: This study was planned to compare postoperative hemodynamics, blood loss, platelet count, and coagulation parameters in patients undergoing intracardiac repair for tetralogy of Fallot with and without hemofiltration and, in addition, to determine whether hemofiltration during cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) reduces cytokines in children undergoing intracardiac repair for tetralogy of Fallot. Methods: Thirty children suffering from tetralogy of Fallot were enrolled in the study and randomly divided into two groups: one group had hemofiltration from beginning of rewarming till weaning off CPB, whereas in the other group, hemofiltration was not used during CPB. In the hemofiltration group, samples were taken for the comparison of tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-6 (IL-6), and IL-8 levels, before and after hemofiltration. Platelet count, coagulation parameters, postoperative blood loss, extubation time, hemodynamic parameters were recorded for hemofiltration as well as non-hemofiltration group and analysed. Results: The extubation time in the hemofiltration group was 15.6 h (mean), whereas that in the control group was 28.6 h (mean), and the difference, when compared, was significant between the two groups (P = 0.05). The cumulative postoperative blood loss at 24 h was significantly less in the hemofiltration group compared to the control group, 97.4 ml (80–114 ml) versus 159 ml (100–210 ml), respectively, with P = 0.001. No other statistically significant difference could be appreciated in the parameters analyzed. Conclusion: There was a significant reduction in postoperative blood loss and extubation time in the hemofiltration group. There was no significant reduction in cytokines. No significant difference was observed in requirement of inotropic agents, hemodynamic status, and intensive care unit stay between the two groups. Small sample size and shorter ultrafiltration time during rewarming phase were limitations of the study.

Opsoclonus-myoclonus- ataxia syndrome (OMAS) is a rare immune-mediated movement disorder occurring as a paraneoplastic manifestation of neuroblastic tumours (NTs), especially neuroblastoma in infancy. Ganglioneuroma (GN), the benign tumour in the spectrum, is rarely associated with OMAS. We report the case of a child in her second year of life presenting with acute onset of progressive paraplegia and OMAS. MRI showed diffuse and infiltrating left paraspinal mass from T3–T9 levels with differentials of neuroblastoma or ganglioneuroblastoma. Histopathological and immunohistochemistry examination of the excised tumour showed maturing GN. The OMAS was managed with intravenous immunoglobulin and steroids. In the 6-month follow-up, the child has a residual motor weakness with myelomalacia in neuroimaging. The case report substantiates the occurrence of OMAS as paraneoplastic manifestation in NTs, including benign, in children younger than 2 years with a female predilection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]