Repair of tracheo-oesophageal fistula secondary to button battery ingestion: A combined cervical and median sternotomy approach

A three-year-old child developed a large tracheo-oesophageal fistula secondary to a button battery being lodged in the upper oesophagus for 36 hours. The diagnosis was confirmed with a contrast swallow. Operative access was gained through a combined right cervical incision and complete median sternotomy. Repair of the fistula required a segmental resection of both the trachea and oesophagus followed by primary anastomosis.     

两种手术入路行右心房黏液瘤切除手术的临床对照研究

目的 对比采用右胸前外侧微创切口和胸骨正中切口行右心房黏液瘤切除手术的手术效果。方法 选取2005年5月至2019年12月在复旦大学附属中山医院行手术治疗的右心房黏液瘤患者共61例，其中男性25例，女性36例，年龄19~82岁，平均（53.6±13.4）岁，根据手术切口分组，45例采用胸骨正中切口（胸骨组），16例采用右胸前外侧微创切口（微创组）。采用独立样本t检验、秩和检验、Fisher精确检验比较两组手术结果。结果 两组术前资料匹配，无院内死亡患者。两组平均心肺转流时间相似，但与胸骨组相比，微创组平均手术时间、主动脉阻断时间均较短，平均机械通气时间和术后住院时间较短，引流量较少，输血率较低，差异有统计学意义。术后随访3~153个月，随访率95.6%，1例患者随访期间非心源性死亡，余患者恢复良好，随访超声心动图未见肿瘤复发。结论 两种手术入路行右心房黏液瘤切除均安全有效，术后中远期复发率低，采用右胸前外侧微创切口进行手术可缩短手术时间，减少手术创伤。     

胸部小切口冠状动脉搭桥术66例报告

目的：探讨胸部小切口冠状动脉搭桥术的临床效果。方法2002年1月～2013年1月采用胸部小切口取左乳内动脉（ left internal mammary artery,LIMA）心脏不停跳冠状动脉搭桥术66例。胸骨下段小切口59例,采用全麻、单腔气管插管,平卧位,倒“L”胸骨下段切口;胸骨旁小切口5例,采用全麻、双腔气管插管,平卧位左胸抬高30＆#176;,左前外侧第4或第5肋切口,用特制牵开器（法国圣骑士公司）牵开肋骨,游离乳内动脉,使用冠脉固定器下行冠脉吻合;2例胸腔镜辅助下完成乳内动脉与左前降支的吻合。结果66例均完成左乳内动脉至前降支的吻合,2例追加大隐静脉降主动脉至第一对角支的吻合。无围术期死亡。60例随访0．5～8年,（5．5±2．5）年,心绞痛症状消失42例,明显减轻24例。术后冠状动脉CT检查16例,冠脉造影12例,LIMA与左前降支（ left anterior descending, LAD）吻合口满意率100％,支架内再狭窄1例,大隐静脉桥血管闭塞1例。结论胸部小切口冠状动脉搭桥术主要适用于心脏前壁冠状动脉尤其是前降支的的再血管化,安全可靠,中期疗效好,在合并高危因素或常规冠状动脉搭桥术和经皮冠状动脉介入术效果不满意者中应用更佳。     

Major cardiothoracic trauma: Eleven-year review of outcomes in the North West of England

Introduction

Up to 15% of patients with cardiothoracic trauma require emergency surgery, and death can be prevented in a substantial proportion of this group. UK reports have emphasised the need for improvement in this field. We assessed major cardiothoracic trauma (MCT) outcomes in North West England over 11 years.

Methods

The database from the Trauma Audit and Research Network was used to retrieve data for all patients who had suffered MCT between 2000 and 2011 in North West England and the findings analysed. Trauma that led to thoracotomy/thoracoscopy or sternotomy was defined as MCT.

Results

A total of 146 patients were identified, and a considerable male predominance (88.4%) noted. A total of 54.1% had sustained penetrating cardiothoracic trauma. Also, 53.4% had been admitted to tertiary-care hospitals for trauma (TCHT) and 46.6% had been admitted to non-TCHT. Overall prevalence of mortality was 35.6%. No significant difference was found in mortality between TCHT vs non-TCHT. Prevalence of mortality was significantly higher in the subgroup of patients cared for exclusively in non-TCHT compared with patients transferred from non-TCHT to TCHT (41% vs 13.8%, p<0.05).

Conclusions

No significant difference was demonstrated in length of stay in hospital/length of stay in the intensive treatment unit and prevalence of mortality between patients originally presenting in TCHT and those presenting in non-TCHT. However, patients transferred from non-TCHT to TCHT had a lower prevalence of mortality. These findings may constitute a valuable benchmark for comparison with results arising after introduction of trauma centres in the UK.     

Surgical approach in thymectomy: Our experience and review of the literature

AimThymectomy is the main treatment for thymoma and patients with myasthenia gravis (MG). The traditional approach is through a median sternotomy, but, recently, thymectomy through minimally invasive approaches is increasingly performed. Our purpose is an analysis and discussion of the clinical presentation, the diagnostic procedures and the surgical technique. We also consider post-operative complications and results, over a period of 5 years (May 2011–June 2016), in thymic masses admitted in our Thoracic Surgery Unit.MethodsWe analyzed 8 patients who underwent surgical treatment for thymic masses over a period of 5 years. 6 patients (75%) had thymoma, 2 patients (25%) had thymic carcinomas. 2 patients with thymoma (33%) had myasthenia gravis. We performed a complete surgical resection with median sternotomy as standard approach.ResultsOne patient (12%) died in the postoperative period. The histological study revealed 6 (75%) thymoma and 2 (25%) thymic carcinomas. Post-operative morbidity occurred in 2 patients (25%) and were: pneumonia in 1 case (12%), atrial fibrillation and pleural effusion in 2 patients (25%). One patient with thymoma type A recurred at skeletal muscle 2-years after surgery.ConclusionsThymic malignancies are rare tumors. Surgical resection is the main treatment, but a multimodal approach is useful for many patients. Radical thymectomy is completed removing all the soft tissue in the anterior mediastinum between the two phrenic nerves and this is the most important factor in controlling myasthenia and influencing survival in patients with thymoma. Open (median sternotomy) approach has been the standard approach for thymectomy for the better visualization of the anatomical structures. Actually, video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery (VATS) thymectomy and robotic video-assisted thoracoscopic (R-VATS) approach versus open surgery has an equal if not superior oncological efficacy, better perioperative complications and survival outcomes.     

Profuse Mediastinal Haemorrhage Due to Mediastinitis after Sternotomy: Report of Three Cases and Review of the Literature

Profuse spontaneous haemorrhage occurred in association with mediastinitis after median sternotomy for coronary bypass surgery in three men aged 54, 47 and 59 years. The bleeding sites were aorta, right ventricle and saphenous bypass graft. The aortic rupture occurred during closed lavage, the right ventricle ruptured during open saline mediastinal packing and the saphenous vein graft was eroded by a mediastinal drainage tube after discontinuation of closed lavage. This third patient survived and recovered, but the two others died. Previously published reports of 56 patients with 65 bleedings from this rare complication are reviewed. The outcome was fatal in 34% of cases.     

Preoperative and Postoperative Response to Inhaled Nitric Oxide

The preoperative dose response to inhaled nitric oxide (NO) was compared with the need for and response to NO after cardiac surgery in patients with congenital heart defect and secondary pulmonary hypertension. In a preoperative vasodilator test with inhaled NO 20, 40 and 80 ppm and oxygen, mean pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) was at least 40 mmHg and/or the pulmonary vascular resistance index (PVRI) 4 Wood units. Preoperatively, NO 40 ppm and Fi0₂ 0.9 reduced systolic pulmonary/systemic arterial pressure (PAPs/SAPs) from 0.89 (SD 0.10) to 0.80 (0.18) and pulmonary/systemic vascular resistance (PVR/SVR) from 0.26 (0.13) to 0.13 (0.08). Haemodynamic assessment was repeated in 11 patients postoperatively. NO treatment was started if PAPs/SAPs rose to 0.8 or the pulmonary oximetry fell below 40%. Postoperatively, eight of 11 patients, including 6 patients with Down's syndrome, needed NO. PAPs/SAPs decreased more than preoperatively: 48.5% vs 11.2, p = 0.0045. Pulmonary oximetry increased by 15.7%, p = 0.02. The degree of preoperative response to NO did not differ between the patients with postoperative pulmonary hypertension and the other children. Patients with early pulmonary hypertensive crisis (first 24 h; n = 6) had a higher PVRI (7.6 vs 4.4 Um²; p = 0.003) and PVR/SVR (0.34 VS 0.17; p = 0.02) preoperatively. Two patients died in pulmonary hypertensive crisis.     

改良胸骨正中切口

胸骨正中切口是心脏直视手术的常规入路,但切口上端的手术瘢痕常影响病人的美容。101例心脏直视手术采用上端弧形的改良胸骨正中切开术。我们的技术不同于经乳房下皮肤切口的胸骨正中切开术,这种入路能获得适当的显露,操作简便,美容效果良好。