Administration of hypothermic cardioplegia in the presence of aortic regurgitation

Two technical maneuvers are presented to make the administration of cardioplegia feasible in the presence of moderate aortic valve incompetence. In the first maneuver, the cardioplegic solution is administered through a double-lumen balloon catheter inserted retrograde through the aortic wall and the aortic valve into the left ventricle; the inflated balloon obstructs the aortic orifice while the solution is injected through the proximal hole. In the second, after proximal anastomoses of the saphenous vein grafts are performed, the portion of the aorta from which the vein grafts rise is excluded by double cross-clamping and the cardioplegic solution is injected into this excluded segment.     

A completely atraumatic pickup forceps designed to hold vein grafts

A completely atraumatic pickup forceps to hold vein grafts during bypass procedures is described.     

Ascending-distal abdominal aorta bypass for treatment of hypoplastic aortic arch and atypical coarctation in the adult

Repair of aortic coarctation is usually an easy operation. However, it can be very difficult under certain circumstances. These include operating on an adult or operating when specific anatomical variations, such as hypoplasia of the transverse aortic arch or calcification of the coarctation area, are present. We recommend that in such cases the situation be handled using ascending aorta-lower abdominal aorta bypass grafts rather than conventional resection and anastomosis of the coarctation itself. The cases of 2 patients are presented in whom a hypoplastic aortic arch associated with atypical coarctation was repaired using such a procedure.     

The Embolization of Bone Wax from Sternotomy Incisions

We discuss our study on the effects of discontinuation of the usage of bone wax as a hemostatic agent in sternotomy incisions. In 1976, we abandoned use of bone wax because it was suspected of causing several cases of Mycobacterium fortuitum sternal osteomyelitis. In a retrospective study involving 400 patients, we found that this step did not increase postoperative bleeding as measured by drainage from the chest tube and by the need to return patients to the operating room because of bleeding. It also was observed that there was an appreciable simultaneous drop in pulmonary complications. To test our theory that the wax pressed into the bone marrow can embolize to the lung, radioactively tagged bone wax was pressed into the cut sternum in animal models, and a search was made for radioactive deposits in the peripheral lung tissue. Shortly after the application of the wax, there was evidence of large radioactive deposits in the lungs. It is probable that this embolization occurs also under clinical conditions and may play a role in pulmonary complications following open-heart operations.     

Marlex mesh support for the correction of very severe and recurrent pectus excavatum

A method for the correction of very severe and recurrent pectus excavatum is presented. The technique consists of mobilization of the sternum, transverse osteotomy, parasternal resection of the costal cartilages (modified Ravitch procedure), followed by placement of Marlex mesh behind the sternum and suturing the edge of the Marlex mesh to the peripheral stump of the resected ribs. This method has been used with good results in 6 patients, 2 of them with recurrent deformities.     

A New Method to Treat Fusiform Aneurysms of the Ascending Aorta Associated with Aortic Valve Disease: An Alternative to Radical Resection

A new method designed to deal with special forms of fusiform aneurysms of the ascending aorta associated with aortic valve disease is presented. The procedure consists of replacing the aortic valve, decreasing the aortic diameter by excision of an oval segment, placing a well-tailored Dacron vascular graft around the ascending aorta, and anchoring it with previously placed sutures driven through the sewing ring of the valve prosthesis through the aortic wall. The technique has been applied in 6 patients with postoperative observation ranging from six weeks to two and a half years. Technically the operation was carried out without difficulty, and all the patients are doing well.     

An Epitaph for Cavopulmonary Anastomosis

Cavopulmonary anastomosis was developed by several surgical groups working independently and probably unaware of each other. In a most unusual way, the primary discoveries were left unnoticed, the initial trials were not followed up, and the first clinical successes were generally disregarded. After that, however, there was intensive experimental and clinical activity during which the physiology of this new operation was studied intensively and it was applied in a large number of clinical cases. After the development of more radical procedures, the operation gradually fell into disuse. This essay discusses the place of the cavopulmonary shunt in surgical history.     

Technical considerations in the surgical management of pectus excavatum and carinatum

During the past 25 years, 650 operations have been performed on 608 patients for anatomically significant pectus excavatum or carinatum deformities of the anterior chest wall. There were no deaths in this series, and serious complications were very rare.We conclude that repair of pectus excavatum and carinatum deformities should include the following operative steps: (1) adequate mobilization of the sternum and correction of its abnormal angulation by transverse osteotomy; (2) adequate bilateral removal of the involved costal cartilage; and (3) securing the corrected position of the sternum with the patient's own living tissue, retaining its blood supply and using it as an internal support.Using these principles, new surgical procedures were developed for the correction of: symmetrical pectus excavatum, asymmetrical pectus excavatum, pectus carinatum with xiphoid angulation, pectus carinatum without xiphoid angulation, asymmetrical pectus carinatum, chondromanubrial prominence with chondrogladiolar depression, and recurrent pectus excavatum.We recommend surgical correction for patients in whom the deformity is significant and no contraindication exists. The ill effects of this condition should not be underestimated.     

Testing of mitral valve competence following combined mitral valve repair and aortic valve replacement

A simple, effective technique for testing the results of repair and reconstructive procedures on the mitral valve apparatus is described. This technique can be used in the operative setting of combined aortic valve replacement and mitral valve repair where other reported techniques for testing the valve apparatus are rendered unfeasible.     

Evaluation of the Hunter-Sessions self-retaining aortic cannula

A report of our experience with a new self-retaining aortic cannula is presented. We have used this cannula in more than 30 patients and found it to be very secure and convenient for rapid cannulation since no pursestring sutures are required for initial placement.     

The modern use of thoracoplasty

Thoracoplasty is a time-honored but, at present, rarely indicated procedure for reducing thoracic cavity volume. This study reviews a series of 30 patients treated with thoracoplasty over a 14-year period (1970 through 1983). Indications were to close a persistent pleural space in 28 patients and to tailor the thoracic cavity to accept diminished lung volume concomitant with a pulmonary resection in 2 patients. Persistent pleural space, often associated with a bronchopleural fistula (24 patients), occurred after operation in 19 patients: following pulmonary resection in 17 patients, resection of mesothelioma in 1 patient, and following decortication without resection in 1. In the remaining 9 patients with a persistent pleural space, problems developed from primary lung destruction due to tuberculosis (4 patients), postpneumonic empyema (1 patient), or as late infection of a residual pleural space many years after therapeutic pneumothorax and collapse therapy for tuberculosis (4 patients). The overall success rate of thoracoplasty in eliminating intrathoracic space problems was 73%. There were 3 deaths (10%) and 5 failures to heal, representing a 33% failure in the first half of the series (to 1976) and a 17% failure rate thereafter (1 death and 1 nonhealing patient). The primary underlying disease was tuberculosis in 23 patients, 8 of whom had concomitant aspergilloma and 1, atypical tuberculosis. The failures were analyzed and reviewed to clarify the principles for the successful use of thoracoplasty. It is concluded that thoracoplasty is a rarely required salvage-type procedure applicable to moderately debilitated patients in whom it is considered desirable to eliminate open drainage.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)     

His Bundle Interruption for Control of Inappropriate Ventricular Responses to Atrial Arrhythmias

Forty-two patients with life-threatening or disabling atrial arrhythmias are discussed. Fifteen had Kent bundles as the basis for the reentry tachycardia, while 27 had arrhythmias that originated in or above the atrioventricular (AV) node. Nineteen of the latter had an AV node that conducted atrial impulses rapidly to the ventricle. These patients were classified as having enhanced conduction through the AV node, a diagnosis based on clinical and electrophysiological studies. Initially, the technique employed for His bundle interruption was, either separate or in combination, blind suture, electrocauterization, and incision of the septal portion of the right atrium. The technique later adopted was sharp division of the atrial septum at its attachment to the right fibrous trigone. Cryothermia was used in 31 patients. There were four failures. In the group in whom sharp division was used, there were two failures among 11 patients. Two patients, however, had to have a second operation. Following AV node-His bundle interruption, a junctional rhythm resulted and a pacemaker was always installed.Our studies indicate that interruption of atrial to ventricular conduction is a satisfactory operation for atrial arrhythmias that are disabling or life threatening and that are refractory to vigorous medical therapy. Cryothermic ablation is the preferable technique. However, if this is not successful, then division is required of the AV node-His bundle junction by interruption of the insertion of the atrial septum into the right fibrous trigone.     

Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting: Simplification and Refinement of Surgical Technique

Recent advances in technique and myocardial preservation that I have used in performing the coronary bypass operation are described. Rigid adherence to basic microsuture technique and use of hypothermic hyperosmolar cardioplegic solution and wide-field optical magnification have been responsible for improving graft patency rates and markedly reducing operative mortality during the past six years. With these techniques, hospital mortality has been 0.6% (3 deaths) in the last 500 consecutive coronary bypass operations.     

Effects of Delay in Administration of Potassium Cardioplegia to the Isolated Rat Heart

Ischemic injury to the heart in the period between aortic cross-clamping and administration of cardioplegic solution was evaluated in the normothermic rat heart model. After isolation and control perfusion with oxygenated Krebs-Henseleit bicarbonate buffer, the hearts were given lactated Ringer's cardioplegic solution (30 mEq of K⁺ per liter) for 2 minutes at three different intervals following aortic clamping: no delay, 2-minute delay, and 5-minute delay. Thereafter, the hearts were left unper-fused and the time to initiation of ischemic contracture was recorded. Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and creatine phosphate levels were measured in all groups prior to and at the conclusion of cardioplegia administration.A 2-minute delay in the administration of cardioplegic solution resulted in significantly lower (p < 0.001) ATP levels that were restored after 2 minutes of cardioplegia administration. Contracture times were not significantly altered. A 5-minute delay resulted in significantly shorter (p < 0.001) contracture times and significantly lower (p < 0.001) ATP levels that were not restored to preischemic levels by 2 minutes of cardioplegia administration.The fate of the myocardium may be insensitive to events that occur during the earliest moments of ischemia provided that rapid administration of oxygenated potassium cardioplegia follows the ischemic period and restores preischemic high-energy phosphate stores. However, there is a critical ischemic time during the initial interval before cardioplegia that is associated with an impaired ability of the myocardium to tolerate subsequent ischemia.     

Management of the Patient with a Prosthetic Heart Valve

Approximately 20,000 heart valve prostheses are inserted yearly in the United States. Even after successful heart operations, the patients who receive them cannot be regarded as healthy individuals but are a special group with special problems who need close medical attention for the rest of their lives. They are susceptible to many unusual complications because of their implanted foreign body, and it is a challenge to all physicians in contact with them to be aware of their peculiar problems in order to prevent complications if possible and to treat them immediately if they occur.General therapy, surgical complications, infection, and mechanical problems are reviewed, with means for management outlined. These difficulties can be dealt with only by careful follow-up and well-coordinated teamwork between the family physician and the institution where the operation was performed.     

A New Temporary Pacing Electrode

A simple method for the positioning of a temporary pacemaker electrode in the course of open-heart operation is presented. Instead of using “back stitching,” we recommend that after the wire electrode is passed through the myocardium, it should be driven through a small pledget of Silastic rubber material to hold it in position.     

The Effect of PEEP on Left Ventricular Diastolic Dimensions and Systolic Performance Following Myocardial Revascularization

To quantitate the alterations in left ventricular (LV) dimensions and performance at successive levels of positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP), 16 patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) underwent instrumentation with ultrasonic dimension transducers to measure the minor-axis diameter of the left ventricle. Matched micromanometers were placed to measure intracavitary LV pressure and intrathoracic pressure. LV pressure and dimension data were recorded and computer analyzed during continuous positive-pressure ventilation at 0, 5, 10, and 15 cm H₂O of PEEP 4 to 8 hours postoperatively. Preload was determined by the end-diastolic minor-axis diameter, cardiac output was measured by thermodilution, and indices of LV contractility assessed included the maximal velocity of minor-axis shortening and the slope of the end-systolic pressure-diameter relationship.PEEP produced a progressive increase in intrathoracic pressure associated with a fall in cardiac output; this was associated with a decrease in LV end-diastolic diameter and no significant change in the maximal velocity of minor-axis shortening or the slope of the end-systolic pressure-diameter relationship. Our results indicate that PEEP of 10 cm H₂O or greater will produce a significant fall in cardiac output in patients following CABG, due to a decrease in preload rather than impaired LV contractility.     

The Surgical Treatment of Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome: Evolution of Improved Methods for Identification and Interruption of the Kent Bundle

Fifty patients have been operated upon for the tachyarrhythmias associated with Kent bundles. The indications for operation were supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) in 23 and life-threatening tachyarrhythmia in 27. Among the unusual variants noted were multiple Kent bundles in 6 patients and Kent bundles that conducted only retrograde in 3. Forty-nine patients underwent attempted interruption of the bundle of Kent followed by His bundle division in 6. One had elective division of the bundle of His. The surgical problems occurred in 13 patients with posterior septal Kent bundles. A new approach is outlined for this group.Division of the Kent bundle was successful in 31 patients, but 2 deaths occurred from cardiomyopathy. Seven patients had successful control of SVT by His bundle interruption. One patient with postoperative retrograde conduction has the SVT controlled with drugs. Eight have postoperative delta waves, but their SVT is controlled with drugs. There were 3 failures.     

Stresses of Natural versus Prosthetic Aortic Valve Leaflets in Vivo

During normal function of the aortic valve, the aortic leaflets undergo not only cyclic loading and unloading but also cyclic reversal of their curvature. The stresses induced in the leaflet due to these variations have been computed using a new concept based on the structure of the leaflet. Membrane stresses have been related to the pressure difference across the leaflet and bending stresses to the leaflet curvature. Total stresses were obtained by adding the two stresses. Total stresses in bioprosthetic and synthetic leaflets also were computed using the same approach. In systole, the natural leaflet is subjected to much lower total stress than a bioprosthetic or a synthetic leaflet. The natural leaflet is not subjected to compressive stresses during the cardiac cycle, whereas bioprosthetic and synthetic leaflets must sustain compressive stresses during systole. The differences in stress patterns of these leaflets indicate that there is a difference in their longevity.     

Unilateral pulmonary emphysema created by ligation of the left pulmonary artery in newborn puppies.

The left pulmonary artery was ligated in 7 puppies 12 to 24 hours after birth. All were followed by periodic chest roentgenograms. At 6 months of age, ventilatory spaces, split-lung function, and static compliances were determined. Bronchograms and arteriograms were obtained, and histopathology was studied. All animals demonstrated a decrease in left lung size with gross and microscopic changes typical of chronic emphysema. There was impressive bronchial artery hypertrophy. Oxygen consumption and static compliances in the left lungs were depressed. These marked alterations in maturation, as well as the degenerative changes, are believed to be related to an impairment in the nutritive circulation of the lung.