Interventional catheterization in congenital heart disease

The field of interventional catheterization in congenital heart disease has seen an explosion in application and scope over the past 10 years. In some lesions, such as valvar pulmonic stenosis, the transcatheter approach has replaced surgery as the treatment of choice. Applications currently considered experimental will no doubt become standard therapy as experience is gained with their use. Being able to avoid or postpone surgery has emotional, aesthetic, and practical advantages to patients and their families. The role of the catheter interventionist will continue to grow as new technologies such as fiberoptics, lasers, and miniaturized electromechanical devices are incorporated.     

Principles of cardiac catheterization

Cardiac catheterization, the insertion of catheters into the heart to measure pressures, obtain images and facilitate treatment, is a relatively new procedure and has evolved quickly into a critical diagnostic and therapeutic tool. This article discusses the history of cardiac catheterization, indications and contraindications for its use, catheterization equipment and procedures, patient follow-up and possible complications.     

输卵管插管介入治疗输卵管妊娠

目的探讨经输卵管途径治疗输卵管妊娠的可行性及临床疗效,降低插管难度,缩短手术时间。方法采用介入输卵管插管方法,插管前行宫颈外口注入阿托品0．5mg,插管成功后注入甲氨喋呤70mg治疗114例输卵管妊娠。结果113例获得成功,1例中转手术,未出现严重并发症。结论宫颈外口注入阿托品后输卵管插管治疗妊娠是简单、安全、微创、迅速有效的方法。     

Care of patients after cardiac catheterization.

In an effort to provide more definitive diagnosis for Air Force flyers referred to the USAF School of Aerospace Medicine, cardiac catherization has been performed, as indicated, on over 425 flyers since 1971. Since they are an apparently healthy and asymptomatic population, their recovery after cardiac catheterization is usually uneventful. However, the nurse must be able to recognize and interpret significant potential and/or existing post-catheterization complications. Nursing care of the patient after this procedure is essential to the successful completion of the test. Since any invasive procedure can lead to complications, quick and accurate nursing assessment and action are essential. The possible complications of cardiac catheterization which the nurse may encounter have been divided into possible causes, and a suggested plan of action. Reference tables are provided for each of the two main classifications, in an effort to provide quick guidance for the nurse responsible for care of the patients after catheterization.     

Venous thrombosis after cardiac catheterization in infants

Factors influencing the rate of post-catheterization venous thrombosis were studied in 180 infants below one year of age. The initial cardiac catheterization was performed either with cutdown technique or percutaneously. At repeat catheterization on the ipsilateral side presence or absence of thrombosis was noted. The overall thrombosis frequency was higher than previously reported, 15.6 per cent. The rate increased with decreasing weight. An increased rate of thrombosis was also found with indwelling femoral vein catheter left in place for more than 24 hours, and infection. In 6 cases, thrombosis involved only the catheterized side and would have been missed by recatheterization from the contralateral side. It was noteworthy that 9 of the thromboses spared the catheterized vessel and engaged only the vena cava. Among factors not influencing thrombosis rate were age, type of cardiac malformation, cyanosis, early operation, catheterization time or balloon septostomy. Percutaneous or cutdown technique did not influence thrombosis rate.     

Patient radiation exposure during pediatric cardiac catheterization

Exposure area product (EAP) and center field entrance exposure (free-in-air) were measured in seventeen pediatric patients undergoing cardiac catheterization. Exposures were recorded separately for biplane fluoroscopy and cine angiocardiography using flat-plate ionization chambers. In the posterior-anterior (PA) projections, median EAP was 425 Roentgen-square centimeter (R-cm2), with a range of 90.5-3,882 R-cm2;29-35% of this exposure occurred during cine filming. In the lateral projection, median EAP was 276 R-cm2 (range 117-1,173); 52-59% of this exposure was due to cine filming. Median center field entrance exposure in the PA view was 7.86 Roentgens (R) with a range 2.16-73.9 of and in the lateral projection 7.39 R (range 2.64-24.6). As much as 25% of the exposure from the entire examination was contributed by manual "test" exposures to set cine radiographic kVp. We recommend use of testing circuits, which determine cine radiographic factors automatically and thus should lower levels of exposure.     

Vendor agreements offer cost savings for cardiac catheterization

Hospitals continue to search for ways to save money at the same time they provide their physicians and clinical staffs with the variety and quality of supplies needed to do their jobs. St. Joseph's Medical Center in Stockton, Calif. watched expenditures for its cath lab increase while its activity stabilized. They looked at their high-volume use of balloon catheters, says Gary Boyd, service director. At a cost of $600 to $700 apiece, it made sense to carefully manage their supply. Choosing a prime vendor was the first step in controlling inventory. Materials management, which had previously had a hands-off policy in the cath lab, took an active role in determining choices for this product. Through a lengthy selection process, medical center management and physicians reached a consensus for a single vendor. Having a prime vendor policy may increase the vendor's commitment to the hospital and provide added advantages. For St. Joseph's, selecting a prime vendor has better positioned the hospital to arrange for inventory to be stocked on consignment: the vendor owns the shelved supplies, which the hospital pays for only as they are used. However, some vendors may reduce their discounts when they enter into a consignment agreement. The best way is to get the maximum discount on the invoice price first, and then work with the vendor to manage inventories at the lowest level possible. Smaller facilities have less leverage and less flexibility, but they can often piggy-back onto large bargaining agreements by partnering with a larger institution.     

Effective doses to patients from paediatric cardiac catheterization

The Council Directive of the European Communities 97/43/Euratom requires dose assessment, especially for X-ray examinations of children and if high doses to the patient are involved. Both these aspects apply in cardiac catheterization and angiocardiography of children. Effective doses are a good indicator of radiation risk, particularly for leukaemia. Effective doses have been determined for 2114 infants and children undergoing cardiac catheterization from 1984 to 1996 at the University Hospital in Essen. Conversion factors (effective dose/dose-area product) were calculated based on direct dose-area product measurements for posteroanterior (PA) and lateral (Lat) projections as well as on patient records and examination details. The factors are calculated for eight age groups of children, taking into account the X-ray tube voltage for fluoroscopy and cine-film sequences, with and without zoom mode. Frequency distributions are presented for 2114 patients, for dose-area product, number of angiographic examinations (each combined with one cine-film sequence both PA and Lat) and for calculated effective doses. Highest effective doses are found in newborns (18.0 mSv and 6.5 mSv 90th and 50th percentiles, respectively) compared with adolescents of 15-21 years (8.0 mSv and 3.0 mSv 90th and 50th percentiles, respectively). Effective dose for cardiac catheterization is highest for newborns, in spite of lowest measured dose-area products, because the decreased value of the conversion factors overcompensates for the increase of dose-area product with age. This is especially important because of the higher tumour risk for equal effective dose for young children compared with adults.     

Two-dimensional echocardiography and its influence on cardiac catheterization

Successful management of congenital heart disease requires complete anatomic definition and timely surgical intervention. Preoperative anatomic detail is enhanced by coordination of different imaging disciplines. Precatheterization cardiac ultrasound avoids unnecessary catheter manipulation, excess radiation and reduces contrast volume. Detailed noninvasive imaging, coupled with an understanding of the natural history and surgical alternatives, obviate the need for preoperative cardiac catheterization in selected lesions. Cardiovascular anomalies which, in a well defined set of circumstances, may be exclusively managed by twodimensional echocardiography include sinus venosus and secundum type interatrial septal defects, severe aortic stenosis in infancy, and hypoplastic left heart syndrome. The “well defined set of circumstances” are particular to each lesion and must include the patient's history, physical examination, electrocardiogram, and chest X-ray. Definitive management of a cardiovascular anomaly entails consideration of the relative superiority and cost benefit advantages of the different imaging disciplines.     

High attenuation pericardial fluid on CT following cardiac catheterization

High-density pericardial fluid may be seen on noncontrast CT performed following cardiac catheterization (CC), raising the possibility of hemopericardium. Our goal was to determine the clinical course and associations of incidentally discovered high-attenuation pericardial fluid on noncontrast CT performed soon after CC. Hospital database search over a 7.5-year period identified 211 patients who underwent CT of the chest and/or abdomen within 60 h before or after CC, 150 having CC first. Pericardial fluid volume and attenuation as well as relevant laboratory and clinical parameters were recorded. Bivariate associations with average pericardial fluid attenuation (HU_avg) were assessed. Using the 61 patients with CT before CC as controls, 44 of the patients with CC first had attenuation values greater than the mean?+?2SD of 22.6 Hounsfield unit (HU) and 19 had attenuation values greater than the maximum control patient value of 39.8 HU. All patients with incidental finding of high-density pericardial fluid followed a benign course. Bivariate correlations showed time gap between CC and CT (rho?=??0.50, p?<?0.001), estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) (rho?=??0.24, p?=?0.004), and female gender (median (IQR) 17.4 (13.6, 29.6) vs. 15.8 (9.9, 23.7), p?=?0.02) to be associated with HU_avg. In multiple linear regression analysis, only time gap and female gender were independently significantly associated with average attenuation (both p?<?0.001). The finding that patients with incidentally discovered high-density pericardial fluid followed an uneventful course suggests a benign etiology such as vicarious excretion, and in patients who are otherwise stable, observation rather than immediate intervention should be considered.