Costs of postoperative delirium with transcatheter aortic valve replacement: Improved yet still present

• Transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) is associated with a lower risk of postoperative delirium (PD) than surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in patients aged ≥80, based on billing codes.
• Postoperative delirium remains a frequent problem after both SAVR and TAVR in clinical series and is costly.
• Improved pre‐procedural prediction of PD risk would improve targeting of clinical care and allow testing of preventative and management strategies.

     

Platelet refractoriness and alloimmunization in pediatric oncology and bone marrow transplant patients

BACKGROUND: The purposes of this study were to determine the overall incidence of platelet refractoriness and alloimmunization among multiply transfused children on a medical oncology and bone marrow transplant service and to evaluate the effect of routine white cell reduction in blood components on that incidence. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS : The platelet transfusion records of 128 consecutive children admitted to the hospital and requiring blood component support for the treatment of disease were evaluated retrospectively. Mean corrected count increments (CCIs) for each patient were calculated for all random- donor platelet transfusions given within 7 days of the routine weekly testings of the patient's serum for lymphocytotoxic antibodies (LCTAbs). Mean CCIs for HLA-matched platelet transfusions were calculated separately for the patients receiving them. RESULTS : Thirty- one patients (24%) had or developed persistently positive LCTAbs (patient's serum reacted with > or = 3/10 panel lymphocytes); 22 (71%) of these patients had a mean CCI < 7.5 to random-donor platelet transfusions. In contrast, of the 97 patients with negative or transiently positive LCTAbs, only 25 (26%) had a mean CCI < 7.5. The overall incidence of platelet refractoriness (CCI < 7.5) was 37 percent. Patients with acute myelogenous leukemia had a significantly (p < 0.01) reduced incidence (17%) of low CCIs, with or without positive LCTAbs, as compared to patients with other malignant or nonmalignant disorders (41%). No difference in the incidence of LCTAbs or low CCIs was seen in patients undergoing allogeneic or autologous bone marrow transplant or receiving drug therapy only. Among the 24 patients who received HLA-matched platelets, only those with positive LCTAbs showed a significant improvement in CCIs over that achieved with random-donor platelet transfusions. Routine white cell reduction in red cell and platelet components with third-generation white cell filters was performed prior to transfusion in 73 of the patients. There was no significant difference between the incidence of LCTAbs and/or low CCIs in this group and that in the 55 children receiving unfiltered transfusions. CONCLUSION : Alloimmunization and platelet refractoriness occur in pediatric oncology and bone marrow transplant patients, but the incidence-particularly in children with acute myelogenous leukemia- -appears to be low. The detection of LCTAbs predicts a poor response to random-donor platelet transfusion, but most such patients show improved CCIs with HLA-matched platelets. Routine use of white cell-reduction filters has thus far failed to eliminate alloimmunization in children requiring prolonged blood component support.     

Treatment of in-stent restenosis in a gastroepiploic artery coronary bypass graft with brachytherapy

The pedicled right gastroepiploic artery is used as an arterial conduit in a select group of patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting with favorable patency and survival rates. Myocardial ischemia can occur, especially secondary to distal anastomotic stenosis. Percutaneous coronary interventions have been successful in treating these stenoses, precluding further challenging and higher risk operations. The restenosis rate of such interventions is unknown. We describe a case of distal right gastroepiploic graft anastomotic stenosis that was initially treated with percutaneous angioplasty, but later required stenting for restenosis. Subsequent in-stent restenosis was successfully treated with angioplasty and brachytherapy via the left axillary approach.     

Patent foramen ovale closure for cryptogenic stroke: Effective,but only in select patients

• PFO closure reduces risk of recurrent stroke in some patients with cryptogenic stroke, particularly younger patients <45 years with moderate or greater right to left shunting
• Number needed to treat (NNT) to prevent one stroke at 5 years are 28 to 69 (95% confidence limits of 21 to 351) suggesting need for individualized risk stratification models
• PFO closure may increase short‐ and possibly long‐term risk of atrial flutter/fibrillation

     

Risk‐guided use of the direct thrombin inhibitor bivalirudin

• Mortality and bleeding risks after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) can be predicted with bedside models.
• Bivalirudin reduces access and non‐access bleeding by almost half compared to heparin monotherapy and heparin with IIb/IIIa use.
• In high (>10%) baseline one‐year mortality risk PCI patients, bivalirudin reduces mortality by 4% compared to heparin with IIb/IIIa therapy.
• Increased acute stent thrombosis may be resolved with a 4‐hr post‐procedure bivalirudin infusion, eliminating bivalirudin's only major drawback except cost.

     

Renal artery stenting: Patient selection post‐CORAL

• Randomized trials (RCT) show no meaningful improvement in hypertension control with renal artery stenting (RAS) compared to medical therapy alone in patients with largely moderate hypertension and intermediate grade stenoses. Observational studies of patients with severe hypertension and high‐grade stenoses on multiple medications report blood pressure improvement after RAS.
• Angiographic severity of renal artery stenosis has poor correlation with functional measures of flow impairment.
• Renal frame count may be a useful simple measure of flow impairment, predicting beneficial blood pressure response to RAS. If confirmed in other studies, renal frame count > 30 and a combination of predictive clinical factors may help guide selection of patients for RAS in contemporary practice.

     

Human herpesvirus 6: infection and disease following autologous and allogeneic bone marrow transplantation

Human herpesvirus 6 activity (HHV-6) was studied in 15 allogeneic and 11 autologous marrow transplantation patients. After transplantation, HHV-6 was isolated from the peripheral blood mononuclear cells of 12 of 26 patients (6 allogeneic and 6 autologous). All isolates were variant B. Eleven of 26 and 12 of 19 patients showed salivary shedding of HHV-6 DNA before and after transplantation, respectively. The antibody titer increased in 7 of 26 patients. Thus, 23 of 26 patients showed evidence of active HHV-6 infection either by virus isolation, salivary shedding, or increases in antibody titers. The fraction of saliva specimens positive in 19 patients was negatively associated with their antibody titers (P= .005). The proportion of cultures positive increased after transplantation (P = .007). Sinusitis was associated with HHV-6 isolation in autologous recipients (P= .002). In allogeneic patients, active human cytomegalovirus infection was associated with HHV-6 isolation (P = .04). No association was observed between HHV-6 infection and GVHD, pneumonia, delay in engraftment, or marrow suppression. Of the 120 clinical events analyzed in 26 patients, HHV-6 was defined as a probable cause of 16 events in 9 patients based on the propinquity of HHV-6 activity and the clinical event plus the absence of other identified causes of the event.     

Plateletpheresis in the management of thrombocytosis

Acute thrombotic and hemorrhagic manifestations of thrombocytosis associated with myeloproliferative disorders may be life threatening. Conventional therapy with radioisotopes and/or cytotoxic drugs may require weeks for effective control of platelet counts. In five patients, plateletpheresis by discontinuous-flow (Haemonetics) or continuous-flow (Aminco Celltrifuge) centrifugation was used as a means of reducing platelet counts acutely. With each procedure, approximately 2-9 X 10(12) platelets were removed, resulting in decrements in platelet counts and relief of symptoms. Plateletpheresis is a useful and safe acute means of controlling platelet counts in myeloproliferative disorders.     

Diagnosis of femoral neck fractures in patients with a femoral shaft fracture. Improvement with a standard protocol

BACKGROUND: An ipsilateral fracture of the femoral neck is seen in association with 1% to 9% of femoral shaft fractures, and 20% to 50% of these injuries are missed initially. Recognition of an associated femoral neck fracture prior to stabilization of the femoral shaft fracture is imperative to avoid or minimize complications of displacement and osteonecrosis. METHODS: A protocol to look for a femoral neck fracture in all patients with a femoral shaft fracture was instituted at a single level-I trauma center. This protocol consisted of a dedicated anteroposterior internal rotation plain radiograph, a fine (2-mm) cut computed tomographic scan through the femoral neck, and an intraoperative fluoroscopic lateral radiograph prior to fixation as well as postoperative anteroposterior and lateral radiographs of the hip in the operating room prior to awakening the patient. A chi-square analysis comparing pre-protocol and post-protocol fracture prevalences was used to assess the relative risk of missing an associated femoral neck fracture. RESULTS: Two hundred and sixty-eight consecutive patients with a femoral shaft fracture formed the basis of the study group. Of 254 who were followed for at least two months, sixteen were identified as having an associated ipsilateral femoral neck fracture with use of the protocol. Thirteen associated femoral neck fractures were identified before the patient entered the operating room for definitive fixation, and twelve of them were identified with the fine-cut computed tomographic scan. One fracture was identified intraoperatively. There was one iatrogenic fracture and one delayed diagnosis of a femoral neck fracture. With this protocol, we reduced the delay in diagnosis by 91% as compared with our experience in the year prior to the initiation of the protocol. CONCLUSIONS: In the presence of a femoral shaft fracture, evaluation of the femoral neck with fine-cut computed tomography and dedicated internal rotation hip radiographs significantly improves the ability to diagnose an associated femoral neck fracture.