Topical application of autologous blood products during surgical closure following a coronary artery bypass graft

OBJECTIVE: Surgical site wound complications are associated with increased cost, morbidity, and mortality following cardiothoracic surgery. Recent publications have advocated the application of autologous blood components as an adjunctive tool to surgical closure during various surgical procedures. The current study was intended to assess the safety and efficacy of the application of autologous platelet rich and platelet poor plasma to the sternal closure and saphenous vein harvest site during closure following a coronary artery bypass graft. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A retrospective analysis was performed on 1446 consecutive coronary artery bypass grafting procedures from two surgeons. A patient group receiving topical application of platelet rich and platelet poor plasma during closure of their chest and leg surgical incisions was compared to a patient population receiving standard treatment of care. Forty covariates were collected for each patient included in the study. Propensity scoring was used to adjust for baseline imbalance. Asymptotic logistic regression and exact statistical methods were used to determine the effect of the autologous blood application on infection and drainage of the sternal and leg wounds. RESULTS: One thousand, one hundred and twenty-eight patients had sufficient data to be included in the final analysis, with 571 of these patients receiving the treatment compared to 557 control patients. No treatment-related adverse events were noted and the application process did not significantly affect the operative time. CONCLUSION: This retrospective analysis of a consecutive series of patients receiving a coronary artery bypass grafting procedure concluded that application of platelet rich and platelet poor plasma significantly reduced occurrences of chest wound infection, chest drainage, and leg wound drainage. This novel therapy merits further investigation.     

Is post-sternotomy percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy a predictor for sternal wound infections?

OBJECTIVE: Early post-sternotomy tracheostomy is not infrequently considered in this era of percutaneous tracheostomy. There is, however, some controversy about its association with sternal wound infections. METHODS: Consecutive patients who had percutaneous tracheostomy following median sternotomy for cardiac operation at our institution from March 1998 through January 2007 were studied, and compared to contemporaneous patients. We identified risk factors for tracheostomy, and investigated the association between percutaneous tracheostomy and deep sternal wound infection (mediastinitis) by multivariate analysis. RESULTS: Of 7002 patients, 100 (1.4%) had percutaneous tracheostomy. The procedure-specific rates were: 8.6% for aortic surgery, 2.7% for mitral valve repair/replacement (MVR), 1.1% for aortic valve replacement (AVR), and 0.9% for coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Tracheostomy patients differed vastly from other patients on account of older age, severe symptoms, preoperative support, lower ejection fraction, more comorbidities, more non-elective and complex operations and higher EuroScore. Risk factors for tracheostomy were New York Heart Association class III/IV (OR 6.01, 95% CI 2.28-16.23, p<0.0001), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (OR 1.84, 95% CI 1.01-3.37, p=0.05), preoperative renal failure (OR 3.57, 95% CI 1.41-9.01, p=0.007), prior stroke (OR 3.08, 95% CI 1.75-5.42, p<0.0001), ejection fraction<0.30% (OR 2.73, 95% CI 1.23-6.07, p=0.01), and bypass time (OR 1.008, 95% CI 1.004-1.012, p<0.0001). The incidences of deep (9% vs 0.7%, p<0.0001) and superficial sternal infections (31% vs 6.5%, p<0.0001) were significantly higher among tracheostomy patients. Multivariate analysis identified percutaneous tracheostomy as a predictor for deep sternal wound infection (OR 3.22, 95% CI 1.14-9.31, p<0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Tracheostomy, often performed in high-risk patients, may further complicate recovery with sternal wound infections, including mediastinitis, therefore, patients and timing should be carefully selected for post-sternotomy tracheostomy.     

Esophageal tear in a patient undergoing stereotactic brain biopsy under general anesthesia

Injuries of the esophagus with resultant mediastinitis have been reported following endotracheal intubation. Herein, we report a case of esophageal perforation that resulted from difficulty with intubation in a patient with a stereotactic head frame. A 52-year-old woman underwent a stereotactic brain biopsy of a left temporal tumor. After a stereotactic head frame was applied, intubation for anesthesia required three attempts. On postoperative day 2, she complained of worsening dysphagia and chest pain. A 4-mm tear in the right posterior cervical esophagus was discovered and repaired. Esophageal perforation may arise from limited neck extension imposed by a stereotactic head frame. Unexplained dysphagia postoperatively is the hallmark of this rare complication.     

Closed suction drainage for deep neck infections

PurposeThere have been various incision and drainage methods for deep neck infection (DNI). Closed-suction drainage (CSD) has been used to decrease hematoma or to drain pus in other forms of medical surgery. The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the usefulness of CSD for DNI.Patients and methodsThis study consisted of 30 patients who underwent CSD after incision and drainage for DNI between January 2006 and December 2011. The patients' demographics, systemic diseases, methods of airway control, involved spaces, incision, CSD results, duration of hospitalization, and complications were investigated.ResultsCSD was used to treat 30 DNI patients. Eleven patients (37%) had underlying systemic diseases like diabetes mellitus, hypertension, hepatitis, asthma, etc. Twenty four patients (80%) had odontogenic infections in the mandibular molar region. Tracheostomy was performed in 5 patients (17%). The involved spaces were various from parapharyngeal space to mediastinum (mean: 4.8 spaces), and CSD was applied with drainage lines (mean: 3; 2–7 drains) over the course of 4–37 days (mean 14.6 days). The total amount of drained pus was 8–1344 cc (mean: 406 cc) and the daily amount was 1–61 cc (mean: 28 cc) from each patient. The mean length of hospital stay was 26 days, with a range of 9–83 days. Wound rupture happened in 7% of 56 total incision sites and spontaneous removal of the drain tube occurred in 3% of 91 total tubes. Four patients died because of cardiac arrest, pulmonary edema, and hypoxia. A statistical significance was accepted about total and daily amount of drainage at Pearson's correlation test (p < 0.001).ConclusionAccurate diagnosis, safe airway management, and early surgical drainage were important in DNI treatment. Compared to other drainage systems, CSD is clinically useful for treating DNI due to minimal incision, convenience of post-operative management, and less postoperative complications.     

Esophageal perforation caused by fish vertebra ingestion in a seven-month-old infant demanded surgical intervention： A case report

INTRODUCTION In East Asia (China, Japan, Korea), fish bone ingestion is a common cause of emergency room visits and usually needs no invasive management other than prompt removal of the fish bone[1,2]. However, fish bone impaction complicated with esophag…     

Suppurative mediastinitis secondary to Burkholderia cepacia in a patient with cystic fibrosis

Burkholderia cepacia is an important opportunistic pathogen among patients with cystic fibrosis (CF); it is associated with deterioration of lung function, poor outcome following lung transplantation and increased mortality. Fever, an elevated white blood cell count, weight loss and an often fatal deterioration in pulmonary function characterize a particular clinical course, termed ‘Cepacia syndrome’. The present case report describes a 40-year-old man with CF who developed Cepacia syndrome complicated by suppurative mediastinitis, from which B cepacia was isolated. Despite optimal medical and surgical therapy, this patient succumbed to his illness. Those caring for patients with CF should be aware of this potentially catastrophic complication of B cepacia infection, especially in the setting of Cepacia syndrome.     

predictors for failure of stent treatment for benign esophageal perforations- a single center 10-year experience

AIM:To investigate possible predictors for failed selfexpandable metallic stent(SEMS)therapy in consecutive patients with benign esophageal perforationrupture(EPR).METHODS:All patients between 2003-2013 treated for EPR at the Karolinska University Hospital,a tertiary referral center,were studied with regard to initial management with SEMS.Patients with malignancy as an underlying cause and those with anastomotic leakages were excluded.Sealing of the perforation with a covered SEMS was the primary strategy whenever feasible.Stent therapy failure was defined as a radical change of treatment strategy due to uncontrolled mediastinitis,which in this setting consisted of emergency esophagectomy with end-esophagostomy or death as a consequence of the perforation and subsequent uncontrolled sepsis.Patient and lesion characteristics were analyzed and are presented as median and interquartile range.Possible predictors for failed stent therapy were analyzed with uni-variate logistic regression,while variables with P<0.2 were further analyzed with multi-variate logistic regression.RESULTS:Of the total number of 48 patients presenting with EPR,40 patients(83.3%)were treated with SEMS at the time of admission,with an intention to heal the perforation.Twenty-three patients had Boerhaave’s syndrome(58%),16 had an iatrogenic perforation(40%)and 1 had external trauma to the esophagus(3%).The total in-hospital mortality,including the cases that had other initial treatments(n=8),was10.4%and 7.5%among those who were subjected to the SEMS-based strategy.In 33 of the 40 patients(82.5%)who were treated with stent,the EPR healed without further change in treatment strategy.Patients classified as treatment success received a SEMS at a median time of 1(1-1)d after the actual EPR,compared to 3(1-10)d among those where the initial treatment failed,P=0.039 in uni-variate analysis and P=0.052 in multi-variate analysis.No other significant factors emerged,indicating an increased risk for failure.Six of 7 patients,where stent treatment of the defect failed,underwent an emergency esophagectomy with end esophagostomy and one patient died.CONCLUSION:SEMS as an upfront therapeutic strategy seems to be a successful concept,when applied to an unselected group of patients with EPR.     

Suppurative mediastinitis after open-heart surgery: a comparison between cases caused by Gram-negative rods and by Gram-positive cocci

Objective: To compare clinical characteristics and risk factors of suppurative postsurgical mediastinitis according to its etiology.
Methods: Suppurative postsurgical mediastinitis developed in 45 (2.5%) of 1779 patients who underwent open-heart surgery at the Hospital Virgen del Rocío in Seville, Spain, from 1986 to 1996. Microbiological diagnosis was available in 42 patients.
Results: Gram-negative rods were isolated in 19 cases and Gram-positive cocci in 23 cases. Seventeen isolates (38%) were sensitive to the antimicrobial agent used perioperatively. Patients with Gram-negative rod infection had a longer duration of bypass (127±36 min versus 96±34 min, p <0.01), and a worse postoperative condition. Longer mechanical ventilation (4±7 days versus 1±2 days, p <0.05) and concomitant infection in a remote site (pulmonary and/or urinary infection) were more frequently observed in this group than in patients with Gram-positive infections (58% versus 22%, p <0.05). Twenty patients (51%) were bacteremic. The mortality rate was 20% (five of 45).
Conclusions: Preventable postoperative remote-site infection may lead to mediastinitis, especially if Gram-negative rods are involved.