ObjectiveTo assess whether expanding the landing zone of frozen elephant trunk (FET) increases the risk of spinal cord injury in patients with acute type A aortic dissection. MethodsPatients with acute type A aortic dissection who were treated in Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital from 2017 to 2020 were collected. They were divided into two groups according to the landing zone of FET by the image diagnosis of postoperative chest X-ray or total aorta CT angiography, including a Th9 group which defined as below the eighth thoracic vertebral level, and a Th8 group which was defined as above or equal to the eighth thoracic vertebral level. Using the propensity score matching (PSM) method, the preoperative and intraoperative data of two groups were matched with a 1∶2 ratio. The prognosis of the two groups after PSM was analyzed. Results Before PSM, 573 patients were collected, including 58 patients in the Th9 group and 515 patients in the Th8 group. After PSM, 174 patients were collected, including 58 patients in the Th9 group (46 males and 12 females, with an average age of 47.91±9.92 years), and 116 patients in the Th8 group (93 males and 23 females, with an average age of 48.01±9.53 years). There were 8 patients of postoperative spinal cord injury in the two groups after PSM, including 5 (4.31%) patients in the Th8 group and 3 (5.17%) patients in the Th9 group (P=0.738). In the Th8 group, 2 patients had postoperative transient paresis and recovered spontaneously after symptomatic treatment, and 1 patient had postoperative paraplegia with cerebrospinal fluid drainage. After 3 days, the muscle strength of both lower limbs gradually recovered after treatment. There was no statistical difference in complications between the two groups (P＞0.05). ConclusionExpanding the landing zone of FET does not increase the risk of spinal cord injury in patients with acute type A aortic dissection. However, the sample size is limited, and in the future, multicenter large-scale sample size studies are still needed for verification
Objective To confirm the changes of pulmonary artery pressure, neo pulmonary artery stenosis and reoperation in children with unilateral absence of pulmonary artery (UAPA) undergoing pulmonary artery reconstruction. Methods The clinical data of the infants with UAPA undergoing pulmonary artery reconstruction in our hospital from February 19, 2019 to April 15, 2021 were analyzed. Changes in pulmonary artery pressure, neo pulmonary artery stenosis and reoperation were followed up. Results Finally 5 patients were collected, including 4 males and 1 female. The operation age ranged from 13 days to 2.7 years. Cardiac contrast-enhanced CT scans were performed in all children, and 2 patients underwent pulmonary vein wedge angiography to confirm the diagnosis and preoperative evaluation. Preoperative transthoracic echocardiography and intraoperative direct pulmonary arterial pressure measurement indicated that all 5 children had pulmonary hypertension, with a mean pulmonary arterial pressure of 31.3±16.0 mm Hg. Pulmonary arterial pressure decreased immediately after pulmonary artery reconstruction to 16.8±4.2 mm Hg. The mean follow-up time was 18.9±4.7 months. All 5 patients survived during the follow-up period, and 1 patient had neo pulmonary artery stenosis or even occlusion and was re-operated. Conclusion Pulmonary artery reconstruction can effectively alleviate the pulmonary hypertension in children with UAPA. The patency of the neo pulmonary artery should be closely followed up after surgery, and re-pulmonary angioplasty should be performed if necessary.
ObjectiveTo compare the benefits and drawbacks of primary patch expansion and pericardial tube right ventricular-pulmonary artery connection in patients diagnosed with pulmonary atresia with ventricular septal defect (PA/VSD). MethodsA retrospective study was conducted on the patients who were diagnosed with pulmonary atresia with ventricular septal defect (PA/VSD) and underwent primary right ventricular-pulmonary artery connection surgery at our center between January 2010 and December 2020. The patients were categorized into two groups based on the type of right ventricular-pulmonary artery connection: the whole pericardial tube right ventricular-pulmonary artery connection group (pericardial tube group), and the patch expansion right ventricular-pulmonary artery connection group (patch expansion group). The patients' general clinical data and cardiopulmonary bypass data were documented, and the cardiac CT data obtained before and after the surgery were compared with the clinical and imaging data. ResultsFinally 51 patients were collected, including 31 males and 20 females, with a median age of 12.57 (4.57, 49.67) months. There were 19 patients in the pericardial tube group, with a median age of 17.17 (7.33, 49.67) months, and 32 patients in the patch expansion group with a median age of 8.58 (3.57, 52.72) months. In both groups, the diameter, McGoon index, and Nakata index were significantly increased after treatment (P<0.001). However, the pericardial tube group required a longer occlusion time (P<0.001). The rate of reoperation was high, with 72.5% of patients requiring further surgery. Specifically, 26 (81.3%) patients in the patch expansion group and 12 (63.2%) patients in the pericardial tube group finally completed radical resection. There was no statistical difference observed in the long-term cure rate or mortality between the two groups. Conclusion In patients with PA/VSD, the use of patch expansion or pericardial tube right ventricular-pulmonary artery connection as the initial palliative treatment strategy can promote the development of pulmonary vessels and provide a favorable basis for subsequent radical operations. However, compared to pericardial tube, patch expanded right ventricular-pulmonary artery connection is a simpler procedure to perform and retains some of the intrinsic pulmonary artery development potential, thus making it a preferred procedure.