20?mm?Hg, nonpulmonary hypertension group (control group n=9), with preoperative mean pulmonary artery pressure

Objective This study is to evaluate the advantages between percutaneous and peratrial device closure of secundum atrial septal defects(ASD) under single transesophageal echocardiographic (TEE) guidance.Methods From December 2010 to December 2012,53 patients with the ASD of≤25 mm in diameter underwent percutaneous device closure under simple TEE guidance(the percutaneous group).The device was implanted through the femoral vascular access.Fifty patients with similar age and similar-sized ASD to the percutaneous group,were selected from 350 consecutive patients who underwent peratrial device closure of ASD and assigned to the peratrial group.The ASDs were occluded through a right minithoracotomy approach.The success rate,intracardiac manipulation time,procedural time,postoperative stay and the follow-up results were recorded.Results When the maximum diameter of ASD was ＜ 20 mm,the success rate of both groups was 100％.When the ASD diameter was 20 mm but 25 mm,the success rate was 84％ in the percutaneous group and 100％ in the peratrial group.Three patients failed in the percutaneous group with the ASD diameter of 20 mm and the aortic rim of 3 mm.They were successfully converted to peratrial device closure.The average intrcardiac manipulation time was(20±7) minutes in the percutaneous group and (5 ± 6) minutes in the peratrial group(P ＜ 0.05).The average procedure time was(24 ± 7) minutes in the percutaneous group and (39 ± 6) minutes in the peratrial group(P ＜ 0.05).The postoperative hospital stay was (3.0 ± 0.8) days in the percutaneous group and(4.7 ± 1.5) days in the peratrial group(P ＜ 0.05).Conclusion The percutaneous device closure of ASD under simple TEE guidance is feasible,safe,and efficacious in patients with the ASD diameter of ≤25 mm.It has the advantages of less trauma,less procedural time,shorter hospital stay and better cosmetic results.However,when the ASD diameter was 20 mm and the aortic rim was 3 mm,the peratrial approach may be a better choice.

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility,safety and efficacy of peratrial device closure of ventricular septal defect (VSD) through a right parasternal approach.Methods Between May 2011 and July 2012,47 patients (peratrial group),aged 7 months to 37 years,underwent peratrial device closure of VSD through a right parasternal approach.According to the same inclusion criteria,47 patients who underwent perventricular device closure of VSD were randomly chosen as the control group (perventricular group).In the peratrial group,a 1.5 to 2.0 cm parasternal incision was made in the right fourth or third intercostal space.The pericardium was incised and cradled.Two parallel pursestring sutures were placed at the right atrium near the atrioventricular groove.After puncture,a specially designed hollow probe was inserted into the right atrium.The probe was passed through the tricuspid valve into the right ventricle.Under transesophageal echocardiographic guidance,the tip of the probe was adjusted to point to or cross the defect.A flexible guidewire was rapidly inserted into the left ventricle through the channel of the probe to establish a delivery pathway,and the delivery sheath was introduced through the defect over the wire.Then the device was deployed to close the defect.Results Successful implantation of the device was achieved in both groups of patients (100％).In the peratrial group,the entrance and the exit diameter of the VSD were (7.4 ±4.1) mm (range,2.0 to 20.0 mm) and (3.4 ± 1.2)mm (range,2.0 to 7.0 mm),respectively.The mean device size was (6.3 ± 1.5)mm (range,4.0 to 12.0 mm).The mean intracardiac manipulation time is longer in the peratrial group [(15 ± 13) min] than in the perventricular group[(8 ± 5)min],P ＜ 0.01.But the procedure time is shorter in the peratrial group[(56 ± 24) min] than in the perventricular group [(72 ± 16) min],P ＜ 0.01.During the follow-up period of 1 to 12 months,no device-related complications were found.Conclusion The peratrial device closure of VSD is feasible,safe,and efficacious.It has the advantages of less invasiveness,better cosmetic results,and a shorter procedure time.

Objective To investigate the effects of ulinastatin on the expression of Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) during myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) in rats and the possible mechanism.Methods Thirty adult Sprague-Dawley rats,weighing 250-280 g,were randomly divided into 3 groups (n =10 each):sham operation group (group S),I/R group and ulinastatin group (group U).Myocardial ischemia was induced by 30 min occlusion of left anterior descending coronary artery followed by reperfusion.Ulinastatin 1 × 104 IU/kg was injected intravenously at 5 min before reperfusion in group U,while the equal volume of normal saline was given in groups S and I/R.The animals were sacrificed at 5 h of reperfusion and myocardial specimens were obtained for microscopic examination and determination of myocardial apoptosis (using TUNEL),TLR4 expression (by immuno-histochemistry) and TNF-α content (by ELIAS).The apoptotic index was calculated.Results Compared with S group,the apoptotic index,TLR4 expression and TNF-α content were significantly increased in groups I/R and U (P ＜0.05).Compared with I/R group,the apoptotic index,TLR4 expression and TNF-α content were significantly decreased (P ＜ 0.05),and the pathological changes were significantly reduced in group U.Conclusion The mechanism by which ulinastatin alleviates myocardial I/R injury is related to inhibition of TLR4 expression and reduction of inflammatory responses during early I/R in rats.

Objective To evaluate the feasibility,safety and efficacy of perventricular device closure of supracristal or intracristal ventricular septal defects (VSD) using a minimally invasive technique through a parasternal approach.Methods 49 patients,aged 4 months to 53 years [median 4.8 years],were enrolled in this study.A 1.5 to 3 cm parasternal incision was made in the left second or third intercostal space.The pericardium was incised and cradled without entering the pleural space.Two parallel pursestring sutures were placed at the right ventricular outflow tract.After puncture,the specially designed delivery sheath loaded with the device was inserted into the right ventricle.Under transesophageal echocardiographic guidance,the sheath was advanced through the defect into the left ventricle.Then the device was deployed to close the defect.Results Successful implantation of the device was achieved in 47 patients (96％),including 26 in intracristal group and 21 in supracristal group.The concentric,eccentric,and muscular occluders were used in 17,28 and 2 patients,respectively.The mean diameter of VSD was (4.4 ± 1.7)mm in the intracristal group and (2.7 ± 0.9) mm in the supracristal group.The mean device size was (7.0 ± 2.3) mm and (4.8 ± 1.1)mm in the intralcristal and supracristal group,respectively.The mean intracardiac manipulation time was (17 ± 16) min.During the follow-up period of 3 to 24 months,no device-related complications were found.Conclusion The perventricular device closure of small-sized supracristal or under medium-sized intracristal VSD is feasible,safe,and efficacious through a left parasternal approach.

BACKGROUNDIt is unclear whether the effect of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery ablation is better than catheter ablation on paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) or not. This study aimed to compare the effects of catheter ablation and video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery ablation on PAF.

METHODSFrom March 2008 to March 2012, 138 consecutive patients with PAF were randomly assigned to receive either video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery ablation (thoracoscopy group, n = 66) or the traditional catheter ablation (catheter group, n = 72).

RESULTSNo patient died during the study and all were successfully followed and included in analysis. There were no significant differences in clinical and echocardiographic characteristics between the two groups. All patients were evaluated at 1 week, 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months after discharge by physical examination and related laboratory tests. Preoperative left atrium dimensions (LADs) of the recurrent AF were (47 ± 4) mm in the thoracoscopy group and (46 ± 8) mm in the catheter group, whereas the LADs were (40 ± 5) and (39 ± 9) mm, respectively, in non-recurrent PAF.

CONCLUSIONSThe short-term outcome of video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery ablation is safe and effective; and the indications are wider than those for catheter ablation. The larger left atrium diameter is related to the recurrence of atrial fibrillation.

Atrial Fibrillation ; surgery ; therapy ; Catheter Ablation ; methods ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Thoracic Surgery, Video-Assisted ; methods ; Treatment Outcome

Objective:To explore the application value of ultrasonic measurement of the pubic symphysis distance in predicting pubic symphysis diastasis(PSD) during delivery.Methods:A total of 262 pregnant women from June 2021 to July 2022 who delivered at Suzhou Wuzhong People′s Hospital and Jiangyin People′s Hospital were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into PSD group of 26 cases and normal pregnant women group (control group) of 234 cases according to whether or not PSD was confirmed during postpartum follow-up. Relevant data of the two groups were collected, including the biparietal diameter and femoral length of the fetus within 7 days before delivery, the pubic symphysis distance of pregnant women when the cervix was not dilated, pubic symphysis distance when the cervix dilated to 5 cm during the first stage of delivery, and the pubic symphysis distance after delivery, the age of the pregnant woman, the gestational week, the number of pregnancies, and the birth weight of the fetus. The differences of the above relevant data between the two groups were compared.Spearman correlation analysis was used to analyze the correlation between various parameters. The occurrence of postpartum PSD, and Logistic regression was used to analyze the predictive value of various parameters on the occurrence of postpartum PSD. ROC curve was used to analyze the diagnostic efficacy of each parameters to predict PSD.Results:The fetal birth weight, number of pregnancies, pubic symphysis distance in three time points in the PSD group were significantly higher than those in the control group (all P<0.05). The age of the pregnant women was negatively correlated with the occurrence of postpartum PSD ( rs=-0.152, P=0.014). The fetal birth weight, the number of pregnancies, the pubic symphysis distance in the cervix no-dilated and the first stage of labor were positively correlated with the occurrence of postpartum PSD( rs=0.160, 0.166, 0.678, 0.581, all P<0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that the increase of pubic symphysis distance before labor would increase the risk of postpartum PSD, and the difference was statistically significant ( OR=2 506.028, 95% CI=14.293-439 402.630, P=0.003). The increase of pubic symphysis distance at the first stage of labor increased the risk of postpartum PSD, with a statistically significant difference ( OR=10 704.027, 95% CI=33.830-3 386 803.429, P=0.002). The ROC curve analysis showed that the area under the curve of the pubic symphysis distance in the cervix no-dilated and the first stage of labor for the diagnosis of PSD were 0.896 and 0.917 respectively, the sensitivity were 0.731 and 0.885, the specificity were 0.940 and 0.829, and the corresponding critical values were 0.87 cm and 1.06 cm respectively. The area under the curve of the combination of the two parameters for the diagnosis of PSD was 0.930, the sensitivity was 0.885, and the specificity was 0.876. Conclusions:Ultrasonic measurement of pubic symphysis distance during delivery can predict the occurrence of postpartum PSD in pregnant women and can provide a basis for the occurrence and treatment of postpartum pubic symphysis separation in pregnant women.