Left ventricular rupture is one of the critical complications that can occur during cardiac surgeries, often during a mitral valve replacement. We report a case in which we encountered a left ventricular rupture during a mitral valve reconstruction after completing use of a cardiopulmonary bypass. A 58-year-old man was found to have a cardiac murmur during a health check-up, and visited a nearby hospital where he was given a diagnosis of severe mitral valve regurgitation due to a prolapsed mitral valve by an echocardiographic examination. Under a median sternotomy, a cardiopulmonary bypass was established, and we reconstructed chordae tendineae with Gore-Tex suture and placed an annuloplasty ring to repair the mitral valve. Weaning from the cardiopulmonary bypass was simple, but bleeding inside the pericardium increased during the following hemostasis and we found an oozing area in the left ventricular posterior wall, which was diagnosed as a left ventricular rupture. The patient was placed back on cardiopulmonary bypass, and we closed the ruptured area by tucking it with felt strips while the heart was beating and reinforced it with a fibrin sheet, PGA sheet, and fibrin glue. We then inserted IABP. The hemodynamic condition was stable afterwards and IABP was removed on the 7th day. The patient developed an atrial flutter on the 13th day, which was drug resistant, and we performed a radiofrequency ablation. The patient fully recovered and was discharged on the 44th postoperative day. Considering factors such as excess resection of papillary muscle, failure of mitral loop due to a resection of papillary muscle, excess resection of annulus tissue, excess traction of papillary muscle, damage to the left ventricular inner wall by suction tubes, or excess load on the left ventricle when removing a cardiopulmonary bypass as possible causes, we think very careful maneuvers are required and important even in a mitral valve reconstruction.

The authors encountered 2 rare cases of adventitial cystic disease of the popliteal artery. Case 1 was a 51-year-old woman with dull pain in the lower limbs during walking. Case 2 was a 34-year-old man with numbness in the lower limbs on bending his knees. In both cases, angiography showed crescent stenosis, and computed tomography (CT) showed cyst-like lesions about the artery. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) indicated the lesions to have high density at T 2 imaging. With a diagnosis of adventitial cystic disease, cystectomy was conducted with satisfactory results. Adventitial cystic disease is rare and only 43 cases have so far been reported in this country. All of these were reviewed to clarify the characteristics of this disease. Its clinical symptoms often resemble those of arteriosclerosis obliterans (ASO) as intermittent claudication, but it differs from ASO in that it is usually achieved cure by cystectomy alone and seldomly required bypass operation. In the case of intermittent claudication in young patients, adventitial cystic disease should be diferrentiated from ASO.

A 78-year-old man consulted our hospital with complaint of abdominal mass. Blood examination indicated a inflammatory reaction. An abdominal aortic aneurysm, 5.5cm in size, was found by CT scanning examination. Its wall quite thick (mantle sign), and enhanced by contrast medium. Y graft replacement was carried out. Microscopic hiatological examination of the aneurysmal wall indicated severe inflammation being assisted of chronic inflammatory cells, like lymphocytes and plasma cells at the adventitia. Ten cases of inflammatory abdominal aortic aneurysm reported in Japan so far are reviewed and features of this disease are discussed.

Two cases of blue toe syndrome were effectively treated by PGE1. Case 1 was an 80-year-old man who had an ulcer lesion of the 5th toe. Angiography indicated the symptoms were caused by microemboli from an extended lesion of the aorta and iliac artery. The wound was healed by lipo PGE1 (10μg×30 days). Case 2 was a 54-year-old man who had dull pain and skin color change of the 3rd and 4th fingers. A thrombus could not be detected by transthoracic echocardiography, but was found by transesophageal echocardiography. The symptoms improved by PGE1 (60μg×20days). Blue toe syndrome is induced by a microembolism in the peripheral arteries, and thus the conventional treatment has been the administration of fibrinolysins and anticoagulants. PGE1 was used in this study for the first time in consideration of its vasodilating effect on the collateral circulation and to prevent a secondary thrombus by inhibiting platelet aggregation.

This is a rare case of abdominal apoplexy encountered in a 50-year-old man who had aortic and mitral valve replacement due to dominant regurgitation resulting from infective eneocarditis. On the 4th day after the operation, retroperitoneal bleeding, probably due to rupture of the splenic artery aneurysm, occurred and he developed shock. On the 28th day, there was bleeding in the digestive tract and blood pressure was low, probably due to rupture of the microaneurysm of the small artery distributing to the ileum. Rupture of an abdominal vessel without a recognizable external cause is called abdominal apoplexy, and our case was caused by mycotic aneurysm caused by infective endocarditis. Angiography facilitated the accurate diagnosis.

Between 1988 and 1992, we experienced 4 cases of removal of renal or hepatic cell carcinoma tumor thrombi extending into the inferior vena cava and the right atrium, under cardiopulmonary bypass. We operated on 3 cases using profound hypothermia and circulatory arrest, and 1 case using moderate hypothermia and the Pringle maneuver. One case developed acute massive pulmonary embolism followed by cardiac arrest during the procedure of freeing the inferior vena cava and died on the second postoperative day due to low output syndrome. The postoperative courses of the other 3 cases were uneventful, and there was no major complication due to surgery. They were discharged and enjoyed normal daily lives. Two cases died due to recurrence of the tumor, 6 and 7 months after the operation, respectively. The merits and demerits of these two surgical methods were discussed. Appropriate selection of these methods and subjects allows safe and complete excision of tumor thrombi with satisfactory operative results.

Twelve cases of ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm (RAAA) were treated during 5 years. Nine showed severe hypotension (systolic pressure below 70mmHg) and three required cardiac massage prior to operation. At the beginning of this study, direct laparotomy was conducted on 4 cases but mortality was high mortality (75%). Left thoracotomy with antero-lateral incision through the 7th intercostal space was carried out to access the thoracic aorta for clamping before laparotomy, since the major mortality of this disease is due to abrupt bleeding following anesthesia and operation. Left thoracotomy before laparotomy was conducted on 8 cases, half of whom required aortic clamping during operation (clamping time 21min). Operative mortality following thoracotomy decreased (12.5%). The aneurysm size and the time of operation for the groups with or without thoracotomy were the same, though the degree of bleeding significantly differed (3, 925ml in the group with thoracotomy, 7, 193ml in the group without thoracotomy). Left thoracotomy befor laparotomy obtained good results in case of RAAA.

Patients who underwent the bypass operation during 5 years from 1987 to 1992 in the 1st Department of Surgery, Hiroshima University School of Medicine, were divided into 2 groups; AIOD group (51 cases) had lesions in the aorta and iliac artery, and FPOD group (46 cases) had lesions in the femoral artery and popliteal artery. A comparative study of these two groups was made. There was no significant difference in age, sex, symptom severity, smoking history, serum cholesterol level, serum triglyceride level. The complication rate of peripheral lesions of the AIOD group was 24% and of the FPOD group was 57%. The cumulative patency rate for 5 years of the AIDO group was 100% and of the FPOD group was 61%. The AIOD group exhibited better patency. In addition to the lower complication rate of peripheral lesions, all the AIOD group had underwent reconstruction operation for peripheral lesions simultaneously. The run-off state of the peripheral region may thus possibly be related to patency.

Fifty-one cases which underwent surgery for arteriosclerosis obliterans in the aorta and iliac artery at the First Department of Surgery, Hiroshima University School of Medicine were divided into two groups. The EAB group (18 cases) underwent extra-anatomic bypass operation, and the AB group (33 cases) underwent anatomic bypass operation. A comparative study showed the mean age of the EAB group to be 10 years higher than that of the AB group, and the former group exhibited severer symptoms. Renal and pulmonary function declined in the EAB group, and the occurrence rate of complications such as cerebral infarction was also higher At operation, the following approaches were employed; long-term administration of PGE-1 before and after operation, operation with a better visual field under light general anesthesia, simultaneous reconstructive operation in peripheral lesions, artificial vessels of externally supported velour knitted Dacron. There was no case of obstruction in the past 5 years. Extra-anatomic bypass operation therefore provides as good postoperative patency as anatomic operation.

A 74-year-old man presented with swelling in both lower limbs and fatigue. Venography indicated nozzle-like stenosis of the inferior vena cava that appeared during the inspiratory phase but disappeared during the expiratory phase. A large pressure gradient between the upper and lower portion of the stenosis was observed during the expiratory phase. Stenosis during the inspiratory phase was relieved by percutaneous transluminal angioplasty, and symptoms and signs disappeared. Although stenosis occurred only during the inspiratory phase, our patient exhibited symptoms characteristic of Budd-Chiari syndrome. We believe that this patient originally had stenosis of the diaphragmatic portion of the inferior vena cava, and that his symptoms derived from the formation of a parietal thrombus.