The U-40 generation of cardiovascular surgeons is receiving training as cardiovascular surgeons, including daily surgeries, ward responsibilities and other important tasks, young surgeons are on their way to becoming skilled cardiovascular specialists. However, it is said that it takes a long time to become a full-fledged surgeon, and in particular, the way to becoming a full-fledged cardiovascular surgeon varies greatly among individuals and is not standardized. Therefore, the U-40 generation is always concerned and worried about their future career development. At the 54th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society for Cardiovascular Surgery, we will discuss what the U-40 generation needs to become full-fledged surgeons, what they are worried about, and how their seniors who are actually active as independent cardiovascular surgeons think and what their career paths have been like. I had an opportunity to reflect on the gap between the two. This time, we conducted a questionnaire survey to visualize the conditions and future prospects for becoming an independent surgeon as considered by the U-40 generation.

As part of U-40 activities, chapters have traditionally held sessions of lectures and hands-on as the Basic Lecture Course (BLC) to improve the basic skills and knowledge of young cardiovascular surgeons. Because of the COVID-19 epidemic, we have shifted our activities from onsite to online. This column focuses on “management of postoperative delirium and pain” in the lecture of “Postoperative Management in Cardiovascular Surgery” given by the Chubu Chapter in 2020. We summarize the lecture and report the results of a questionnaire survey of the U-40 members.

Purpose：A new simple and noninvasive stretch sensor (STR) has been developed to detect chest wall motion for respiratory rehabilitation. The purpose of this study was to investigate the validity of chest wall motion measurements obtained using the new stretch sensor.Methods：Twelve healthy male volunteers wore three different sensors (STR, respiratory inductance plethysmography [RIP], and flowmeter) while they performed the testing protocol, which included natural breathing (120 s), deep breathing (60 s), and polypneic (60 s) and apneic (30 s) conditions in the upright stance. The STR was implemented in two bands for the participant's chest and abdominal measurements. The ability of the three sensors to measure respiration and chest wall motion was analyzed.Results：The output signals from the STR showed significant correlation with the flow and RIP signals (r＝0.5-1.00, p＜0.05). The total number of breaths obtained from the STR signals showed no significant difference from the reference values obtained from the flowmeter signals (p＞0.05). The amplitude of the STR output signals changed significantly according to the respiratory maneuver used. Specifically, it increased from apnea, polypnea, and natural breathing to deep breathing (p＜0.05).Conclusion：The newly developed stretch sensor is capable of measuring chest wall motion in various breathing maneuvers in young men.