Objective: To analyze the 10-year experience for placement of permanent epicardial-pacemaker (PM) during peri-operative period in a single center of patients with congenital heart diseases (CHD).
Methods: A total of 33 CHD patients who received the placement of epicardial-PM during peri-operative period in our hospital from 2002 to 2013 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 6 patients with congenital atrio-ventricular block (AVB) 27 with iatrogenic AVB. All patients were younger than 8 years and the mean age was (23.2 ± 26.9) months, with the body weight at (9.7 ± 5.6) Kg. 6 patients with congenital AVB received surgical PM placement combined with CHD repair, and the other 27 patients received PM placement at (26 ± 13.1) days after the surgery. Steroid-eluting bipolar epicardial pacing leads were inserted through median sternotomy and connected to various pulse generators within the subrectus pocket. The time, type, acute ventricular stimulation sensing, impedance and electrophysiological information of PM were collected during the operation. The patients were followed-up for (46.8 ± 33.9) months for echocardiography, ECG, programming information of PM, and the major adverse cardiac events (MACE) were recorded.
Results: There were 2 congenital AVB patients received dual chamber PM and the rest patients received single chamber PM. Acute ventricular stimulation sensing was (1.34 ± 0.72) V, no signiifcant increase was identiifed in the last follow-up examination as (1.37 ± 0.81) V,P=0.93. Compared with immediate PM implantation, no signiifcant increases were observed for impedance and R wave in the last follow-up examination as (366.7 ± 88) Ω vs (331.9 ± 95.9) Ω,P=0.32 and (12.3 ± 3.5) mV vs (11.4 ± 4.9) mV,P=0.635 respectively. There were 4 patients received PM replacement because of generator dysfunction, 7/33 (21.2%) of patients had MACE as heart failure or sudden death. The age and body weight in MACE patients were similar with the patients with good prognosis,P>0.05. No pocket infection or lead fracture occurred.
Conclusion: Iatrogenic high level of AVB has been the primary reason for surgical placement of epicardial PM in CHD patients during peri-operative period. It has better long term outcome, while the type of PM should be optimized.

Objective: Giant left ventricle is one of the important dangerous factors impacting the results of valve replacement operation.In order to improve the efficiency of operation,we summarized our experience in valve replacement surgery for patients with giant left ventricle(LVEDD ≥ 7.0 cm).Methods: We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 138 cases of giant left ventricle treated by valve replacement operation in our hospital from June 1996 to April 2008.The preoperative left ventricular end diastolic dimension(LVEDD),left ventricle end systolic dimension(LVESD),left ventricular ejection fraction(LVEF) and left ventricular fractional shortening(LVFS) were 7.38-10.51 cm(mean 7.98?0.39),5.20-7.93(mean 5.88 ? 1.03),0.21-0.66(mean 0.43 ? 0.11) and 0.10-0.45(mean 0.25 ? 0.07),respectively.Eighty-nine of the patients had the heart function(NYHA) of class Ⅲ,and the other 49 class Ⅳ.Mitral valve replacement(MVR) was performed for 57 cases,aortic valve replacement(AVR) for 26,double valves replacement(DVR) for 40,and Bentall operation for the other 15.Meanwhile,78 of them underwent tricuspid valve plasty(TVP),and another 17(LVEDD ≥8.5 cm and LVEF ≤ 25%) partial left ventriculectomy(PLV).Results: The early postoperative mortality rate was 5.8%,mainly due to postoperative multiple organ failure,severe low cardiac output syndrome and ventricular fibrillation.Compared with the preoperative data,postoperative echocardiography showed that LVEDD and LVESD were decreased slowly at 2 weeks,and LVEF and LVFS significantly improved at 6 months.In the 17 patients who underwent PLV,LVEDD and LVESD were significantly reduced at 2 weeks,and LVEF and LVFS markedly improved.Conclusion:The key to the efficiency of valve replacement for giant left ventricle was proper choice of the blood containing stop-beating fluid during the operation,preserving the posterior valve of the mitral valve and the structure beneath it,shortening aortic cross-clamping time as much as possible,and perioperative prevention and management of arrhythmia.The short-term effect of valve replacement with simultaneous PLV is satisfactory,while its long-term effect is yet to be further investigated.

Objectives: To evaluate the clinical application of emergency extracorporeal circulation(ECC) in cardiac surgery. Methods: Emergency open heart surgery was performed in 24 ECC cases. Warm blood left heart bypass was performed in 3, hypothermic cardiopulmonary bypass in 21. The vena cava-aorta extracorporeal circulation was built in 16,vena cava-femoral in 4, left atrium-femoral in 3 and femoro-femoral in 1. Retrograde or antegrade perfusion through aortic root were applied to protect the heart. Results: There were 2 hospital deaths, the hospital mortality rate was 8.3%. The cardiopulmonary bypass was established in 10 to 15 minutes with an average duration of cardiopulmonary bypass of 78～132 minutes. Twenty-two patients were discharged from the hospital and have resumed a normal and active life style. Conclusions: Emergency cardiopulmonary bypass support is a powerful resuscitative tool that may stabilize the condition of patients with cardiogenic shock and mutiorgan dysfunction to allow for definitive intervention. The femoro-femoral cannulation is the first choice for emergency. The time to establish extracorporeal circulation should be as short as possible.

Objective In patients with pulmonary atresia and intact ventricular septum ( PAIVS) without right ventricular-dependent coronaries, catheter techniques including the use of a sniff wire, lasers, and radiofrequency have been the most widely used initial therapy. However, percutaneous perforation and balloon valvuloplasty were associated with higher rate of procedural failure and serious complications. Methods We report our experience with a hybrid approach for pulmonary atresia with intact ventricular septum, combining surgery and interventional catheterization techniques. Between March 2005 and March 2010, hybrid procedure was carried out successfully in 30 newboms and infants with favorable anatomy. The age ranged from 1 day to 48 months with a mean of (4.59 ±3.21) months. The heart was exposed through median sternotomy. A pursestring suture was placed in the right ventricular outflow tract 2 cm away from the pulmonary trunk. Then a 16-gauge intravenous catheter was punctured through the right ventrical and perforated the atretic PV with the guidance of echocardiography. A guide wire was then inserted into the sheath and used to guide the balloon across the PV. Sequential dilations were performed until a full opening of the PV with the guidance of epicardial echocardiography. In patients ＜ 3 months PDA ligation was performed followed by modified Blalock-Taussig (B-T) shunt. In patients ＞ 3 months PDA ligation was not performed. A modified B-T shunt was inserted if severe systemic oxygen desaturation occurred after PDA ligation. Bidirectional Glenn shunt was performed for severe hypoplasia. Hybrid procedure was achieved in all patients. The simultaneous procedures included 25 cases of PDA ligation. 6 newborns underwent modified B-T shunt placement (3.5 to 5 mm) after pulmonary valvuloplasty and PDA ligation, and 2 patients ＞ 1 month underwent modified B-T shunt. Another 2 patients were selected for univentricular palliative surgery because of a diminutive monopartite right ventricle and bidirectional Glenn procedure was performed. No pericardial effusion or cardiac tamponade was observed in all patients. Another case without PDA ligation underwent a modified B-T shunt because of hypoxemia three days after hybrid procedure, and the rest patients were discharged without any further surgical intervention.During the follow-up period of 1.5 to 62.0 months, 5 patients died. 25 (83.3%) survived and were all in New York Heart Association functional class 1. Peripheral oxygen saturation increased from 0.73 ± 0.08 to 0.94 ± 0.04 (P ＜ 0.05). One patient remains in a single-ventricle pathway, whereas 24 patients achieved a two-ventricle circulation. Results Conclusion Perventricular balloon pulmonary valvuloplasty using a hybrid approach is a safe and feasible procedure for patients with PAIVS.

BACKGROUND: Fish oil is one of mainly natural resources of n-3 fatty acids, which can inhibit cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) and prolong the survival of cardiac allograft. But, the mechanism is unclear. Recent in vitro data suggested that n-3 fatty acids could inhibit the release of inflammatory transmitter by the activation of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-y (PPARy). OBJECTIVE: To test the hypothesis that n-3 fatty acids from fish oil ameliorates CAV development via activating PPARy. METHODS: A total of 6 Lewis rats and 18 Fisher344 rats were randomly selected as heart donors. An additional 24 Lewis rats were randomly and equally divided into 4 groups. In isograft group, heart transplantation was performed among Lewis rats, without any drug. In low-dose fish oil-treated group, F344→Lewis transplantation was performed. At 1 day following surgery, 0.03 mL/kg fish oil was treated by gavage for 8 weeks. In high-dose fish oil-treated group, F344→Lewis transplantation was conducted. At 1 day following surgery, 0.06 mL/kg fish oil was treated by gavage for 8 weeks. In control group, F344→Lawis transplantation was conducted. Cyclosporine A was administrated by gavage for 8 weeks. In the low-dose and high-dose fish oil-treated groups, cyclosporine A (1.5 mg/kg) was given daily by intramuscular injection for 2 weeks following surgery. CAV was evaluated by histological examination. Activity of nuclear factor (NF) k-B and PPARy was assessed in homogenate. Contents of monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 and interferon-inducible protein 10 were measured by enzyme-labeled immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Chemokine receptor CCR2 and CXCR3 expression was determined by real-time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: All 24 receptor Lewis rats were survived following surgery. The donor heart could regularly beat at 8 weeks following transplantation. Compared with the isograft group, severe CAV was detected in the control group al 8 weeks. Compared with the control group, CAV was significantly relieved, the activity of PPARy was significantly elevated, the activity of NF k-B was significantly decreased, levels of intragraft monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 and interferon-inducible protein-10 were significantly reduced in the low-dose and high-dose fish oil-treated groups (P < 0.001, P < 0.05), especially in the high-dose fish oil-treated group (P < 0.05). There was no significant difference in expression of chemokine receptors CXCR3 in the low-dose and high-dose fish oil-treated groups and control group. Our results demonstrated that n-3 fatty acids from fish oil can attenuate CAV development, possibly through activating PPARy and subsequently inhibiting the NF-kB activation, the chemokines secretion and its receptor expression in a dose-dependent fashion in rat models.

Objectives:Dose-response effect of nicorandil cardioplegia at various concentrations was studied to optimize its myocardial protective effect.Methods:Forty-eight isolated working rat hearts were divided into 6 groups randomly.They were group A:control (depolarized cardiac arrest with St.Thomas solution No.2),group B,C,E,F and G:hyperpolarized cardiac arrest (nicorandil concentration were 25,50,100,125 and 150μmol/L respectively).The hearts underwent a 120-minute hypothermic arrest (15±1)℃ with cardioplegia (40 ml/kg) and reinfused with cardioplegia (40 ml/kg) at interval of 30 minutes.Mechanical arrest time,cardiac functional recoveries,myocardial content of malondialdehyde (MDA) and ultrastructure were measured.Results:The protective effect of nicorandil cardioplegia was dose-related.Conclusions:The optimal concentration of nicorandil in cardiplegia may be 100μmol/L for myocardial protection.

Objective To analyze clinical characters,associated anomalies,diagnostic approach,and surgical procedures in patients with unroofed coronary sinus syndrome.Methods The clinical,echocardiographic,operative and follow-up data of 109 patients with unroofed coronary sinus syndrome from May 1999 to July 2016 were reviewed retrospectively(type Ⅰ51cases,type Ⅱ 17 cases,type Ⅲ 17 case and type Ⅳ 24 cases).The initial diagnosis of unroofed coronary sinus syndrome was made by echocardiography in 56 cases,while the remains were confirmed by the surgeon at repair of other congenital cardiac anomalies.69 of the 109 cases associated with left superior vena cava(LSVC),and 53 of the 69 directed drained into the left atrium(LA).Among the 109 cases,2 cases associated with complex anomalies underwent palliative operations,and other cardiac malformations were corrected simultaneously by surgical correction in the other cases.LSVC was ligated in 8 cases,and the intracardiac tunnel to drain LSVC to right atrium(RA) was reconstructed in 38 cases,intracardiac baffle in 9 cases,extracardiac repair in 2 cases.The associated cardiac lesions were corrected concomitantly.Results There were 5 hospital deaths.3 patients died of low cardiac output syndrome and 2 patients died of pulmonary infection.We followed up 87 early survivors,and there was no death and severe complications.Conclusion Unroofed coronary sinus syndrome is often missed in the preoperative evaluation of congenitally malformed hearts.Preoperative TTE is still the most important method in the diagnosis of UCSS.Strengthening the understanding of the pathological anatomy and physiological characteristics of the heart malformation may help us to improve the preoperative diagnosis of UCSS.When associated with LSVC,UCSS should be considered as a possible additional finding.We performed different surgical approaches to deal with the different kinds of LSVC with a good result.

Objective To summary the experience of T4 esophageal carcinoma surgery and to explore the methods and operating skills on descending thoracic aortic resection with prosthetic vascular graft replacement in patients with T4 locally advanced esophageal carcinoma invading descending thoracic aorta.Methods From Jan.2001 to Dec.2010,36 patients with esophageal carcinoma underwent esophagectomy and descending aortic replacement simultaneously in our hospital.The clinical data were retrospectively reviewed.All patients had a left posterior lateral incision via the 6th intercostal space.The vascular adventitia of the descending thoracic aorta in the left side was incised,and the aorta was clamped in the proximal and distal side of the invaded segment.Then the invaded segment was resected and replaced with artificial vessels.Esophageal carcinoma was radically resceted,and left cervical esophageal-gastro anastomosis was performed in all patients.Results Radical resection of esophageal carcinoma was achieved in all patients.There was no perioperative death,or severe complications such as paraplegina,acute renal failure and intestinal dysfunction occurred.Two patients had chylous hydrothorax,and one had late stage anastomotic stoma fistula.The post-operative hospital stay was 10-42 d,mean (15.5 ± 7.2 )d.The pathological examination revealed that all the patients had squamous cell carcinoma.The aortic tunica adventitia was invaded in all the patients,9(25％ ) had tunica media invasion,and there was no tunica intima invasion observed.The 1-,3-,and 5-year survival rate was 80.6％,46.2％ and 20.0％ respectively.Conclusion Combined esophagectomy and descending aortic replacement for locally advanced T4 esophageal carcinoma invading aorta can be considered as radical operation for selected patients,and it can improve the survival rate and life quality of the patients.

Objective To evaluate the results of hybrid procedure in treating infants and children with severe pulmonary stenosis (PS) and the clinic value of echocardiography in the whole procedure.Methods Hybrid therapy was performed in 43 patients [(7.1±6.8)months,ranging 5 days to 33 months] with severe PS.The echocardiography data in the whole procedure and follow up were reviewed.Results Aided by echocardiography,the hybrid therapy was successful in 43 cases without major complication.Immediately following valvuloplasty,the gradient across pulmonary valve decreased from (92.5±21.4)mm Hg to (23.6±13.0)mm Hg (P<0.05).The growth and development of 27 patients in follow-up study was well.No restenosis was found and tricuspid regurgitation decreased differently.Conclusions Hybrid procedure is effective and safe for the treatment of infants and children with severe PS.And echocardiography play an important role in the whole procedure.

Objective:To retrospectively analyze the results and mid-term outcomes of 107 patients with corrected congenital transposition of great arteries(CCTGA)who underwent surgical treatment.Methods:A total of 107 CCTGA patients with surgical treatment from January 1996 to October 2005 in our hospital were studied.There were 72 male and 35 female,with the mean age of 11.5±8.4years and mean body weight of 31.6±4.7kg. Among the cohort,81 were levocardia,23 dextrocardia,and 3 medocardia.Initial surgical procedure included single ventricle repair in 14 cases,conventional biventricular repair in 75 and biventricular anatomical repair in 18 cases. 99(93%)patients were followed up with the mean time of 47.8 months.Results:The early operative mortality rate was 4.76% in different procedures.The death rate with single ventricle repair was 0%,conventional biventricular repair 4%,atrial-arterial double switch 0%,atrial-ventricular double switch 40%. The risk factors for operative mortality were lesions with double outlet left ventricle combined with pulmonary stenosis(P<0.01)and Rastelli procedure(P<0.05). 12 patients(12.6%)died during the follow up period,among them,10(83.3%)were in conventional repair group,2(16.7%)in single ventricle repair group,and no death in double switch group. The risk of death during the follow up period of time were conventional biventricular repair,Rastelli procedure and tricuspid regurgitation.Conclusion:Conventional biventricular repair had a disappointing outcome in both operation and in long-term of follow up time. Patients suitable for single ventricular repair had fair short-and mid-term outcomes. Atrial-arterial double switch procedure had good operation and long-term results.