[Acromegaly due to ectopic GH RH secretion by a bronchial carcinoid tumor: a case report].

Ectopic GH RH is a very uncommon cause of acromegaly (<1% of acromegaly). We report the case of an 41 year-old woman with acromegaly due to a GH-RH-secreting bronchial carcinoid tumor. Elevated serum GH (14 ng/ml) was paradoxically stimulated after glucose loading.

[Long-term results over 20 years of aortic valve replacement with the standard Björk-Shiley prosthesis].

Between January 1971 and December 1978, 865 standard Björk-Shiley prostheses (spheric or conic carbon disc) were implanted in the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery of the University Hospital of Rennes. Three hundred and fifty seven consecutive patients who underwent isolated aortic valve replacement were included in the study : 246 men (69%) and 111 women (31%) with an average age of 57.5 years (range : 24-80 years).

[Mediastinitis after cardiac surgery. A 10-year evaluation (1985-1995)].

Unlabelled: From June 1985 to May 1995, 9,814 patients were operated for a cardiac procedure with cardiopulmonary by-pass. Mean age was 61,3 years. The most frequent procedure was coronary surgery (45%), followed by valvular surgery (34%) then combined surgery (11%) and other surgery (4%).

[Cardiac transplantation: clinical results. Apropos of 150 cases].

This retrospective study reports the clinical results obtained in a series of 150 heart transplantations performed from October 1986 to January 1995. Overall actuarial survival rate, including operative mortality, was 71% and 57% at 1 and 5 years respectively. Despite a certain level of morbidity, the spectacular functional results in this series are emphasized.

[A rare complication of mediastinitis: rupture of the right ventricle].

Two cases of right ventricular free wall rupture secondary to mediastinitis after cardiac surgery are reported. This complication is unusual and characterized by the singular mechanism of rupture (traction involving right ventricular free wall and chest adhesion) which occurs during episodes of coughing. Treatment by omentoplasty en sureda favorable outcome in both cases.