Impact of C-reactive Protein on Anticoagulation Monitoring in Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation.

Objective: To evaluate the impact of inflammation on anticoagulation monitoring for patients supported with extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO).

Design: Prospective single-center cohort study.

Setting: University-affiliated tertiary care academic medical center.

Use of a supramolecular polymeric hydrogel as an effective post-operative pericardial adhesion barrier.

Post-operative adhesions form as a result of normal wound healing processes following any type of surgery. In cardiac surgery, pericardial adhesions are particularly problematic during reoperations, as surgeons must release the adhesions from the surface of the heart before the intended procedure can begin, thereby substantially lengthening operation times and introducing risks of haemorrhage and injury to the heart and lungs during sternal re-entry and cardiac dissection. Here we show that a dynamically crosslinked supramolecular polymer-nanoparticle hydrogel, with viscoelastic and flow properties that enable spraying onto tissue as well as robust tissue adherence and local retention in vivo for two weeks, reduces the formation of pericardial adhesions.