Clinical Immersion of Undergraduate Biomedical Engineering Students: Best Practices for Short-Term Programs.

Many biomedical engineering degree programs lack substantial immersive clinical experiences for undergraduate students, creating a need for clinical immersion programs that contribute to training objectives that emphasize current clinical needs (Becker in Eur J Eng Educ 31:261-272, 2006; Davis et al. in J Eng Educ 91:211-221, 2002; Dym et al. in J Eng Educ 94:103-120, 2005).

Impact of troponin I level on coronary artery bypass grafting outcomes.

Purpose: The effect of preoperative cardiac troponin level on outcomes after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) is unclear. We investigated the impact of preoperative cardiac troponin I (cTnI) level as well as the time interval between maximum cTnI and surgery on CABG outcomes.

Methods: All patients who underwent isolated CABG at our institution between 2009 and 2016 and had preoperative cTnI level available were identified using our Society of Thoracic Surgeons registry.

Outcomes of Surgical Coronary Revascularization Performed Before Solid Abdominal Organ Transplants.

Background: Cardiac risk stratification and coronary angiography are routinely performed as part of kidney and liver transplant candidacy evaluation. There are limited data on the outcomes of surgical coronary revascularization in this patient population. This study investigated outcomes in patients with end- stage renal or hepatic disease who were undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) to attain kidney or liver transplant candidacy.

The presence of a dedicated cardiac surgical intensive care service impacts clinical outcomes in adult cardiac surgery patients.

Background: Postoperative critical care management is an integral part of cardiac surgery that contributes directly to clinical outcomes. In the United States there remains considerable variability in the critical care infrastructure for cardiac surgical programs. There is little published data investigating the impact of a dedicated cardiac surgical intensive care service.

Severe re-expansion pulmonary edema after conventional cardiac surgery: Identification and management.

Re-expansion Pulmonary Edema (REPE) is a recognized but rare complication of lung re-inflation after pathologic collapse or intentional deflation. The presentation of REPE may be highly variable, ranging from a clinically asymptomatic, incidental radiologic finding to acute respiratory failure accompanied by severe, life-threatening hypoxemia. With the current report, we present a patient with severe aortic insufficiency, severe mitral regurgitation, coronary artery disease, pulmonary hypertension, who underwent aortic valve replacement, mitral valvuloplasty, coronary artery bypass grafting, and developed at the immediate post- operative period severe respiratory failure due to REPE, requiring venous-venous Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (VV-ECMO).

Long-term results with cryopreserved arterial allografts (CPAs) in the treatment of graft or primary arterial infections.

Objective: Our purpose was to evaluate our results with CPAs in patients with infected grafts or primary arterial infection with emphasis on long-term durability of these grafts.

Methods: To evaluate the long-term durability of CPAs, clinical outcomes were analyzed following their use for either graft or primary arterial infections at a single institution over a 9-y period (2000-2009). The 30-d mortality rate, 90-d mortality rate, and the cause of early mortality were determined in each case.

Surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation: the time is now.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common chronic arrhythmia in the United States and is associated with high morbidity rates and significant healthcare costs. Although medical therapy for AF modestly reduces complications, cardiac surgery continues to have an important role in the treatment of AF and is constantly evolving. Cardiothoracic surgeons are uniquely positioned to offer effective operations to patients with lone AF, in addition to those undergoing concomitant elective cardiac surgery.

Proinflammatory cytokine effects on mesenchymal stem cell therapy for the ischemic heart.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) hold great promise for improving myocardial recovery after ischemia. The cardiothoracic surgeon is uniquely positioned to be at the forefront of any clinical application of this therapy. As such, a basic understanding of stem cells and the cytokines that affect stem cell function will be an essential component of the surgeon's ever-expanding knowledge base.

Evaluation of hemodynamics: comparison of vacuum and mechanical stabilization in the beating heart.

Background: Hemodynamic instability remains a prominent concern for surgeons performing coronary surgery without cardiopulmonary bypass. The purpose of this study was to further elucidate the mechanism of hemodynamic instability by comparing vacuum stabilization to mechanical stabilization.

Methods: Four 60-kg swine were placed under general anesthesia.