Interleukin-23 serum levels in patients affected by peripheral arterial disease.

Objectives: To clarify whether interleukin (IL)-23 is involved in peripheral arterial disease (PAD).

Design And Methods: We evaluated IL-23 serum levels, in 29 patients suffering from lower extremity PAD and in 30 healthy subjects.

Results: IL-23 serum levels were higher during the three times (T0, T1 and T2) compared to the control group, although only statistically significant for T0 and T2: T0 (15.

[Cardiac tamponade: a modified video-assisted thoracoscopic approach].

Pericardial effusion may lead to cardiac tamponade sometimes requiring surgical treatment. The aim of the study was to retrospectively analyse a group of patients with cardiac tamponade treated with a modified video-assisted thoracoscopy technique. We treated 15 patients (8 males and 7 females; mean age 63 years; range 24-80 years) with cardiac tamponade.

A retrospective analysis of terlipressin in bolus for the management of refractory vasoplegic hypotension after cardiac surgery.

Cardiac surgery performed with cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) may be complicated by hypotension due to low systemic vascular resistance (SVR). Often in those cases, hypotension is resistant to pressor catecholamines. We report six cases of norepinephrine-resistant postcardiotomy hypotension, treated by terlipressin (TP), a potent vasopressor agent.