Use of heparin-coated cardiopulmonary bypass.

A 49-year-old man with unstable angina and a history of severe anaphylaxis to seafood and intravenous iodine needed myocardial revascularization. Because of concern of an intraoperative protamine reaction, preoperative treatment was instituted with steroids and with H1 and H2 blockers. Revascularization was accomplished using a heparin-coated cardiopulmonary bypass circuit.

Aggressive use of intra-aortic balloon pump and emergency coronary bypass surgery. Enhanced survival in acute evolving MI.

This report describes our experience with prophylactic and therapeutic use of IABPs prior to and following coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) in 39 patients experiencing acute evolving myocardial infarctions (AEMI). All patients showed objective evidence of coronary thrombosis (contrast angiography) followed by later evidence of streptokinase (SK)-induced restoration of antegrade blood flow in the infarct-related coronary artery (as determined by repeat angiography). In these 39 high-risk patients, 38 survived and were discharged.

Hemodynamic status following regional and general anesthesia for carotid endarterectomy.

We prospectively studied 23 patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy under regional (n = 13) or general (n = 10) anesthesia to determine the hemodynamic basis of increased frequency in the need for postoperative vasopressor support when regional anesthesia was used. Anesthesia and postoperative care were conducted without reference to hemodynamic data from pulmonary artery catheterization. Although mean arterial pressure was similar in the two groups postoperatively, 11 of the 13 patients undergoing regional anesthesia and 3 of the 10 patients undergoing general anesthesia required phenylephrine postoperatively.

Sternal retraction and pulmonary artery catheter compromise.

Forty-one consecutive open-chest cardiac procedures requiring sternal retractors for visualization were prospectively studied. Chest x-rays demonstrating the course of the introducer sheaths and pulmonary artery catheters (PACs) were taken before and after sternal retractor expansion. Five different introducer sheath insertion sites were monitored (right internal jugular, left internal jugular, left subclavian, right subclavian, and right supraclavicular).

Coronary artery bypass grafting within 24 hours after intracoronary streptokinase thrombolysis.

Little specific information currently exists describing the management of patients with an evolving acute myocardial infarction (AMI) treated with direct intracoronary infusion of streptokinase (SK) followed by emergency coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). A total of 194 patients with an evolving AMI underwent emergency coronary artery angiography with infusion of SK. Thirty-four of these patients with partial restoration of orthograde blood flow in the infarct-related coronary artery (as determined by clinical and objective evidence of myocardial salvage) were referred for emergency CABG.