Early fitting in cochlear implant surgery: preliminary results.

Purpose: Cochlear implants are usually activated 3-5 weeks after surgery; to date, no universal protocol exists regarding switch on and fitting of these devices. The aim of the study was to assess safety and functional results of activation and fitting of cochlear implant within 24 h following surgery.

Methods: In this retrospective case-control study, 15 adult patients who underwent cochlear implant surgery, for a total of 20 cochlear implant procedures were analyzed.

Antiplatelet therapy in patients receiving aortic bioprostheses: a report of clinical and instrumental safety.

Objective: The main advantage of bioprostheses, avoidance of anticoagulant therapy, is compromised during the early postoperative period; in fact, warfarin is often administered during the first 3 postoperative months.

Methods: We analyzed 250 patients undergoing tissue aortic valve replacement between January 2002 and December 2005. The patients received either aspirin (group 1) or oral anticoagulation (group 2) during the first 3 months.

How to deal with recipients of valves prone to structural failure in the 2000s: Padua experience with the TRI Technologies valve.

Background: TRI Technologies (TT) valves evidenced a propensity to structural failure, consisting in fracture of the pivoting system, leading to leaflet escape. At our institution, between 2000 and 2002, 36 TT valves were implanted in 34 patients. Here we report the final results of the Tritech survey program.

Angiographic long-term follow-up of primary apical ballooning of the left ventricle.

Acute and reversible left ventricular apical wall motion abnormalities presenting with chest pain, electrocardiographic (EKG) changes and cardiac markers release, in the absence of coronary artery stenosis, have already been identified as a possible distinct clinical entity: the so-called Tako-Tsubo syndrome. A 65-year-old man with history of hypertension, hypercholesterolemia and smoking, was admitted at the emergency room of a secondary referral institution with a severe and prolonged (45 min) chest pain, irradiated to the left arm, associated with neurovegetative syndrome. The clinical presentation suggested an acute myocardial infarction (AMI).

Simultaneous coronary artery bypass grafting and carotid endarterectomy in an awake Jehova's witness patient without endotracheal intubation.

Complex surgical procedures are associated with a major risk of peri-operative bleeding. Jehova's witnesses (JW) necessitate a tailored strategy warranting the optimal surgical management, in observance to their religion principles. In this report, we present a JW female patient, who underwent combined coronary artery bypass grafting and carotid endarterectomy, with neither endotracheal intubation nor general anaesthesia.

First Italian robot-enhanced coronary bypass.

This case report presents the first totally endoscopic coronary artery bypass performed with a robotic system in Italy at the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery of Padua University in December 2001. A 66-year-old male, with an indication to a single bypass of the left anterior descending coronary artery using the left mammary artery, was considered eligible for a robot-assisted myocardial revascularization using the da Vinci robotic system. The left internal mammary artery takedown was performed through three 1 cm ports on the thoracic wall.

Totally endoscopic robotic-guided pulmonary veins ablation: an alternative method for the treatment of atrial fibrillation.

In patients affected by isolated atrial fibrillation, epicardial pulmonary veins ablation can be performed with minimally invasive robotic-guided cardiac surgery techniques. This approach might become a feasible alternative to percutaneous transcatheter procedures. In this case report, we present a totally endoscopic robotic-guided pulmonary veins microwave ablation, on beating heart.

[Prevention and control of respiratory tract infections in the network of Italian Centers for Cystic Fibrosis].

Infections caused by respiratory pathogens such as Burkholderia cepacia and Pseudomonas aeruginosa are associated with an increased morbidity and mortality in people affected by cystic fibrosis, the most common lethal genetic disease in Caucasian populations. Preventing the acquisition of these pathogens is paramount for these patients. The goal of this survey was to assess the distribution and the prevalence of the measures adopted for the prevention and control of infections caused by respiratory pathogens in the 28 italian centres for cystic fibrosis.