Alpha-Gal Syndrome and Cardiac Surgery.

Galactose-alpha-1,3-galactose (alpha-gal) is a carbohydrate expressed by all mammals except for humans and certain old-world primates. It can be found in a plethora of products derived from mammals, including milk, organs, skeletal muscle and gelatin, in addition to products prepared with mammalian cells or constituents. In the late 2000s, an association between tick bites and the development of immunoglobulin E antibodies to the alpha-gal carbohydrate was discovered.

Intraoperative Methadone Use Is Associated With Reduced Postoperative Pain and More Rapid Opioid Weaning After Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting.

Objective: To explore the association between intraoperative methadone use, postoperative pain, and opioid consumption after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery.

Design: Retrospective cohort study.

Setting: Single academic medical center.

In vitro comparison of spatiotemporal fibrin clot formation dynamics in plasma treated with different protamine-heparin ratios.

Introduction: Our study aim was to explore how different protamine-heparin ratios impacted enzymatic coagulation and acellular fibrin clot growth in plasma using an in vitro model. We hypothesized that a low protamine-heparin ratio would be associated with superior fibrin clot growth dynamics.

Methods: We performed an in vitro study using 15 plasma samples from a commercial supplier.

The Penn Classification Predicts Hospital Mortality in Acute Stanford Type A and Type B Aortic Dissections.

Objectives: Mortality in acute aortic dissection varies depending on anatomic location, extent, and associated complications. The Stanford classification guides surgical versus medical management. The Penn classification stratifies mortality risk in patients with Stanford type A aortic dissections undergoing surgery.

A Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Presenting as Massive Nasopharyngeal Bleeding: A Case Report.

Patients who present with a subarachnoid hemorrhage may have more than 1 intracranial aneurysm at risk, which may not be appreciated until a subsequent aneurysmal bleeding event occurs. We describe a patient who underwent successful aneurysmal clipping, but later presented urgently with large-volume epistaxis 48 hours after the procedure. After successful intubation of the patient, subsequent angiographic imaging determined that the massive intranasal/oral hemorrhage was due to bleeding through the former operative site, from rupture of a previously unrecognized aneurysm.