Successful repair using innominate vein flap, pericardial flap and thymus pedicle flap for tracheo-innominate artery fistula.

Tracheo-innominate artery fistula (TIF) is a rare but frequently fatal complication after tracheostomy. Without operation, the mortality is nearly 100% because of acute massive tracheal hemorrhage. Although the survival rate is extremely low, survival is possible only when an immediate operation is performed.

Review of preoperative functional evaluation for lung resection using the right ventricular hemodynamic functions.

Surgery for patients with lung cancer diminishes their lung functions, due to removal of their lung lobes. Therefore, thoracic surgeons have to consider postoperative lung function of patients. In this review, we explained recent approaches of estimation of postoperative lung function by spirometrical and also pulmonary circulatory measurement values.

Combined aortic and mitral valve repair.

Six patients, median age 63.3 years (range, 54 to 68 years), underwent concomitant mitral and aortic valve repair from January 2000 to August 2001. Surgical reports and general clinical data were reviewed retrospectively.

Expression and localization of tumour necrosis factor-alpha and its converting enzyme in human abdominal aortic aneurysm.

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is characterized by chronic aortic wall inflammation and loss of matrix components. Proinflammatory cytokines such as tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) are thought to be involved in this inflammatory process and, therefore, to play an important role in the pathogenesis of human AAA. TNF-alpha-converting enzyme (TACE) has recently been purified and cloned as a disintegrin and metalloproteinase that converts TNF-alpha precursor into its mature form.

MR angiography and CT angiography of the artery of Adamkiewicz: noninvasive preoperative assessment of thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm.

It is important to identify the artery of Adamkiewicz in patients with thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm to aid in surgical planning and to prevent postoperative paraplegia or paraparesis. However, the artery of Adamkiewicz is difficult to visualize and impossible or very dangerous to evaluate with selective intercostal or lumbar angiography. The feasibility, advantages, and limitations of magnetic resonance (MR) angiography and computed tomographic (CT) angiography in the preoperative assessment of the artery of Adamkiewicz were evaluated in 30 patients with thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm.