Interventional Treatment of Recurrent Ventricular Septal Defect Planed by 3D-Printed Reconstruction of the Heart.

We report a complex case of a 53-year-old male patient with recurrent ischemic ventricular septal defect that had been occluded by a surgical patch. Treatment was accomplished utilizing a 3-dimensional-printed model for preprocedural planning. In the future, printing of 3-dimensional models could offer new therapeutic strategies on an individual level.

Atomic-level characterization and cilostazol affinity of poly(lactic acid) nanoparticles conjugated with differentially charged hydrophilic molecules.

Nanotherapeutics is a promising field for numerous diseases and represents the forefront of modern medicine. In the present work, full atomistic computer simulations were applied to study poly(lactic acid) (PLA) nanoparticles conjugated with polyethylene glycol (PEG). The formation of this complex system was simulated using the reactive polarizable force field (ReaxFF).

Current perspectives in endoscopic vessel harvesting for coronary artery bypass grafting.

Coronary artery bypass grafting is still the most commonly performed procedure in cardiac surgery. Minimally invasive or endoscopic vessel harvesting was developed a decade ago. It has been shown that these less traumatic techniques significantly reduce wound healing problems and improve patient satisfaction.

Is the SYNTAX score a predictor of long-term outcome after coronary artery bypass surgery?

Background: The SYNTAX score was introduced to measure the complexity of coronary artery disease. Although a high SYNTAX score is indicative of a worse long-term outcome after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), it remains unclear whether it is also true for coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG).

Methods: We analyzed 200 consecutive CABG patients who underwent operations in 2002.