Publications by authors named "Michael Weyand"

Calcified amorphous tumor (CAT) is a rare, mostly incidental tumor-like cardiac lesion of unknown histogenesis. Current imaging modalities do not differentiate between CAT and other masses. As it can be a source for embolization, surgical excision of CAT is mandatory.

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Plerixafor, a hematopoietic stem cell mobilization agent, increases the peripheral blood content of effector and regulatory T cells and may have beneficial effects on cardiac allograft vasculopathy. The aim of the current study was to evaluate its effects in a murine aortic allograft model using different application procedures. Allogeneic donor aorta grafts (n = 8/group) from C57BL/6 mice(H2b) were abdominally transplanted into CBA mice (H2k).

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Heart rate variability (HRV) is an established, non-invasive parameter for the assessment of cardiac autonomic nervous activity and the health status in general cardiology. However, there are few studies on HRV in adults with congenital heart defects (CHDs). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the use of long-term continuous HRV measurement for the assessment of global health status in adults with cyanotic CHD.

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Sirtuins are NAD-dependent protein lysine deacylases implicated in aging-related diseases. Mammalian Sirtuin 4 (Sirt4) is located in mitochondria and a potential therapeutic target for cancer and metabolic diseases, but no potent and selective Sirt4 inhibitors have been reported. Here, we describe the identification of potent Sirt4-specific small-molecule inhibitors.

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Malignant cardiac tumors of the heart are extremely rare and may present tremendous diagnostic and therapeutic challenges. These tumors are able to infiltrate the heart and metastasize systemically. Early detection is often elusive as the clinical presentation is highly variable, posing significant diagnostic and therapeutic difficulties.

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This study investigates the crucial factors influencing the end-systolic and end-diastolic volumes in MRI volumetry and their direct effects on the derived functional parameters. Through the simultaneous acquisition of 2D-cine and 3D whole-heart slices in end-diastole and end-systole, we present a novel direct comparison of the volumetric measurements from both methods. A prospective study was conducted with 18 healthy participants.

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Concomitant LAA occlusion has been shown to be an effective and safe treatment for patients with atrial fibrillation during cardiac surgery to prevent embolic stroke. Minimally invasive procedures are challenging due to restricted access to and visibility of the surgical site. Also, aortic endoclamping has been developed as an alternative surgical approach to exoclamping.

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Infective endocarditis (IE) is still a life-threatening disease with high morbidity and mortality. While usually caused by a single bacterium, poly-microbial infective endocarditis (IE) is rare. Here, we report a (blood-culture-negative) dual pathogen mitral valve IE caused by and : A 53-year-old woman was presented to an internal medicine department with abdominal pain for further evaluation.

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The mitochondrial SIRT3 modulates several biological pathways such as cancer, metabolism, and hypoxia-related diseases. Recently, we discovered new 1,4-dihydropyridines, compounds and , the latter being a SIRT3-specific activator. In the present work, a novel - and -related small series of compounds have been developed, with displaying the strongest SIRT3 binding and activation, with a of 29 μM and 387% of enzyme activation.

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It is well known that the orthotropic tissue structure decisively influences the mechanical and electrical properties of the heart. Numerous approaches to compute the orthotropic tissue structure in computational heart models have been developed in the past decades. In this study, we investigate to what extent different Laplace-Dirichlet-Rule-Based-Methods (LDRBMs) influence the local orthotropic tissue structure and thus the electromechanical behaviour of the subsequent cardiac simulation.

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Key Clinical Message: Complex presentations of MCS patients may necessitate a multidisciplinary approach involving HF cardiologists, CT surgeons, advanced cardiac imagers, and interventional cardiologists in order to define the optimal management strategy.

Abstract: Left ventricle assist devices (LVADs) provide life-sustaining treatment for patients with terminal heart failure, but their intricacy allows for complications. One complication is LVAD outflow graft obstruction due to the graft's intraluminal thrombus or extraluminal compression.

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Sirtuins are NAD-dependent protein lysine deacylases implicated in metabolic regulation and aging-related dysfunctions. The nuclear isoform Sirt1 deacetylates histones and transcription factors and contributes, e.g.

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Background: Dislodgement of a coronary stent-balloon catheter during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is rare but is a life-threatening complication. A 57- year-old male presented with a non-ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI). Coronary angiography revealed total thrombotic occlusion of the Right coronary artery (RCA).

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The outcome of the patients undergoing cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) is also influenced by the renal and hepatic organ functions. Risk stratification, using scores such as EURO Score II or STS Short-Term Risk Calculator for patients undergoing cardiac surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass, ignores the quantitative renal and hepatic function; therefore, MELD-Score was applied in these cases. We retrospectively examined patient data using the MELD score as a predictor of mortality.

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Background: The optimal management strategy for acute aortic type A dissection remains controversial. Whether a limited primary (index) repair would increase the need for late aortic reintervention is still an open debate.

Methods: A total of 393 consecutive adult patients with acute type A aortic dissection who underwent cardiac surgery were analyzed.

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Rationale: Sepsis, a global health burden, is often complicated by viral infections leading to increased long-term morbidity and mortality. Interleukin-3 (IL-3) has been identified as an important mediator amplifying acute inflammation in sepsis; however, its function in the host response to viral infections during sepsis remains elusive.

Objectives: To investigate the role of IL-3 during viral pneumonia in sepsis.

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(1) Background: Systemic mastocytosis is a rare, non-curable disease with potential life-threatening complications in patients receiving cardiac surgery. (2) Methods: This systematic review of the literature was prompted by the case of a life-threatening anaphylactic reaction during cardiac surgery related to systemic mastocytosis. The search of all types of studies, using several databases (Pubmed, Scopus and Web of Science), was conducted through September 2022 to identify the relevant studies.

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Background: Pericardial tamponade (PT) early after cardiac surgery is a challenging clinical entity, not infrequently misrecognized and often only detected late in its course. Because the clinical signs of pericardial tamponade can be very unspecific, a high degree of initial suspicion is required to establish the diagnosis. In addition to clinical examination the deployment of imaging techniques is almost always mandatory in order to avoid delays in diagnosis and to initiate any necessary interventions, such as pericardiocentesis or direct cardiac surgical interventions.

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Background: Especially in the first 3 months after cardiac surgery, patients are at transient risk of sudden cardiac death (SCD). To close the gap between hospital discharge and the final implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) decision, guidelines recommend temporarily using a wearable cardioverter-defibrillator (WCD) to protect these patients from SCD. We investigated real-life data on the safety, effectiveness, and compliance of the WCD in this population.

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Background: While coronary artery bypass grafting is typically considered first choice for the treatment of left main stenosis, there is a trend towards left main stenting due to a steadily aging population in western countries with a high operative risk and patients with single vessel coronary artery disease affecting the left main artery. Nevertheless left main stenting remains controversial, especially in patients with concomitant indications for open-heart surgery.

Case Presentation: We want to present a case of a 78-year-old male patient with high-grade aortic stenosis who underwent surgical aortic valve replacement at our heart center due to anatomical contraindications for transcatheter aortic valve replacement.

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Hedinger Syndrome or carcinoid heart disease is a rare cardiac complication of neuroendocrine tumors (NET) affecting the tricuspid and pulmonary valves. Following is a case description of a patient undergoing treatment for a neuroendocrine tumor with liver metastasis, referred with symptomatic tricuspid valve regurgitation and pulmonary valve stenosis for surgical valve replacement. Planned surgical valve replacement was successfully performed before the onset of severe right ventricular failure or pulmonary hypertension in this case of carcinoid heart disease.

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Background: In the long-term course of treated and untreated congenital heart defects (CHD), pulmonary hypertension (PH) is one of the most relevant complications. Since PH carries a high risk for mortality and morbidity, it is important to improve the status of healthcare and medical knowledge regarding the affected patients. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the current medical care status, health-related knowledge, and specific counseling needs of adults with various forms of CHD (ACHD) who are at increased risk of developing PH, as well as those with manifest PH.

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Background: Aortic aneurysm and aortic dissection can have a major impact on the life expectancy of Marfan syndrome (MFS) or Loeys-Dietz syndrome (LDS) patients. Although obesity can influence the development of aortic complications, evidence on whether obesity influences the development of aortic aneurysm or dissection in MFS and LDS is limited. The aim of the present study was to elucidate the relationship between aortic size and body composition, assessed by modern bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) in MFS/LDS-patients.

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Background: Pulmonary vascular disease and pulmonary hypertension (PH) belong to the most relevant complications of congenital heart disease (CHD) in the long-term course. Although PH might lead to a severely impaired quality of life (QOL), there are no current studies comparing QOL in adults with CHD (ACHD) with and without PH. Therefore, this study aimed to systematically examine QOL in ACHD with and without PH in order to generate a more differentiated understanding of their overall health-status and to employ newly gained findings into general care of this particular patient population.

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