A New Methodology for Intraoperative Monitoring of the Functional Integrity of the Phrenic Nerve During Cardiothoracic Surgery.

Introduction: The phrenic nerve could be easily injured during cardiothoracic surgeries because of its anatomical relationships. The aim of this study is to describe a new, feasible, and reproducible methodology to achieve a continuous intraoperative neuromonitoring of the phrenic nerve.

Methods: Consecutive patients who underwent open-chest surgery were included.