The Association of Shared Care Networks With 30-Day Heart Failure Excessive Hospital Readmissions: Longitudinal Observational Study.

Background: Higher-than-expected heart failure (HF) readmissions affect half of US hospitals every year. The Hospital Reduction Readmission Program has reduced risk-adjusted readmissions, but it has also produced unintended consequences. Shared care models have been advocated for HF care, but the association of shared care networks with HF readmissions has never been investigated.

Heparin-Coated Grafts Reduce Mortality in Pediatric Patients Receiving Systemic-to-Pulmonary Shunts.

We aimed to evaluate the outcomes of systemic-to-pulmonary (SP) shunt procedures utilizing heparin-coated (HC) polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) vascular grafts compared to uncoated (non-HC) grafts, in order to observe any benefits in pediatric patients. Our institution switched from using non-HC grafts to HC grafts in March 2011. We conducted a retrospective review of consecutive pediatric patients receiving SP shunts from May 2008 to December 2015.

Efficacy of an Extracellular Matrix in Systemic Loading Conditions in Congenital Heart Surgery.

Extracellular matrices (ECM) are commonly used to repair congenital heart defects; however, there is a lack of literature pertaining to outcomes with ECM use in high-pressure conditions. Between 2011 and 2014, a total of 202 patients underwent congenital heart disease repair using the ECM placed in a systemic pressure condition. The operative sites included: defects in the ventricular septum, mitral valve, aortic valve, ascending aorta, and aortic arch.