A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial investigating the effect of ticagrelor on saphenous vein graft patency in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting surgery-Rationale and design of the POPular CABG trial.

Rationale: An estimated 15% of saphenous vein grafts (SVGs) occlude in the first year after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) despite aspirin therapy. Graft occlusion can result in symptoms, myocardial infarction, and death. SVG occlusion is primarily caused by atherothrombosis, in which platelet activation plays a pivotal role.

Frequency and prognosis of new bundle branch block induced by surgical aortic valve replacement.

Objectives: Recently, transcatheter aortic valve implantation has been introduced, but one of its complications is left bundle branch block (LBBB), a conduction disturbance that has been associated with increased mortality. We investigated the incidence and fate of both right bundle branch block (RBBB) and LBBB after aortic valve replacement (AVR) using a retrospective analysis. We also studied the predictive value of both disorders for all-cause mortality.

STOP-Bang and the effect on patient outcome and length of hospital stay when patients are not using continuous positive airway pressure.

Background: In patients undergoing surgical interventions under general anesthesia, obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSA) can cause serious perioperative cardiovascular or respiratory complications leading to fatal consequences, even sudden death. In this study we test the hypothesis that morbidly obese patients diagnosed by a polysomnography test and using continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) therapy have fewer and less severe perioperative complications and a shorter hospital stay than patients who have a medical history that meets at least three STOP-Bang criteria and are not using CPAP therapy.

Methods: Postoperative hospital stay and pulmonary complications were analyzed in three groups of morbidly obese patients undergoing bariatric surgery (Roux-en-Y gastric bypass and laparoscopic sleeve gastrectomy) between January 2009 and November 2013 (n = 693).

Circumferential disruption of the ventriculo-aortic junction due to infective endocarditis: surgical repair with custom-made, accurately sized, pericardial tube.

Repair of circumferential ventriculo-aortic annular disruption following infective endocarditis is technically challenging. We present an approach for systematic repair and describe a technique for preparation of an accurately sized pericardial tube graft.