Central versus peripheral VA ECMO for cardiogenic shock: an 8-year experience of a tertiary cardiac surgery center in Greece.

Background: Venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (VA ECMO) has emerged as an effective rescue therapy in patients with cardiogenic shock refractory to standard treatment protocols, and its use has been rising worldwide in the last decade. Although experience and availability are growing, outcomes remain poor. There is need for evidence to improve clinical practice and outcomes.

Preservation of right ventricular structure and function following transatrial-transpulmonary repair of tetralogy of Fallot.

Objectives: Management strategy of patients with tetralogy of Fallot (TOF)-including timing, as well as surgical technique-remains a controversial topic. We sought to analyse both early and late results of our consistent policy of non-neonatal transatrial/transpulmonary (TA/TP) repair of TOF over almost 14 years, in order to assess preservation or possible deterioration of right ventricular (RV) function.

Methods: All 245 consecutive patients with TOF, referred to our group for repair between September 1997 and December 2010, have been prospectively followed up.

The contegra® valved heterograft conduit for right ventricular outflow tract reconstruction: a reliable solution.

Introduction: The Contegra® bioprosthetic valved conduit, a glutaraldehyde-preserved valve-containing bovine jugular vein graft (Contegra, Medtronic Inc., Minneapolis MN, USA) introduced for clinical trials in 1998, is used for reconstruction of the right ventricular outflow tract (RVOT), mainly in children. This study evaluates our surgical experience with the Contegra® graft, emphasizing the assessment of conduit durability at mid-term follow up.

Impact of age at fontan completion on functional status at mid-term follow up.

Introduction: Although the Fontan palliation is now being applied to younger patients, the influence of patients' age at the time of surgery on mid- and long-term results remains unclear. It has been our policy to perform Fontan operations when patients are around 5 years old in order to fit a larger conduit and minimize the risk of later obstruction. We sought to investigate whether age at Fontan completion affects subsequent clinical status in patients followed up for more than 3 years.

The fontan procedure in Greece: early surgical results and excellent mid-term outcome.

Introduction: The Fontan operation (modified from its original version) affords excellent palliation for many patients with various forms of anatomic or functional single ventricle. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the outcome of our experience with the Fontan procedure in Greece.

Methods: Fifty-eight consecutive patients with single ventricle physiology had a modified Fontan operation between 1997 and 2009.