[Acute suppurative mediastinitis in heart surgery performed under extracorporeal circulation].

The incidence of acute suppurative mediastinitis after open heart cardiac surgery in a 5 year retrospective study was found to be 1.56%. The commonest causal agent was the DNAse + coagulase + staphylococcus (68.

[Acute thrombosis of the superior vena cava after cardiac surgery].

One case of acute superior vena cava syndrome occurring twelve days after open-heart surgery was reported. The severity of the accompanying clinical signs led to the carrying out of an urgent superior vena cavogram. It revealed a superior vena caval obstruction by a thrombus which extended into the azygos vein; extrinsic compression was therefore ruled out.

[Correction by a calcium inhibitor of a coronary spasm occurring during aortocoronary bypass].

A case of recurrent coronary artery spasm after coronary revascularization under cardiopulmonary bypass is related. The spasm, which occurred under nitroglycerin perfusion, was suspected on the ECG tracing and confirmed during immediate reoperation. It was successfully treated with bepridil, a calcium-channel blocking agent.

[Pheochromocytomas: diagnosis, anesthesia and treatment. Apropos of 17 recent cases].

This article summarizes 5 years of systematic observation of 17 patients presenting with benign pheochromocytoma. The diagnosis was based on clinical and biological findings which were consistently positive. The topographical diagnosis was based on CT scans, and a combination of intravenous urograms and nephrotomography.

Hemodynamic and metabolic effects of prostacyclin after coronary bypass surgery.

The hemodynamic and metabolic effects of prostacyclin (PGI2) were assessed in 12 patients who underwent coronary bypass surgery. PGI2 were injected intravenously at a rate of 2.5 ng/kg/min for 10 minutes, followed by three consecutive 10-minute injections of 5, 10 and 20 ng/kg/min.

[Emergency in neo-natal surgery. High risks in forty-one cases (author's transl)].

41 babies were operated upon in emergency in the cardiac surgery department. 11 of them were submitted to open heart surgery and 30 were operated without extra corporeal circulation. Amongst them, there were 21 coarctations of thoracic aorta either isolated or associated with other cardiac malformations.

[Clinical use of nitroglycerin as an hypotensive agent during general anesthesia for caesarean section. Report of a case (author's transl)].

Nitroglycerin in aqueous solution has been used as hypotensive agent during a caesarean section, in a patient who presented an arterial hypertension not controled by administration of four antihypertensive agents (acebutolol, clonidine, dihydralazine, alpha-methyl-dopa). Nitroglycerin continuous infusion started two hours before caesarean section at the dose of one milligramme over one hour and stopped several hours after.

[Nitroglycerin and anaesthesia in phaeochromocytoma (author's transl)].

Six patients who have undergone surgery for phaeochromacytoma have been separated in 2 groups. In group I (n = 3) a nitroglycerin infusion of 7.8 microgram .

[Pharmacology of nitroglycerin (author's transl)].

Nitroglycerin is a vasodilating agent by virtue of its actions on vascular smooth muscle fibers. It may be administered intravenously (using either 5 p. cent dextrose, or propylene-glycol solvant), sublingually, orally or by topical administration.

[Prinzmetal's angina during myocardial revascularisation. Cardiovascular complications in 71 patients (author's transl)].

71 patients undergo myocardial revascularisation for Prinzmetal's angina; among them, 50 p. cent are operated upon in emergency according to three ways of anaesthesia: neuroleptanalgesia, analgesic anaesthesia, combined anaesthesia. The authors lay stress on the importance of per- and post-operative complications: electrocardiographic ischemia in 22 p.

[Nitroglycerin and amyl nitrite action on common bile duct during operation for vesicular lithiasis (author's transl)].

Eight patients undergoing cholecystectomy received a single injection of nitroglycerin (0,9 mg) and 8 received amyl nitrite, during a cholangio-kinesimetry. The maximum fall in common bile duct pressure was similar in both group; 3.2 +/- 0.

[Anesthesia and intensive care during aorto-coronary bypass surgery. Prospective study of 162 consecutive cases].

The authors studied a series of 162 patients undergoing surgery for aorto-coronary bypass by saphenous graft. In each case, the anesthetic technique was classical neuroleptanalgesia. Per and postoperative care included standard water and electrolyte balance, hpeparinisation from the 12th hour and routine prophylactic antibiotics.

[Anesthesia for aorto-coronary bypass].

The authors have analysed a series of 357 patients undergoing aortocoronary bypass. The onset of complications was studied in relation to the past history, the anaesthetic protocol, the period of extra-corporeal circulation and the type of myocardial protection. Complications consisted of acute hypertensive episodes, arrhythmias, peroperative myocardial ischemia and myocardial infarction.

[Value of radionuclide imaging for the emergency diagnosis of pulmonary embolism. 27 cases].

The urgent nature of certain cases of pulmonary ambolism limits the examinations possible to a minimum which should be rapid, immediately interpretable, absolutley harmless and of proven reliability. We reviewed 27 cases of patients referred fro possible embolectomy in a cardiovascular surgery service from 1968 to 1975. Infusion scintigraphy was carried out in all the patients and 20 underwent surgery.

[Enlarged heart caused by massive subepicardial lipomatosis with idiopathic dilatation of the right cavities].

The case is reported of a man of 48 with known longstanding gross cardiomegaly which was completely asymptomatic. Angiocardiography and coronary arteriography showed dilatation of the right side of the heart, and especially of the auricle. In addition, the ventricle was separated from the diphragm by a transparent non-fluid area.