[Lipomatous Hypertrophy of the Interatrial Septum Preoperatively Misdiagnosed as Right Atrial Lipoma].

A 73-year-old man with a right atrial tumor and a distal aortic arch aneurysm was scheduled for tumor resection and total arch replacement (TAR). Although the tumor was diagnosed as an intraatrial lipoma preoperatively, it could not be differentiated from an infiltrating lipoma on the basis of intraoperative pathological examination. We decided to completely excise the tumor.

Risk of Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest in Aged Individuals in Relation to Cold Ambient Temperature - A Report From North Tochigi Experience.

Background: The impact of cold ambient temperature on out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) in aged individuals caused by cardiovascular events in indoor environments has not been investigated sufficiently.

Methods and results: We conducted a case-crossover study. The relationship between OHCA caused by cardiovascular events and exposure to minimum temperature <0℃ was analyzed.

[Redo Aortic and Mitral Valve Replacement by Manouguian's Procedure for Active Prosthetic Valve Infection].

The damage to the intervalvular fibrous trigone (IVFT) by infective endocarditis makes combined aortic and mitral valve replacement difficult. We performed Manouguian's double valve replacement for such a case and obtained a good result. A 81-year-old male underwent emergency operation due to active prosthetic valve endocarditis.

[Second use of preserved aortic cusps for bentall procedure after aortic valve replacement with intravalvular implantation technique in aortitis syndrome].

A 44-year-old woman who had undergone aortic valve replacement with intravalvular implantation technique due to aortitis syndrome 13 years before, required Bentall procedure and hemiarch replacement because of the tissue valve dysfunction and the root and ascending aortic aneurysms. The exposed native aortic cusps sandwiched between the felt pledgets and the tissue valve seemed to be useful in reinforcing the proximal anastomosis of the composite graft. A combination of an intravalvular implantation technique and a skirted composite graft technique was applied, and her postoperative course has been uneventful for more than 2 and a half years.

Macrophage-derived angiopoietin-like protein 2 accelerates development of abdominal aortic aneurysm.

Objective: Recently, we reported that angiopoietin-like protein 2 (Angptl2) functions in various chronic inflammatory diseases. In the present study, we asked whether Angptl2 and its associated chronic inflammation contribute to abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA).

Methods And Results: Immunohistochemistry revealed that Angptl2 is abundantly expressed in infiltrating macrophages within the vessel wall of patients with AAA and in a CaCl(2)-induced AAA mouse model.

Successful therapy of brachiocephalic arteriogastric fistula after esophagectomy.

We report the case of an 86-year-old man, who had undergone subtotal esophagectomy and reconstruction with a gastric tube through the retrosternal route 7 years ago, who was referred for treatment of a brachiocephalic arteriogastric fistula. An emergency stent-graft placement was performed to prevent massive bleeding from the fistula. After 2 weeks, a follow-up esophagogastroscopy revealed that the gastric tube ulcer had been penetrated, and the stent graft was exposed.

Intravascular papillary endothelial hyperplasia in an aneurysm of the superficial temporal artery: Report of a case.

We herein report a rare case of an intravascular papillary endothelial hyperplasia in an aneurysm of the superficial temporal artery. The patient was a 67-year old Japanese woman. She noticed a throbbing swelling in her left forehead, which had gradually been increasing in size.

The value of angiogenic therapy with intramyocardial administration of basic fibroblast growth factor to treat severe coronary artery disease.

Background: Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) was administered intramyocardially together with CABG to induce myocardial neovascularizaton and collateral growth in patients with ungraftable coronary arteries. Coronary angiographic and myocardial scintigraphic findings revealed that the effects of CABG were potentially confounding.

Methods And Results: Patients in the bFGF group (n = 16) underwent angiogenic therapy using bFGF for ungraftable territory, and incomplete revascularization (IR) patients (n = 22) underwent only CABG.

Coronary artery bypass grafting using a bifurcating radial artery.

A 61-year-old man with angina pectoris was admitted for elective coronary artery bypass grafting. The left anterior descending artery, and the two posterolateral branches (PLA1 and PLA2) of the circumflex artery required bypass grafting. At operation, the distal portion of the left radial artery was found to bifurcate, both branches having an equal size.

Effects of intramyocardial administration of slow-release basic fibroblast growth factor on angiogenesis and ventricular remodeling in a rat infarct model.

Background: Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) stimulates neoangiogenesis. Incorporation into biodegradable gelatin hydrogels provides the sustained release of bFGF. The effects of intramyocardial injections of slow-release bFGF on neoangiogenesis in a rat model of infarction were investigated.

Monocyte chemotactic S19 ribosomal protein dimer in atherosclerotic vascular lesion.

To elucidate the molecular mechanism inducing monocyte/macrophage infiltration in the atherosclerotic lesion, we measured the monocyte chemotactic capacity in the extracts of aortic lesions. Five out of seven extracts exhibited significant chemotactic activities. Immunohistochemical examination with an anti-CD68 monoclonal antibody demonstrated that the five positive lesions possessed obvious monocyte/macrophage infiltrations at the intima, whereas the two negative lesions did so at significantly lower intensities.

[Left ventricular rupture following mitral valve replacement].

Left ventricular rupture following mitral valve replacement is an unusual but highly lethal complication. Between 1982 and 2004, 254 patients underwent mitral valve replacement with coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) [7 patients], aortic or tricuspid valve operation or both (84 patients), or without concomitant operation (163 patients). There were 11 hospital deaths (4.

Predictive factors for platelet number after cardiopulmonary bypass and postoperative blood loss.

We retrospectively searched for factors that can predict the circulating platelet count after cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and postoperative blood loss. Correlations between the circulating platelet count after CPB and several other perioperative variables were investigated in 42 patients who underwent cardiac surgery using the same type of oxygenator. Correlations between perioperative variables and 24 hour postoperative blood loss were also investigated.