Hurricane Katrina: impact on cardiac surgery case volume and outcomes.

Hurricane Katrina produced a surge of patient referrals to our facility for cardiac surgery. We sought to determine the impact of this abrupt volume change on operative outcomes. Using our cardiac surgery database, which is part of the Department of Veterans Affairs' Continuous Improvement in Cardiac Surgery Program, we compared procedural outcomes for all cardiac operations that were performed in the year before the hurricane (Year A, 29 August 2004-28 August 2005) and the year after (Year B, 30 August 2005-29 August 2006).

Open-heart operations in patients with a spinal cord injury.

Background: The objective of our study was to evaluate the outcomes of open-heart surgery in patients with a spinal cord injury.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of all patients (n = 8) with a spinal cord injury who underwent open-heart operations in a single institution from April 1994 to November 2006 was conducted.

Results: All patients had a permanent spinal cord injury with levels ranging from T3 to L2 with a mean age of 62 years (range, 47-72).

The impact of anesthetic modality on the outcome of carotid endarterectomy.

Background: Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) reduces the risk of stroke in patients with high-grade carotid artery stenosis. This study evaluates the clinical outcome of CEA performed under local anesthesia (LA) versus general anesthesia (GA).

Methods: Clinical variables and treatment outcomes were analyzed in 548 CEAs performed under either LA or GA during a 30-month period.