[Cardiac angiosarcoma resected after definitive diagnosis by thoracoscope-assisted biopsy].

A 31-year-old woman presented with cardiac tamponade. Contrast-enhanced chest computed tomography(CT) revealed an inhomogeneously-enhanced soft tissue mass measuring 50×35×30 mm, which was in contact with the right atrial wall. The mass was definitely diagnosed as cardiac angiosarcoma by thoracoscope-assisted biopsy.

Rupture of Kommerell diverticulum after total arch replacement.

A 62-year-old man was brought to the emergency room of our hospital because of chest pain. Computed tomography revealed a right aortic arch and an aberrant left subclavian artery with Kommerell diverticulum and acute aortic dissection (Stanford type A). Total arch replacement was performed emergently through a median full sternotomy.

Establishing right ventricle-pulmonary artery continuity by autologous tissue: an alternative approach for prosthetic conduit repair.

Background: In conventional conduit operations, longevity has been essentially limited by the inevitable need for conduit replacement. This study was undertaken to compare long-term results of the use of equine pericardial conduits, autologous pericardial conduits, and direct anastomosis repair.

Methods: Between 1982 and 2001, 366 patients underwent primary establishment of right ventricle-pulmonary artery continuity at our institution.

Progressive diffuse aortic stenosis after localized supravalvular aortic stenosis repair.

A 6-year-old boy presented with diffuse stenosis of the aortic arch. He had undergone patch augmentation for localized supravalvular aortic stenosis at 2 years of age. Before the initial operation, the aortic arch and descending aorta were noticed to be hypoplastic with a diameter of 60 to 73% of that of the aortic annulus, without a pressure gradient.

Surgery for unilateral absence of pulmonary artery using autologous tissue.

A 7-year-old girl with unilateral absence of the pulmonary artery underwent autologous tissue limited reconstructive surgery. The proximal portion of the artery was reconstructed by rotating a reverse U-shaped cut opposite the pulmonary arterial wall and covering the anterior surface with autologous pericardium. Follow-up catheterization at 5.