Identification of B.1.346 Lineage of SARS-CoV-2 in Japan: Genomic Evidence of Re-entry of Clade 20C.

SARS-CoV-2 whole-genome sequencing of samples from COVID-19 patients is useful for informing infection control. Datasets of these genomes assembled from multiple hospitals can give critical clues to regional or national trends in infection. Herein, we report a lineage summary based on data collected from hospitals located in the Tokyo metropolitan area.

Thoracic Endovascular Aortic Repair Including Total Debranching on Femoral Artery for Arch Rupture.

A 94-year-old woman with rupture of a thoracic aortic aneurysm (rTAA) was referred to us. She previously underwent thoracic endovascular aortic repair and was considered to be at high risk for a conventional open operation. Therefore an endovascular procedure was planned.

Total thoracoscopic left ventricular lead implantation for hybrid cardiac resynchronization therapy in pacemaker-mediated cardiomyopathy.

Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) has been increasingly performed in patients having heart failure with dyssynchrony. We report a successful case of total thoracoscopic left ventricular (LV) lead implantation in CRT. A 77-year-old man with marked dyssynchrony of the LV wall motion and a low ejection fraction (EF17%) due to pacemaker-mediated cardiomyopathy was referred to us.

Peripartum Type A Aortic Dissection Repair Using Frozen Elephant Trunk Technique.

A 43-year-old woman with abdominal and back pain during childbirth consulted us 1 day postdelivery. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) revealed partially thrombosed type A aortic dissection with intimal tear in the proximal descending thoracic aorta. Conservative antihypertensive treatment was started.

Surgical Strategy for Thoracic Aortic Pseudoaneurysm with Sternal Adherence.

A thoracic aortic pseudoaneurysm is a life-threatening complication following thoracic aortic surgery. We describe a surgical strategy for this pseudoaneurysm with a high risk for rupture during median sternotomy. The pseudoaneurysm was distended and widely adherent to the posterior sternum.

Postoperative usage of tolvaptan in a patient with aortic valve stenosis complicated by Child-Pugh classification B liver cirrhosis and hepatic edema.

We report the case of an 80-year-old woman with postoperative congestive heart failure (CHF) complicated by Child-Pugh classification B liver cirrhosis and hepatic edema successfully treated with tolvaptan. The patient suffered from liver cirrhosis and underwent partial hepatectomy for a hepatocellular carcinoma diagnosed together with a severe aortic valve stenosis. Aortic valve replacement was performed under cardiopulmonary bypass.

Repair of Acute Type B Aortic Dissection Complicated by Aortic Rupture with Debranching Thoracic Endovascular Aortic Repair and Left Subclavian Artery Occlusion Using Amplatzer Vascular Plug II.

An 88-year-old man with severe chest pain and syncope was admitted to our hospital. Contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) revealed acute type B aortic dissection with rupture. Considering age and operative risk, we performed emergency thoracic aortic endovascular repair with two-debranching of the left common carotid and left subclavian arteries.

A case of in-situ reconstruction with a rifampicin-bonded gelatin-sealed woven dacron graft for prosthetic graft infection with pseudoaneurysms after ascending aortic replacement for type a dissection.

A 74-year-old woman underwent replacement of the ascending aorta for acute type A aortic dissection. The patient suffered from bacteremia postoperatively and repeated computed tomography showed an increasing diameter of pseudoaneurysms at the site of the proximal anastomosis due to graft infection. Re-mechanical Bentall operation and arch replacement were therefore performed using a composite graft of a rifampicin-bonded gelatin-sealed 24-mm woven Dacron graft and a mechanical valve.

Successful detection and surgical treatment of cardiac hemangioma with right ventricular invasion.

Cardiac hemangiomas are extremely rare benign tumors. These tumors are usually asymptomatic but they can present symptoms such as palpitations, shortness of breath, and arrythmia. We report the case of a 73-year-old man who presented with an abnormal shadow on chest computed tomography during follow-up for lung metastatic tumor after resection of his rectal cancer.

Long-term outcomes and comparison after conventional coronary artery bypass grafting for left main disease between patients classified as percutaneous coronary intervention recommendation classes II and III.

Objectives: We retrospectively analysed long-term outcomes after conventional coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) between patients having left main (LM) disease who should have been assigned class II and those assigned class III recommendation for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) according to the 2010 European Society of Cardiology and the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery guidelines.

Methods: From January 2000 to December 2009, conventional CABG was routinely employed in 180 consecutive patients with previously untreated and stable LM lesion. A comparison between two groups (CABG for PCI class II and CABG for PCI class III) was performed, looking at the primary endpoint of major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCE), including all-cause death, stroke [cerebral vascular accident (CVA)], myocardial infarction (MI) and repeat revascularization.

Intraoperative endoscopic resection of left ventricular tumors.

Two cases involving patients who underwent a successful endoscopic resection of a left ventricular tumor are presented herein. One was an 82-year-old woman with a left ventricular papillary fibroelastoma, who underwent previous coronary artery bypass grafting. In an attempt to make the procedure less invasive, we used an endoscope.

Aortotomy and endarterectomy of the ascending aorta for aortic valve replacement in a patient with porcelain aorta.

Patients with a calcified "porcelain" aorta may also have aortic valve stenosis, necessitating aortic valve replacement to prevent cerebral complications. However, a porcelain aorta can be difficult to open, and ascending aorta repair sutures are almost impossible to insert in a calcified plate. We devised a method of aortotomy using a small oscillating saw, which allowed us to incise the aortic wall cleanly without destruction or the formation of debris.

A surgical case of ventricular septal perforation after repairing left ventricular free wall rupture.

A 78-year-old woman with diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in the anteroseptal area fell into cardiogenic shock suddenly just before starting percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Echocardiography showed left ventricular free wall rupture, then an emergent operation was performed by sutureless patch repair using collagen fleece with fibrinogen-based impregnation. Eight days later from the initial operation, the onset of ventricular septal perforation (VSP) was recognized.

Reoperation for a Starr-Edwards aortic prosthetic valve 33 years after initial implantation.

A 40-year-old woman admitted with heart failure had undergone aortic valve replacement with a Model 2310 Starr-Edwards valve due to aortic regurgitation 33 years previously. She had been followed up for several years, but discontinued follow-up and medication (including Warfarin) for the past 25 years. Echocardiography demonstrated marked dilatation and thickening of the left ventricle, and the peak pressure gradient of the prosthesis was measured as 87.

Giant left ventricular pseudo-false aneurysm following myocardial infarction.

We report a successful surgical case of giant left ventricular pseudo-false aneurysm in a 63-year-old man. The abnormality of the inferior wall of the left ventricle was discovered incidentally by abdominal ultrasonography for health examination at another hospital. Transthoracic echocardiography and left ventriculography revealed a giant false aneurysm (74x75x40 mm) in the inferior wall of the left ventricle with a large orifice (70x58 mm).

Intraoperative trans-mitral endoscopic resection of left ventricular tumor.

A successful resection of left ventricular tumor in an 82-year-old woman who had undergone coronary artery bypass grafting ten years ago is presented. In an attempt to make a procedure less invasive, we chose a trans-mitral endoscopic resection with minimum dissection because of reoperation on patient of advanced age. With the use of cardiopulmonary bypass and cardioplegic protection, the right side of left atrium was incised longitudinally.

Intermittent circulatory arrest for repairing postoperative mycotic pseudoaneurysm in the ascending aorta.

Postoperative mycotic pseudoaneurysm in the ascending aorta associated with mediastinitis is one of the most serious complications after cardiovascular surgery. Circulatory arrest is usually needed for repairing this lesion; it is likely that the procedure needs unpredictably prolonged arrest time due to uncontrollable bleeding or serious adhesion. With this reason we employed intermittent circulatory arrest instead.

Floating ball thrombus in the left atrium with mitral stenosis.

We report a case of a floating ball thrombus in the left atrium with mitral stenosis in a 76-year-old woman. The patient had been followed-up at our hospital due to mitral valve stenosis for several years, and was recognized to have atrial fibrillation and a left atrial mural thrombus by echocardiography. She was admitted to our hospital for right cerebral infarction.

Acute aortic dissection involving an aberrant right subclavian artery.

Although the aberrant right subclavian artery is the most common abnormality in aortic arch development, it is unusual to encounter this abnormality when repairing acute aortic dissection. We report a case of Stanford type A acute aortic dissection involving an aberrant right subclavian artery in a 45-year-old man. We used the elephant trunk procedure to surgically manage the intimal tear and aberrant right subclavian artery.