Background: Sympathetic innervation exerts marked effects on vascular smooth muscle cells, including a short-term homeostatic (vasoconstrictor) and a direct trophic action promoting differentiation. However, the role of sympathetic nervous system in long-term structural and functional modulation of the aortic wall is yet undefined.
Methods: Six Landrace pigs underwent bilateral thoracic sympathectomy from the stellate to T8 ganglion, whereas 10 pigs underwent sham operation.
In order to evaluate the usefulness of surgical drainage in the treatment of patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS)-related cardiac tamponade, we reviewed our experience with subxiphoid pericardiostomy on 5 consequent such patients. One patient died in the immediate postoperative period and the remaining 4 died within 21 weeks after the operation. Similar results have been reported by other authors who found that surgical drainage has no diagnostic or therapeutic benefit over pericardiocentesis in this particular group of patients.
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