Cardiovascular patches applied in congenital cardiac surgery: Current materials and prospects.

Congenital Heart Defects (CHDs) are the most common congenital anomalies, affecting between 4 and 75 per 1000 live births. Cardiovascular patches (CVPs) are frequently used as part of the surgical armamentarium to reconstruct cardiovascular structures to correct CHDs in pediatric patients. This review aims to evaluate the history of cardiovascular patches, currently available options, clinical applications, and important features of these patches.

Initial medical and surgical management of inflammatory bowel disease in the biologic era: A comparison between the United States and China.

Background And Aims: We compared the initial medical and surgical management of Crohn's disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) between the United States and China, with aims to better characterize the global variation in the treatment patterns of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

Methods: Participants from the United States and China completed a questionnaire on demographic and clinical characteristics, medications (biologics, immunomodulators, aminosalicylates, steroids), and IBD-related surgical history. Patients diagnosed in 2006 and later were eligible.