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Biomedical subjects

Bahaaldin Alsoufi

Publications and source records attributed to Bahaaldin Alsoufi.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

Short- and long-term results of triple valve surgery in the modern era.

BACKGROUND: Triple valve surgery is usually complex and carries a reported operative mortality of 25% and 10-year survival of 40%. We examined surgical results in the modern era. METHODS: A total of 174 consecutive patients, mean age 58 +/-12 years underwent triple valve surgery from 1990 to 2004. The most common aortic and mitral valve disease was rheumatic disease (61%), followed by prosthetic valve dysfunction (22%). Tricuspid valve disease was functional regurgitation in 72% of patients. Ninety-four percent of patients were in New York Heart Association class III and IV, and 60% had had previous cardiac operations. The aortic valve procedures consisted of 160 replacements and 14 repairs, the mitral valve procedures, 153 replacements and 21 repairs, and the tricuspid valve procedures, 12 replacements and 162 repairs. Univariate and multivariable analyses were performed to identify predictors of early and late survival. RESULTS: Operative mortality was 13% (n = 22). Univariate factors associated with mortality included urgent surgery, shock, tricuspid valve replacement, preoperative renal failure, and peripheral vascular disease. Survival at 5 and 10 years was 75% and 61%, respectively. Seventy-three percent of patients were in New York Heart Association class I and II at their most recent follow-up. Ten-year freedom from thromboembolism was 88%, from anticoagulation-related hemorrhage, 83%, from endocarditis, 96%, and from cardiac reoperation, 92%. CONCLUSIONS: Patients with advanced rheumatic valve disease and prosthetic valve dysfunction are at risk for requiring triple valve surgery. Compared with historic reports, the results of triple valve surgery, primary and reoperative, have improved. Although early mortality is high, long-term and event-free survival are comparable with that of patients undergoing single valve replacement.

Adult↗

Results of concomitant aortic valve replacement and coronary artery bypass grafting in the VA population.

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE STUDY: Concomitant aortic valve replacement (AVR) and coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) is an established risk factor for diminished postoperative survival. Results from a VA population were reviewed in order to determine factors influencing early and late survival. METHODS: Between 1993 and 2003, a total of 401 patients underwent AVR at the authors' institution. Of these patients, 249 (62%; mean age 70.6 years) had combined AVR and CABG. Surgical indications were primarily aortic valve pathology (group A: n = 168; 68%), primarily coronary artery disease (CAD) (group B: n = 55; 22%), and both severe aortic and coronary disease (group C: n = 26; 10%). In total, 177 patients (71%) received a bioprosthesis, and 72 (29%) received a mechanical valve. Short- and long-term outcomes were explored using univariate and multivariable hazard analyses. RESULTS: Overall operative mortality was 6.4%; mortality for groups A, B and C was 4.8%, 9.1% and 11.5%, respectively. On multivariable analysis, significant factors associated with early-phase mortality were NYHA class IV, diabetes, bioprosthetic valve and combined severe aortic and coronary disease. Survival at one and five years was 86% and 62%, respectively. Five-year survival for groups A, B and C was 71%, 63% and 54%, respectively. Significant associated factors for late-phase mortality were the presence of preoperative peripheral vascular disease (PVD) and cerebrovascular disease (CVD). Factors such as age, prior cardiac surgery, number of grafted coronary arteries, and/or effective orifice area index (EOAI) had no significant effect on outcome. CONCLUSION: Combined AVR/CABG is a marker for decreased survival. Pre-existing factors such as diabetes, PVD and CVD, as well as poor preoperative NYHA functional status, affected survival. Further investigation is needed to assess the influence of the severity of CAD and EOAI on survival. Thoughtful consideration of all these factors is essential for an accurate prediction of survival, and to determine the appropriate type of aortic prosthesis to be used.

Age Factors↗

Extracorporeal life support in neonates, infants, and children after repair of congenital heart disease: modern era results in a single institution.

BACKGROUND: Extracorporeal life support has assumed a very effective role in the support of patients with refractory heart failure after repair of congenital heart disease, with hospital survival between 37% and 42%. We reviewed our results of different applications of extracorporeal life support in the last 2 years. METHODS: Between January 2001 and October 2003, 671 patients underwent surgery for congenital heart disease at our institution. We retrospectively reviewed the hospital and clinic charts of the patients who required extracorporeal life support postoperatively, and studied the factors associated with survival. RESULTS: Thirty-six patients (5.36%) received extracorporeal life support after surgery, between 1 day and 8 years of age (age < 30 days, n = 34). We divided the patients into four groups. Group 1 consisted of 13 patients who were electively placed on ventricular support without an oxygenator (univentricular assist device) after repair of single-ventricle disease. Group 2 consisted of 16 patients who required extracorporeal membrane oxygenation after surgery for failed hemodynamics. Group 3 consisted of 2 patients who required left ventricle support (left ventricular assist device) after surgery for two-ventricle disease but who did not require biventricular (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) support. Group 4 consisted of 5 patients who required conversion from ventricular assist device to extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. Overall, 28 patients were weaned successfully (78%), and 24 survived to discharge (67%). Hospital survival in groups 1, 2, 3, and 4 was 100%, 50%, 100%, and 20%, respectively. Univariate factors associated with survival were age, weight, ventricular assist device type, duration, single-ventricle disease, reexploration, number of complications, and specific complications such as sepsis, renal failure, and pulmonary failure. CONCLUSIONS: Extracorporeal life support utilization was expanded to include different applications with different outcomes. The extracorporeal life support registry should be altered to reflect those changes.

Assisted Circulation↗

Oversizing pulmonary homograft conduits does not significantly decrease allograft failure in children.

OBJECTIVE: Placement of oversized pulmonary ventricle-pulmonary artery conduits is routinely performed to decrease conduit failure in children. However, this practice has recently been challenged as somatic outgrowth may not be the main determinant of allograft failure in children. Our objective was to determine whether placement of oversized homografts for extracardiac pulmonary ventricle (PV) outflow tract reconstruction improves longevity in young children. METHODS: We reviewed 102 consecutive PV-PA conduits inserted in 70 patients less than 18 years between 1984 and 2003. Conduits placed in an anatomic position (n=23) as part of a Ross operation, were excluded. Conduits were initially stratified into two age groups: Group 1, those placed in patients 10 years. Normalization of conduit size to patient's body surface area at the time of insertion (z-value) was then performed to divide the conduits into oversized (O/S) and non-oversized (NO/S) groups. Determinants of conduit failure and allograft longevity were then compared between groups. RESULTS: Seventy-nine extracardiac conduits were placed, and 57 of these were in patients under 10 years of age. The majority had a diagnosis of tetralogy of Fallot (n=38), truncus arteriosus (n=19), pulmonary atresia with ventricular septal defect (n=12), or D-TGA with pulmonary stenosis and ventricular septal defect (n=7). Thirty-seven conduits were oversized (O/S) based on z-value, and 42 were non-oversized (NO/S), and the mean age at initial homograft placement was 7.0+/-7.5 years. Overall, oversizing conferred no significant advantage with respect to actuarial freedom from homograft replacement at 1, 5, or 10 years (96, 79, and 21%, O/S vs 93, 60, and 24%, NO/S), P=0.44. Oversizing was more frequent in Group 1 than Group 2 (53 vs 32%), and conduit failure was also more frequent with 49% requiring reoperation during the study period vs 38% in Group 2. In the subset of patients <or=10 years, both homograft explantation rate (50% O/S vs 48% NO/S) and median interval to conduit failure were similar between the O/S and NO/S patients (7.1 vs 4.8 years), P=0.340. Risk factors for conduit failure identified in multivariable regression analysis included the presence of pulmonary artery branch stenosis, lack of previous definitive repair, a diagnosis of pulmonary atresia, the need for percutaneous intervention. CONCLUSIONS: There is no significant benefit to placement of an oversized PV-PA homograft in this series of patients from a single institution. Even in young patients with rapid somatic growth, normalizing extracardiac allografts to BSA provides excellent conduit longevity and outcomes.

Adolescent↗

Results of valve preservation and repair for bicuspid aortic valve insufficiency.

BACKGROUND AND AIM OF THE STUDY: There is increasing interest in aortic valve-sparing and repair techniques for the treatment of aortic insufficiency (AI) and/or root aneurysm. The results of bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) repair at the authors' institution were evaluated. An attempt was made to assess the mode of failure and to identify surgical methods that provide durable repair results. METHODS: Aortic valve repair for BAV was performed in 71 patients (62 men, nine women; mean age 41.5 +/- 13.2 years) between 1993 and 2005. Repair techniques included cusp free margin plication (n = 47), subcommissural annuloplasty (n = 27), free margin reinforcement (n = 10), and cusp triangular resection (n = 7). Thirteen patients had remodeling of one or both aortic sinuses, and 16 had reimplantation of the aortic valve. The ascending aorta and arch were replaced in 29 and five patients, respectively. Concomitant mitral and coronary bypass surgeries were performed in 10 and three patients, respectively. RESULTS: There were no operative deaths. Early postoperative echocardiography revealed no or trace AI in 54 patients and mild AI in 17. There was only one late death which was non-cardiac-related. Eight-year freedom from endocarditis, thromboembolism and anticoagulation-related hemorrhage was 90%, 100% and 100%, respectively. Eight-year freedom from AI grade > or =3+ (moderate) and aortic valve replacement were 44% and 82%, respectively. At the latest follow up, 89% of patients were in NYHA functional class I. Patients who underwent aortic valve-sparing procedures had more stable valve function than those who had cusp repair and subcommissural plication. CONCLUSION: BAV repair is a safe procedure with good early functional results. However, recurrent AI remains a problem at five to eight years of follow up. Since dilation of the aortic root is a common cause of AI and a common feature of patients with BAV, aortic valve-sparing reimplantation operations should provide better long-term outcomes.

Adult↗

Heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT) in pediatric cardiac surgery: an emerging cause of morbidity and mortality.

Unfractionated heparin (UFH) is immunogenic, and heparin-dependent antibodies can be demonstrated 5 to 10 days postoperatively in 25% to 50% of adult postcardiac surgery patients. In a minority of these cases (1% to 3% if UFH is continued longer than 1 week) these antibodies strongly activate platelets, causing thrombocytopenia and massive thrombin generation (HIT syndrome). HIT is an intensely procoagulant disorder, and in adult cardiac surgery patients carries both significant thrombotic morbidity (38% to 81%) and mortality (28%). Despite the ubiquitous use of UFH in pediatric intensive care units, and the repeated and sustained exposures to UFH in neonates and young children with congenital heart disease, HIT has been infrequently recognized and reported in this patient population. However, emerging experience at our institution and elsewhere suggests that HIT is significantly under-recognized in pediatric congenital heart disease patients, and may in fact have an incidence and associated thrombotic morbidity and mortality in this patient group comparable to that seen in adult cardiac surgery patients. This article will review HIT in pediatric patients with congenital heart disease and emphasize the special challenges posed in clinical recognition, laboratory diagnosis, and treatment of HIT in this patient group. We will also outline our experience with the off-label use of the direct thrombin inhibitor, argatroban, in pediatric patients with HIT.

Adolescent↗