case presentation a 43-year-old man was referred to our institution for a severe aortic regurgitation and an ascending aorta enlargement associated with a relapsing sub-aortic membrane, which had been treated in his childhood. he underwent a redo ascending aorta replacement and an aortic valve replacement (mechanical prosthesis) along with a resection of the relapsing sub-valvular membrane. som...

BACKGROUND Mediastinitis is a rare, but serious complication of cardiac surgery. It has a significant socioeconomic impact and high morbidity. The purpose of this study was to determine pre-, intra-, and postoperative predictors of mediastinitis. METHODS AND RESULTS In 1700 consecutive patients, who underwent cardiac surgery in 2001, 49 variables were retrospectively assessed. Forty-five pati...

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study is to evaluate the applicability of a new score for predicting mediastinitis - MagedanzSCORE - in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery in the Division of Cardiovascular Surgery of Pronto Socorro Cardiológico de Pernambuco - PROCAPE. METHODS Retrospective study involving 500 patients operated between May/2007 and April/2010. The regist...

BACKGROUND Descending necrotising mediastinitis is caused by downward spread of neck infection and has a high fatality rate of 31%. The seriousness of this infection is caused by the absence of barriers in the contiguous fascial planes of neck and mediastinum. METHODS The recent successful treatment of seven adult patients with descending necrotising mediastinitis emphasises the importance of...

OBJECTIVE The mortality rate of patients with poststernotomy mediastinitis remains very high. The aim of this study was to identify the risk factors associated with mortality in these patients. SUBJECTS AND METHODS Surveillance of sternal surgical-site infections including mediastinitis was carried out for adult patients undergoing a sternotomy between 2004 and 2012. Criteria from the US Cent...

INTRODUCTION — Prior to the development of modern cardiovascular surgery, most cases of mediastinitis arose from either esophageal perforation or from contiguous spread of odontogenic or retropharyngeal infections. Rarely, primary infections of the mediastinum developed as a result of penetrating trauma or hematogenous spread of infection. However, in modern practice, most cases of mediastiniti...

We report a case of Finegoldia magna (formerly known as Peptostreptococcus magnus) mediastinitis following coronary artery bypass in a 50-year-old patient. Even if staphylococci remain the main causative organism of postoperative mediastinitis, the responsibility of anaerobic bacteria must be considered in cases of fever and sternal drainage with negative blood cultures.

We report a case of acute odontogenic sepsis in a 59-year-old man, presenting with diffuse, descending necrotising mediastinitis complicated by pleural empyema. Despite surviving the odds, his recovery was complicated by severe dysphagia, resulting in gastrostomy feeding for 6 months. Until now, severe dysphagia following descending necrotising mediastinitis has been unreported.