Background Unilateral diaphragmatic paralysis (UDP) can be a very disabling, typically causing shortness of breath and reduced exercise tolerance. We present a case of a surgical decompression of the phrenic nerve of a patient who presented with UDP, which occurred following cervical spine surgery. Methods The workup for the etiology of UDP demonstrated paradoxical movement on "sniff test" an...

pseudoaneurysms of the ascending aorta, which are rare and life-threatening complications in cardiovascular surgeries, can be caused by the bentall procedure. we describe a 44-year-old woman, who had a medical history of acute aortic dissection (type a) and the bentall procedure and was admitted because of exertional dyspnea, edema of the lower extremities, ascites, and holosystolic murmur in t...

background: surgical treatment of a ruptured abdominal aorta aneurysm (raaa) continues to present a significant challenge to surgeons. there are some patient factors such as age and gender that cannot be changed, and comorbid conditions can be optimized but not eliminated.  the purpose of this study was to identify the risk factors affecting high mortality after the surgical repair of an raaa. ...

background in some hospitals, urinalysis is done routinely for all patients scheduled for cardiac surgery. occasionally pyuria or bacteria is reported in the microscopic urinalysis of these patients that are clinically asymptomatic for urinary tract infections. objectives we were seeking answer to this question: is the presence of a different number of bacteria in preoperative microscopic urina...

OBJECTIVES Phrenic nerve injury after paediatric heart surgery is associated with significant morbidity. Surgical plication of the diaphragm is believed to be beneficial to the patient, with difficult weaning from ventilation; however, the optimal timing remains unclear. We aimed to compare the outcome after two different strategies for treating hemidiaphragmatic paresis. METHODS A retrospect...

right ventricular failure due to right coronary artery disease, right ventricular hypertrophy, stunning, abnormal septal motion, myocardial infarction, or non-homogeneous distribution of cardioplegia is an uncommon but serious complication of open heart surgery. we report a patient with severe right ventricular hypertrophy secondary to severe mitral valve stenosis and another patient with detac...

Background Phrenic nerve reconstruction has been evaluated as a method of restoring functional activity and may be an effective alternative to diaphragm plication. Longer follow-up and a larger cohort for analysis are necessary to confirm the efficacy of this procedure for diaphragmatic paralysis. Methods A total of 180 patients treated with phrenic nerve reconstruction for chronic diaphragmati...

BACKGROUND According to some reports, left hemidiaphragmatic paralysis due to phrenic nerve injury may occur following cardiac surgery. The purpose of this study was to document the effects on phrenic nerve injury of whole body hypothermia, use of ice-slush around the heart and mammary artery harvesting. METHODS Electrophysiology of phrenic nerves was studied bilaterally in 78 subjects before...