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...

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...

primary cardiac sarcomas are rare clinical entities with an incidence rate of 0.0001% in collected autopsy series and are regarded as very aggressive tumors. we herein describe a 21-year-old woman presenting with syncope, dyspnea, and abdominal distention. she suffered from massive ascites, plural effusion, and liver congestion demonstrated by abdominal sonography and chest x-ray. transthoracic...

background: chylothorax is a rare but serious postoperative condition with a high rate of morbidity and may lead to the mortality of children undergoing congenital heart disease (chd) surgery. this study evaluated the specific surgical procedures associated with the higher risk of postoperative chylothorax. methods: w e assessed 435 cases undergoing chd surgery between april 2003 and may 2006. ...

background: hypoalbuminemia may be caused by liver disease, nephrotic syndrome, burns, protein-losing entropathy, malnutrition, and metabolic stress. alterations in albumin in metabolic stress such as cardiac surgery have been previously investigated. we studied serum albumin concentration in children with congenital heart disease and also the association of hypoalbuminemia with mortality and m...

acute left atrial thrombosis at the site of the resection of the primary cribriform septum is an exceedingly rare and important complication after atrial septal defect (asd) closure with a pericardial or synthetic patch. this case report presents a mobile thrombus noted on the left atrium at the raw surface site of a resected cribriform primary septum that was not caught in the suture line with...

the optimal treatment method for right ventricular failure after valve surgery complicated by a low cardiac output has not been determined, although several case reports have been published on patients with ventricular failure and arrhythmia who were bridged to cardiac transplantation using biventricular or left ventricular assist devices. this case series illustrates successful circulatory sup...

major complications of heart transplantation include graft rejection, infection, graft arteriosclerosis, malignancy, and drug toxicity. among these complications, infections and thrombophilic disorders are of particular interest owing to their major contribution to morbidity and mortality among heart transplantation patients. thrombophilic disorders are caused by imbalance between hypercoagulat...

background: brain type natriuretic peptide (bnp) is a cardiac hormone that is secreted mainly by the ventricles in response to volume expansion and pressure load. it can predict post-operative complications after heart surgery in adults. we sought to investigate the prognostic value of bnp in children after heart surgery. methods: we measured the bnp serum levels in 96 children with congenital ...

background: cardiovascular disease is an important non-obstetric cause of maternal and fetal /neonatal morbidity and mortality during pregnancy. for a pregnant woman with cardiac disease, the potential inability of the maternal cardiovascular system to contend with normal pregnancy-induced physiologic changes may produce deleterious effects on both mother and fetus. to determine the most freque...