Haruo Makuuchi

Length of Stay and Cost for Surgical Site Infection after Abdominal and Cardiac Surgery in Japanese Hospitals: Multi-Center Surveillance

PURPOSE This study evaluated the influence of surgical site infections (SSIs) after abdominal or cardiac surgery on the post-operative duration of hospitalization and cost. METHODS A retrospective 1:1 matched case-control study of length of stay and healthcare expenditures for patients who were discharged from nine hospitals, between April 1, 2006 and March 31, 2008, after undergoing abdominal or cardiac surgery and who did and did not have a SSI. RESULTS Information was obtained from 246 pairs of patients who had undergone abdominal surgery and 27 pairs of patients who had undergone cardiac surgery. Overall, the mean post-operative hospitalization was 20.7 days longer and the mean post-operative healthcare expenditure was

Surgical excision of malignant pheochromocytoma in the left atrium

8,791 higher in the SSI group than for the SSI-free group. Among the patients who had undergone abdominal surgery, development of SSI extended the average hospitalization by 17.6 days and increased the average healthcare expenditure by

Ischemic heart disease associated with protein C deficiency

6,624. Among the patients who had undergone cardiac surgery, SSI extended the post-operative hospitalization by an average of 48.9 days and increased the post-operative healthcare expenditure by an average of

Pseudo-aneurysm of aortic arch and rupture into pericardium, a case report of successful surgical management

28,534. CONCLUSIONS Under the current healthcare system in Japan, the development of SSI after abdominal surgery necessitates extension of hospitalization two-fold and increases the post-operative healthcare expenditure 2.5-fold. Development of SSI after cardiac surgery necessitates extension of hospitalization fourfold and increases the healthcare expenditure six-fold.

Late development of an aneurysm of a saphenous vein used as an aortocoronary conduit

We present a rare case of malignant pheochromocytoma in the left atrium and its surgical treatment. The patient was a 39-year-old male who presented a low-grade fever with perspiration. A large tumor was first detected in the left atrium by chest CT, and was confirmed by ultrasonic echo cardiogram and chest MRI. A left adrenal tumor was indicated also by abdominal echography. To prevent the risk of its embolization, surgical excision was performed on a subemergency basis. The patient developed near Shock State on the operative day, presumably due to catecholamine depletion. The preoperative urinary levels of norepinephrine and dopamine were abnormally high. Bilateral adrenal tumors also, confirmed postoperatively by abdominal MRI, were developing rapidly. The pathological examination revealed that the tumor was a pheochromocytoma.

Autoantigenicity of carbonic anhydrase 1 in patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm, revealed by proteomic surveillance

Three patients of ischemic heart disease associated with protein C deficiency are reported. Although delayed diagnosis of protein C deficiency resulted in the failure of repeated interventions, coronary artery bypass grafting performed after making the correct diagnosis has led to satisfactory mid-term results under strict anticoagulation therapy. The level of protein C should be measured more frequently in the field of ischemic heart disease and earlier diagnosis of its deficiency should be made, because measurement of protein C does not cost much.

Surgical Treatment or Conservative Therapy for Stanford Type A Acute Aortic Dissection with a Thrombosed False Lumen

This is a case report of 50 years old male suffering from pyrexia and epigastralgia 2 weeks prior to admission. On the 15th hospital day, he complained chest pain. Chest roentgenography revealed marked expansion of the mediastinum which was not existed upon admission. CT and MRI of the chest demonstrated a pseudoaneurysm of aortic arch at lesser curvature with extension into the pericardium. Exploration of the pericardium through median sternotomy disclosed fully filling with purulent effusion and blood clots. Following irrigation of the pericardial space and tube drainage, chest was closed. Repair of the aneurysm was postponded. Following continues irrigation of the pericardial space for 19 days, tube graft replacement of the aneurysm was performed under femorofemoral bypass and circuratory arrest through left thoracotomy. The aneurysmal space was filled with the omental pedicle to control infection. However, repeated bacteriological examination of the pericardium and aneurysm revealed no growth. Behçet disease was most suspected in report of the pathology.

Type I acute aortic dissection accompanied by ischemic enterocolitis due to blood flow insufficiency in the superior mesenteric artery.

A case of a large saphenous vein aortocoronary aneurysm that developed late after coronary artery bypass grafting is presented. This is the first case of a large saphenous vein aortocoronary aneurysm identified by serial angiography and 3-dimensional computed tomographic scanning.

Reports of four surgical treatments of acute pulmonary embolism with a floating thrombus in the right atrium.

Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is sometimes detected in patients with atherosclerosis. One of the histological characteristics of AAA walls is infiltration of inflammatory cells, in which autoimmunity may be involved. Thereby, we here surveyed autoantigens in AAA walls by proteomics. Specifically, we separated proteins extracted from AAA wall samples by 2-dimensional electrophoresis and detected candidate autoantigens by western blotting. One of the detected candidates was carbonic anhydrase 1 (CA1). ELISA confirmed that the autoantibodies to CA1 were detected more frequently in AAA patients (n=13) than in healthy donors (n=25) (p=0.03). Interestingly, some serum samples from the AAA patients reacted to CA1 of the AAA walls stronger than to CA1 of peripheral blood mononuclear cells from healthy donors. Our data indicate that CA1 in the AAA walls would be modified to express neo-epitope(s) and that the autoimmunity to CA1 may be involved in the pathogenesis of AAA.

Cardiac Rehabilitation Outcome Following Percutaneous Coronary Intervention Compared to Cardiac Surgery

OBJECTIVES Optimum treatment for acute aortic dissection (AAD) with a thrombosed false lumen (thrombosed AAD) remains controversial. We evaluated the outcome of thrombosed AAD according to treatment strategy. MATERIALS AND METHODS We examined 280 patients with AAD, of which 30 had thrombosed AAD. We compared computed tomography findings, cardiac performance, and clinical course in 28 of these patients. Patients were divided into three groups for the comparison: Group E (emergency surgery), Group C (conservative therapy), and Group S (conservative therapy switched to emergency surgery). RESULTS In Group E (n = 13), one patient died and 12 survived. In Group C (n = 10), all patients were discharged, of which two died of cancer and two of the remaining eight survivors underwent subsequent elective surgery. In Group S (n = 5), one patient died and four survived following surgery. CONCLUSIONS It was hard to predict re-dissection or rupture following conservative treatment for thrombosed AAD. Basically, we should perform emergency surgery following the diagnosis of thrombosed AAD, particularly in complicated cases such as those with pericardial effusion, tamponade, and large aorta. Conservative therapy has a very limited application in patients with the initial stages of thrombosed AAD.