How to do itA Simple Device for Morphofunctional Evaluation During Aortic Valve-Sparing Surgery
Section snippets
Technique
The assembly of the tester requires a common 7F multilumen central venous catheter (Arrow International, Inc, Reading, PA), a 34- × 41-mm transparent polystyrene container (LP Italiana SpA, Milan, Italy), a high-temperature cautery (Bovie Medical Corporation, Clearwater, FL), and synthetic surgical glue (Glubran 2; Gem srl, Viareggio, Italy).
After creating a 2.4-mm (7F) hole on the bottom of the container with the cautery (Fig 1), the multilumen central venous catheter is inserted so that the
Comment
Although valve-sparing procedures have demonstrated excellent long-term results, the possible persistence of residual aortic regurgitation, often because of the lack of recognition of an intraoperative valve prolapse, may lead to premature failure and the need for reoperation. To date, only transesophageal ultrasound allows a reliable assessment of the success of a valve-sparing procedure [2]. However, the echocardiographic evaluation can only be performed at the end of the procedure, after
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