Objective To monitor surgical quality and analyze learning curve of minimally invasive totally thoracoscopic cardiac surgery. Methods We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 150 consecutive patients who underwent minimally invasive totally thoracoscopic cardiac surgery in the Guangdong General Hospital between January 2013 and December 2015. There were 60 males and 90 females at age of 43.1 years. There were 60 patients with atrial or ventricular septal defect repair, 12 patients with cardiac tumor resection, 53 patients with mitral valve replacement and 25 patients with mitral valve repair. According to the surgical sequence, all the patients were divided into 3 groups including a group A, group B, and group C with 50 patients in each group (every 10 patients as a sequence, every 5 sequence as a group). Surgical outcomes were compared among the 3 groups, and surgical quality was analyzed with descriptive statistics. Results Surgical failure rate was 6.7% (10/150). There was no in-hospital mortality. Aortic cross-clamp time, cardiopulmonary bypass time and duration of mechanical ventilation, duration of ICU stay, duration of hospital stays of the group C were significantly shorter than those of the group A and group B. Analysis showed a significant learning curve effect in totally thoracoscopic cardiac surgery. When surgical cases reached about 100 cases, cardiopulmonary bypass and aortic cross-clamp time was shorter than the average value stably. Conclusion Totally thoracoscopic cardiac surgery is safe and reliable. For the beginners, it needs about 100 patients of surgery to master the totally thoracoscopic cardiac surgery.
ObjectiveTo investigate the feasibility, safety and effectiveness of radiofrequency ablation of atrial fibrillation with mitral valve replacement under totally thoracoscopic surgery.MethodsThe clinical data of 107 patients with rheumatic mitral disease and atrial fibrillation who underwent mitral valve replacement and radiofrequency ablation at the same time in our hospital from January 2014 to October 2018 were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into two groups: a totally thoracoscopic surgery group (n=51, including 20 males and 31 females, aged 50.57±5.24 years) and a median sternotomy group (n=56, including 21 males and 35 females, aged 52.12±5.59 years) according to the surgical methods. The preoperative, intraoperative and postoperative data of the patients were compared.ResultsAll operations were successfully completed without death. In terms of bleeding volume, drainage volume, ventilator-assisted breathing time, hospital stay and incision length, the totally thoracoscopic surgery group was better than the median sternotomy group, and the difference was statistically significant (P<0.05). The cardiopulmonary bypass time and radiofrequency ablation time in the totally thoracoscopic surgery group were longer than those in the median sternotomy group (P<0.05). There was no significant difference in the operation time, aortic occlusion time, postoperative complications, left ventricular ejection fraction, left atrial diameter and sinus rhythm maintenance between the two groups (P>0.05). There was no atrioventricular block, pulmonary vein stenosis, atrioesophageal fistula, coronary artery injury, stroke or hemorrhage during the follow-up.ConclusionRadiofrequency ablation of atrial fibrillation with mitral valve replacement under totally thoracoscopic surgery is safe and effective, and it is worthy of clinical application.
ObjectiveTo summarize the early outcomes of totally thoracoscopic minimally invasive aortic valve replacement (AVR) and double valve replacement (DVR).MethodsThe clinical data of patients who underwent totally thoracoscopic minimally invasive AVR or DVR in Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital from April 2020 to January 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into an AVR group and a DVR group according to the surgical method, and the clinical data of the two groups were compared.ResultsFinally 22 patients were enrolled, including 14 males and 8 females with an average age of 50.0±11.2 years at operation. Eight patients were degenerative disease, 8 were rheumatic heart disease combined with valvular disease, and 6 were bicuspid aortic valve. Out of the 22 patients, 16 underwent AVR alone, and 6 underwent DVR. All patients completed the operation successfully, and there was no death. Perivalvular leakage during surgery occurred in 2 patients. The average cardiopulmonary bypass time was 187.0±39.9 minutes, and aortic cross-clamping time was 117.0 (99.0, 158.0) minutes. Duration of mechanical ventilation and intensive care unit stay was 9.5 (4.8, 18.3) hours and 41.0 (34.0, 64.0) hours, respectively. The volume of chest drainage at the first 24 hours after surgery was 214.0±124.6 mL, and the postoperative hospital stay was 5.5 (4.0, 8.3) days. The cardiopulmonary bypass time and aortic cross-clamping time in the DVR group were longer than those in the AVR group, and the volume of chest drainage at 24 hours after surgery was more than that in the AVR group, with a statistical difference (P＜0.05). Echocardiography before hospital discharge showed paravalvular leakage in 1 patient. There was no death during follow-up of 5.9±3.0 months. ConclusionThe early outcome of totally thoracoscopic minimally invasive AVR and DVR is satisfactory, and the approach of surgery is worth exploring.
ObjectiveTo investigate the effectiveness and safety of totally endoscopic transmitral myectomy (TETM) for hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy (HOCM), comparing with traditional sternotomy modified Morrow procedure (SMMP).MethodsThirty-eight patients with HOCM who needed surgical intervention were selected from our hospital in 2019, including 14 males and 24 females, with an average age of 56 (44-68) years. According to the operation method, they were divided into a TETM group (n=18) and a SMMP group (n=20). Appropriate patients were screened by propensity matching scores. Finally, the clinical data of two matched groups were compared and analyzed.ResultsThere was no death, septal perforation, residual left ventricular outflow tract obstruction or third degree atrioventricular block in either group. After propensity score matching, there was no statistical difference between the two groups in the ICU length of stay (41.5±5.0 h vs. 53.0±24.0 h, P=0.620), ventilation time (19.5±9.2 h vs. 38.0±24.0 h, P=0.463), cardiopulmonary bypass time (190.7±45.6 min vs. 156.0±70.7 min, P=0.627), aortic cross-clamp time (100.1±25.3 min vs. 94.5±57.3 min, P =0.915), left ventricular outflow tract gradient (17.0±1.4 mm Hg vs. 5.0±0.5 mm Hg, P=0.053), left atrial anterior and posterior diameter (37.0±1.3 mm vs. 40.0±0.7 mm, P=0.090), interventricular septum thickness (12.5±0.7 mm vs. 13.0±1.4 mm, P=0.712), left ventricular posterior wall thickness (10.0±1.4 mm vs. 10.5±2.1 mm, P=0.811), left ventricular end-diastolic diameter (43.5±3.5 mm vs. 46.0±4.2 mm, P=0.589), and mitral regurgitation (1.0±0.2 vs. 0.7±0.5, P=0.500). The follow-up time was 6±3 months, and no death occurred. In the TETM group, one patient underwent mitral valvuloplasty again three months after surgery because of a tear in the A3 region of mitral valve..ConclusionTETM is a safe and effective procedure that can well expose the interventricular septum at the basal & middle obstruction site and effectively eliminate the mitral regurgitation associated with systolic anterior motion syndrome caused by left ventricular outflow tract obstruction.
ObjectiveTo examine the safety, efficacy and durability of totally endoscopic minimally invasive (TEMI) mitral valve repair in Barlow’s disease (BD). MethodsA retrospective study was performed on patients who underwent mitral valve repair for BD from January 2010 to June 2021 in the Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital. The patients were divided into a MS group and a TEMI group according to the surgery approaches. A comparison of the clinical data between the two groups was conducted. ResultsA total of 196 patients were enrolled, including 133 males and 63 females aged (43.8±14.9) years. There were 103 patients in the MS group and 93 patients in the TEMI group. No hospital death was observed. There was a higher percentage of artificial chordae implantation in the TEMI group compared to the MS group (P=0.020), but there was no statistical difference between the two groups in the other repair techniques (P>0.05). Although the total operation time between the two groups was not statistically different (P=0.265), the TEMI group had longer cardiopulmonary bypass time (P<0.001) and aortic clamp time (P<0.001), and shorter mechanical ventilation time (P<0.001) and postoperative hospitalization time (P<0.001). No statistical difference between the two groups in the adverse perioperative complications (P>0.05). The follow-up rate was 94.2% (180/191) with a mean time of 0.2-12.4 (4.0±2.4) years. Two patients in the MS group died with non-cardiac reasons during the follow-up period. The 3-year, 5-year and 10-year overall survival rates of all patients were 100.0%, 99.2%, 99.2%, respectively. Compared with the MS group, there was no statistical difference in the survival rate, recurrence rate of mitral regurgitation, reoperation rate of mitral valve or adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events in the TEMI group (P＞0.05). ConclusionTEMI approach is a safe, feasible and effective approach for BD with a satisfying long-term efficacy.
Objective To investigate the relationship between two-lung ventilation (TLV) with single-lumen endotracheal tube (SLT), one-lung ventilation (OLV) with double-lumen endotracheal tube (DLT) and postoperative pulmonary complications (PPCs) after total thoracoscopic cardiac surgery. Methods The clinical data of patients who underwent totally thoracoscopic cardiac surgeries in the Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital from October 2019 to October 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into 2 group according to the type of endotracheal tube, including a SLT group and a DLT group. Baseline data, surgical variables and PPCs were compared. The influencing factors of PPCs in the two groups were analyzed by binary logistic regression analysis. Results Finally 349 patients were enrolled, including 180 males and 169 females with an average age of (50.0±14.8) years. There were 219 patients in the SLT group and 130 patients in the DLT group. There was no statistical difference in baseline data, surgical variables or PPCs between the two groups (P＞0.05). Binary logistic regression analysis showed that PPCs were related to body mass index in the SLT group (OR=0.778, 95%CI 0.637 to 0.951, P=0.014) and preoperative smoking history in the DLT group (OR=0.058, 95%CI 0.004 to 0.903, P=0.042). Conclusion For the patients who undergo totally thoracoscopic cardiac surgery, TLV with SLT and OLV with DLT show no significant association with PPCs. At the same time, PPCs are associated with body mass index in the SLT group, while associated with preoperative smoking history in the DLT group.
Objective To find out the best time and investigate the indications for conversion to horacotomy in completely thoracoscopic lobectomy. Methods Between Sep. 2006 and Feb. 2009, 172 patients including 88 male and 84 female with the median age of 58.9 years, underwent completely thoracoscopic lobectomy. Postoperative pathology showed that there were 133 cases of primary lung cancer, 7 cases of lung cancer metastasis and other malignant tumors, and 32 cases of benign diseases. Among them, 46 patients had the tumor on the right upper lobe (RUL), 23 on the right middle lobe (RML), 31 on the right lower lobe (RLL), 36 on the left upper lobe (LUL) and 36 on the left lower lobe (LLL). Three incisions were made in all operations. The procedures of systematic lymphadenectomy and anatomic lobectomy were similar with routine thoracotomy. If there was mediastinal lymph node adhesion, metastasis or bleeding, the incision would be extended to 12-15 cm and the surgery would be converted to thoracotomy. According to whether the maximum tumor dimension was above 5 cm or under 3 cm, the patients were divided into two groups. At the same time, we also divided the patients into two groups based on whether thoracotomy was performed. The data of both two groups were compared respectively. Results All surgeries were carried out safely with no serious complications or perioperative deaths. The average surgical duration was 185 minutes, and the average blood loss was 213 ml. Thirteen operations were converted to thoracotomy with a conversion rate of 7.6%. Among them, 9 were interfered by lymph nodes and bleeding happened in 4 operations. Lobectomy was performed on 12 patients and pneumonectomy was performed on 1 patient after thoracotomy. For the 16 cases of tumor with its dimension larger than 5 cm, the average operation time was 187 minutes and the average blood loss was 203.8 ml, while for the 98 cases of tumor with its dimension smaller than 3 cm, the average operation time was 202 minutes and the average blood loss was 231.3 ml. The difference between these two groups was not statistically significant. Among the 13 cases of conversion to thoracotomy, the mean age of the patients was 68.7 years old and the average tumor dimension was 23.8 mm. For the 159 cases without thoracotomy, the average age was 59.3 years old and the tumor dimension averaged 27.8 mm. There was a significant difference between them (P=0.016). Conclusion Interference by lymph nodes and bleeding are the most important causes of conversion to thoracotomy in completely thoracoscopic lobectomy while size of tumor, fused fissure or plural adhesions can be always managed thoracoscopically.
Objective To analyze the clinical efficacy and survival outcome of totally thoracoscopic redo mitral valve replacement and evaluate its efficiency and safety. Methods The clinical data of patients with totally thoracoscopic redo mitral valve replacement in Guangdong Provincial People’s Hospital between 2013 and 2019 were retrospectively analyzed. Survival analysis was performed using the Kaplan-Meier method. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were used to determine the risk factors for postoperative death. Results There were 48 patients including 29 females and 19 males with a median age of 53 (44, 66) years. All the procedures were performed successfully with no conversion to median sternotomy. A total of 15, 10 and 23 patients received surgeries under non-beating heart, beating heart and ventricular fibrillation, respectively. The in-hospital mortality rate was 6.25% (3/48), and the incidence of early postoperative complications was 18.75% (9/48). Thirty-five (72.92%) patients had their tracheal intubation removed within 24 hours after the operation. The 1- and 6-year survival rates were 89.50% (95%CI 81.30%-98.70%) and 82.90% (95%CI 71.50%-96.20%), respectively. Age>65 years was an independent risk factor for postoperative death (P=0.04). Conclusion Totally thoracoscopic redo mitral valve replacement is safe and reliable, with advantages of rapid recovery, reducing blood transfusion rate, reducing postoperative complications and acceptable long-term survival rate. It is worthy of being widely popularized in the clinic.