OBJECTIVE To evaluate and discuss etiopathology, clinical manifestations and surgical outcome of a rare subset of unruptured aneurysm of the sinus of Valsalva which erodes into the interventricular septum. METHODS Between 1989 and 1995, seven cases of unruptured aneurysm of the sinus of Valsalva eroding into the interventricular septum underwent surgical correction at the King Edward VII Memo...

A variety of extracorporeal techniques have been described in surgery of the descending thoracic and thoracoabdominal aorta. We describe an operative approach involving the cannulation of the pulmonary artery for venous drainage in 12 patients undergoing descending thoracic aortic surgery. In-hospital mortality was 17%; there were no in-hospital deaths for elective cases. There were no cases of...

BACKGROUND Aortic stenosis is a frequent valvular disease especially in elderly patients. Catheter-based valve implantation has emerged as a valuable treatment approach for these patients being either at very high risk for conventional surgery or even deemed inoperable. The German Aortic Valve Registry (GARY) provides data on conventional and catheter-based aortic procedures on an all-comers ba...

OBJECTIVES Fatal aortic dissection occurs at young age in Marfan syndrome. Prevention relies on elective replacement of the aortic root. The placement of an external aortic root support, tailored to the anatomy of the individual patient has been proposed as a feasible alternative. DESIGN, SETTING AND MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: External aortic root support was offered to patients with Marfan syndrom...

In 2014, the Canadian Cardiovascular Society (CCS) published a position statement on the management of thoracic aortic disease addressing size thresholds for surgery, imaging modalities, medical therapy, and genetics. It did not address issues related to surgical intervention. This joint Position Statement on behalf of the CCS, Canadian Society of Cardiac Surgeons, and the Canadian Society for ...

BACKGROUND Aortic stenosis is of concern in the elderly. Although aortic valve replacement provides good long-term survival with functional improvement, many elderly patients are still not referred for surgery because of their age. Percutaneous aortic valve implantation offers an alternative to open-heart surgery. Concerns about the management of aortic valve stenosis in the elderly will be rev...