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Biomedical subjects

J C Demoulin

Publications and source records attributed to J C Demoulin.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

Mechanical flow obstruction after heart transplantation diagnosed by TEE.

We report a case of mechanical flow obstruction after heart transplantation caused by a prominent left atrium suture with a "pursestring" effect. The diagnosis was achieved by transesophageal echocardiography. The mean transstenotic gradient was measured at 13 mm Hg. Because of the profound hemodynamic and multisystemic failure, no surgical correction was attempted. The postmortem examination confirmed the stenosis at the level of the left atrium.

Color↗

Dramatic improvement of severe dilated cardiomyopathy in an acromegalic patient after treatment with octreotide and trans-sphenoidal surgery.

Severe congestive heart failure developed in an acromegalic patient, and was successfully treated with octreotide followed by trans-sphenoidal surgery. Clinical, hormonal echocardiographic and haemodynamic findings as well as histological heart examination before and after treatment revealed that over-production of growth hormone may induce the myocardial cell degeneration responsible for mechanical heart dysfunction. In addition, this unique example demonstrates the reversibility of myocardial damage following octreotide and trans-sphenoidal surgery, leading to significant improvement in cardiac function with minimal diastolic dysfunction and moderate interstitial fibrosis.

Acromegaly↗

Laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication: detailed analysis of 132 patients.

With the world-wide use of laparoscopy, new applications have been found, particularly in the field of esophageal and gastric surgery. From January 1991 through April 1992, 132 patients underwent laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication. The indication for laparoscopic intervention was symptomatic gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) not responding to medical treatment. The preoperative assessment included esophagogastroscopy, barium meal, esophageal manometry, and, in selected cases, 24 h pH studies. There was no operative-related mortality. The overall morbidity was 7.5%. Ninety-eight patients were seen 3 months after surgery and evaluated for control of reflux symptoms. One patient complained of mild recurrence of reflux symptoms; however, endoscopic examination revealed no evidence of recurrent esophagitis. Three complained of occasional dysphagia and two, of mild dysphagia. One individual required reoperation for persistent, severe dysphagia. The excellent results observed so far with this procedure have led us to believe that laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication is the procedure of choice for patients with intractable GERD.

Adolescent↗

Aneurysm of the ascending aorta after cardiac transplantation.

We report the case of a 57-year-old female cardiac transplant patient in whom an aneurysm of the recipient side of the ascending aorta developed 1 year after transplantation. Although a mycotic origin was the likely cause, histologic examination diagnosed an atherosclerotic aneurysm.

Aortic Aneurysm↗

Cardiac transplantation beyond 55 years of age.

Between January 1985 and December 1988, 20 patients over the age of 55 years (extremes 56-63 years; 15 men and 5 women) underwent cardiac transplantation. The cause of cardiopathy was ischemic in 70% of the cases. The immunosuppressive regimen consisted of cyclosporin A, corticoids, and azathioprine. Rejection episodes were monitored by endomyocardial biopsies and treated by pulses of corticoids or monoclonal antibodies (OKT3). The operative mortality was 10% (n = 2). The 1-year survival rate was 70%. The 1-year incidence of infection and/or rejection episodes was 1 and 1.53 episodes/patient, respectively. One patient was successfully retransplanted after 9 months because of intractable rejection. Age beyond 55 years is no longer a contraindication to cardiac transplantation. This change in recipient selection policy should lead to parallel changes in donor selection criteria.

Age Factors↗

Short-term risk stratification at admission based on simple clinical data in acute myocardial infarction.

Simple clinical data, available in all coronary care units, were recorded in 1,013 consecutive patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). In order to identify the patients at highest and lowest risk of mortality during hospital stay, a prognostic index was established from a stepwise logistic discriminant analysis of 10 clinical variables obtained at admission in a consecutive series of 477 patients hospitalized in 1 of 2 coronary care units admitting new patients on alternate days and treating them similarly. This prognostic index was applied to a comparison group of 536 consecutive patients admitted to the other coronary care unit. In the experimental group, 57 of the 477 patients (12%) died during hospital stay; 60 of the 536 patients (11%) died in the comparison group. As individual variables, age, previous history of AMI, anterior site and left ventricular function on admission were associated with increased mortality. Three variables were selected from the stepwise logistic discriminant analysis of the experimental group: age; site (anterior = 1, other = 0); and grade of left ventricular function (0 to 4). Prognostic index = 5.9019 - 0.8961 function - 0.5708 location - 0.0369 age. This index was validated in the comparison group. Patients were allocated into different classes with increasing index values associated with decreasing risk. Three subgroups of patients were identified: high risk of hospital mortality (index less than or equal to 1; mortality: 51%), intermediate risk (index 1 to 3; mortality: 18%) and low risk (index greater than 3; mortality: 4%). The use of this simple prognostic index may improve clinical management and selection of patients for intervention trials.

Female↗