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Jacki Abrams

Publications and source records attributed to Jacki Abrams.

10 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Fatal pulmonary microthrombi during surgical therapy for end-stage heart failure: possible association with antifibrinolytic therapy.

BACKGROUND: Maintaining hemostasis in patients with end-stage heart failure undergoing cardiac surgery is always challenging. These patients have chronic hepatic insufficiency, resulting in derangement of coagulation. In addition, they are commonly receiving both systemic anticoagulation (warfarin or heparin) and antiplatelet therapy. The introduction of antifibrinolytics has had a significant effect on postoperative coagulopathy. We report fatal pulmonary microthrombi in patients receiving antifibrinolytics who developed suprasystemic pulmonary artery pressures and right heart failure that was impossible to overcome despite insertion of a right ventricular assist device. METHODS: We reviewed the surgical procedure and autopsy reports to identify patients with high pulmonary artery pressures caused by pulmonary microthrombi after a cardiac surgical procedure for end-stage heart failure. Patient demographics and preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative variables were collected from a retrospective review of the patients' medical records. RESULTS: We identified 9 patients (7 men and 2 women; mean age, 45 +/- 16 years) who died of pulmonary microthrombi after cardiac surgery between January 1997 and January 2004. Surgical procedures included 5 left ventricular assist device implantations, 2 heart transplantations, and 2 left ventricular reconstructions with mitral valve repair or replacement. Eight patients received aprotinin, and 1 patient received epsilon-aminocaproic acid immediately before and during cardiopulmonary bypass. All patients had severe suprasystemic pulmonary artery pressures after protamine administration for heparin reversal, a complication that proved fatal in all cases. Intraoperative wedge biopsy of the lungs revealed multiple microthrombi within capillaries and in the small- and medium-sized pulmonary arterioles. CONCLUSION: We report 9 cases for which fatal pulmonary microthrombi might be associated with the use of prophylactic antifibrinolytic therapy. Mortally ill patients with multiorgan failure who are receiving systemic anticoagulation and undergoing surgical procedures require careful perioperative monitoring to identify potential hazards. Anticoagulation and antifibrinolytic therapy protocols may require adjustment in such patients.

Adult↗
PubMed2005

Revision of the 1990 working formulation for the standardization of nomenclature in the diagnosis of heart rejection.

In 1990, an international grading system for cardiac allograft biopsies was adopted by the International Society for Heart Transplantation. This system has served the heart transplant community well, facilitating communication between transplant centers, especially with regard to patient management and research. In 2004, under the direction of the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT), a multidisciplinary review of the cardiac biopsy grading system was undertaken to address challenges and inconsistencies in its use and to address recent advances in the knowledge of antibody-mediated rejection. This article summarizes the revised consensus classification for cardiac allograft rejection. In brief, the revised (R) categories of cellular rejection are as follows: Grade 0 R--no rejection (no change from 1990); Grade 1 R--mild rejection (1990 Grades 1A, 1B and 2); Grade 2 R--moderate rejection (1990 Grade 3A); and Grade 3 R--severe rejection (1990 Grades 3B and 4). Because the histologic sub-types of Quilty A and Quilty B have never been shown to have clinical significance, the "A" and "B" designations have been eliminated. Recommendations are also made for the histologic recognition and immunohistologic investigation of acute antibody-mediated rejection (AMR) with the expectation that greater standardization of the assessment of this controversial entity will clarify its clinical significance. Technical considerations in biopsy processing are also addressed. This consensus revision of the Working Formulation was approved by the ISHLT Board of Directors in December 2004.

Biopsy↗
PubMed2005

Isolated ventricular non-compaction in adults with idiopathic cardiomyopathy: cardiac magnetic resonance and pathologic characterization of the anomaly.

Non-compaction of the ventricular myocardium is an anomaly of myocardial morphogenesis that leads to persistence of the embryonic myocardium with an excessively prominent trabecular meshwork and deep intertrabecular recesses. This report describes 3 cases of isolated left ventricular non-compaction in adults leading to terminal heart failure. We describe their distinctive myocardial histopathology and prospective diagnosis by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (CMR). Heart transplantation was the only treatment option for all 3 of these severely ill patients. Isolated ventricular non-compaction should be considered in patients with severe idiopathic cardiomyopathy whose symptoms appear in early adulthood, and consideration given for early transplantation. Non-invasive imaging with CMR can confirm the diagnosis.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Fatal disseminated adenoviral infection in an adult heart transplant patient.

In heart transplant recipients, infection is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality. In adult heart transplant patients, cytomegalovirus is the most frequently encountered viral pathogen. Conversely, disseminated adenoviral infection is observed mainly in children, where it is predictive of allograft rejection and coronary vasculopathy. The literature contains only a few reports of adenoviral infections in adult heart transplant recipients. Limited information is available concerning the diagnosis and epidemiology of such infections and their relationship to organ rejection, heart failure and overall outcomes in these patients. To promote an awareness of this potentially lethal complication, we present a case of fatal disseminated adenoviral infection in an adult heart transplant recipient.

Adenoviridae Infections↗
PubMed2004

Frozen section analyses as predictors of lymphatic spread in patients with early-stage uterine cancer.

BACKGROUND: Many gynecologic oncologists use intraoperative frozen section (IFS) assessment of histologic grade and depth of myometrial invasion (DOI) as predictors of final grade and stage in women with endometrial cancer. This clinical decision method has never been critically examined. STUDY DESIGN: We retrospectively reviewed charts of patients with a preoperative diagnosis of uterine endometrioid adenocarcinoma and an intraoperative frozen section assessment of histologic grade and depth of myometrial invasion. Intraoperative predictors combining intraoperative frozen section assessment of histologic grade and depth of myometrial invasion were established and compared with final grade and surgical stage. We then modeled the risks of pelvic and paraaortic lymph node metastases for each predictor. RESULTS: There were 129 patients who met inclusion criteria. Thirty-six patients had the IAG1 predictor; 17 (47%) were stage IAG1 on final pathology. Ten patients had the IAG2 predictor; 3 (30%) were stage IAG2 on final pathology. Thirty-four patients had the IBG1 predictor; 18 (53%) were stage IBG1 on final pathology. Forty-nine patients had the IBG2 predictor; 34 (69%) were stage IBG2 on final pathology. Our decision models predict that the IAG1 predictor has a 1% risk of paraaortic and a 2% risk of pelvic lymph node metastases. The IAG2 and IBG1 predictors have a 2% risk of paraaortic and a 4% risk of pelvic lymph node metastases. The IBG2 predictor has a 2% risk of paraaortic and a 6% risk of pelvic lymph node metastases. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of intraoperative frozen section analysis for histologic grade and depth of myometrial invasion does not correlate well with final pathologic grade and stage. Data from our models suggest a significant risk of lymph node spread even for patients with seemingly low-risk disease. Until better markers of lymphatic spread exist, we recommend complete surgical staging of all patients with endometrial cancer.

Carcinoma, Endometrioid↗
PubMed2003

Acquired commissural fusion of aortic valves in patients with left ventricular assist devices.

BACKGROUND: Left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) currently are used as bridges for patients who deteriorate clinically while awaiting cardiac transplantation. At the time of transplantation or subsequent death, we can assess the effect of long-term device implantation on cardiac structural changes. We have noted, in our years of experience, that aortic valve commissures may fuse in patients supported by LVADs. These observations may be important in the use of these pumps as long-term destination therapy. METHODS: We examined 33 hearts (both explants and autopsy specimens) from patients supported either with vented-electric (VE) HeartMates (n = 21) or with implantable pneumatic HeartMates (n = 12). We noted commissures involved, fusion length (mm), duration of LVAD support, and type of LVAD. As controls, we examined 49 explanted hearts from patients with heart failure who were not supported by LVADs. RESULTS: We found commissural fusion in 17 of the 33 hearts. Of those 17 hearts, 4 (23.5%) had 2 commissural fusions, and 13 (76.5%) had only 1 fusion. Fusion length ranged from 5 mm to 17 mm (mean, 9.9 mm). The lesion was more common in patients fitted with VE HeartMates (p < 0.0002). We found small amounts of commissural fusion in 8 of the 49 control hearts. CONCLUSIONS: Acquired commissural fusion is common in patients supported by LVADs, particularly the VE HeartMate. The lesion also occurs occasionally in failing hearts of patients not supported by LVADs. The significance of the lesion in patients who require long-term LVAD support either as a bridge to transplantation or as destination therapy is unclear.

Aortic Valve↗
PubMed2003

Renal-type clear cell carcinoma occurring in the prostate.

Clear cell lesions of the urinary tract often present diagnostic challenges. We report a previously undescribed lesion in the prostate, occurring in a 73-year-old man who presented with hematuria and subsequently underwent transurethral resection of the prostate. A total of 24 g of tissue was removed, and in 4 of 17 blocks submitted a lesion morphologically and immunohistochemically similar to clear cell carcinoma of the kidney was noted. A thorough cystoscopic and full-body, radiologic workup was performed, but no renal tumor was discovered. Random cystoscopic biopsies of the bladder and prostatic urethra as well as bladder washings were benign. Subsequent needle biopsies of the prostate were also benign. The patient underwent a pelvic lymph node dissection with radical cystoprostatectomy and orthotopic Studer pouch diversion. There was organ-confined, ordinary-type prostatic adenocarcinoma (Gleason's 3 + 3) present bilaterally in the peripheral zone; no residual clear cell carcinoma was identified. All lymph nodes were negative, and the urinary bladder showed no dysplasia or neoplasia. We think this tumor represents a primary renal type of clear cell carcinoma arising in the prostate. To our knowledge, this type of tumor has not been previously reported to arise in an extrarenal location.

Adenocarcinoma, Clear Cell↗
PubMed2003

Comparison of fluorescence and chromogenic in situ hybridization for detection of HER-2/neu oncogene in breast cancer.

Determination of HER-2/neu oncogene amplification has become clinically important in the present management of breast cancer and may have important applications in other areas of clinical oncology and scientific research. In situ hybridization is an extremely accurate and sensitive technique for assessing amplification of HER-2/neu. A new method using a chromogen-labeled probe offers numerous advantages, including the ability to view the morphologic features of the cells of interest using a light microscope, which can be found in every laboratory. We used both techniques to assay 31 cases of infiltrating breast carcinoma; assays were performed in laboratories at 2 institutions. Identical results for both methods were found in 26 cases (10 amplified, 16 nonamplified). One case was misinterpreted as overexpressed by chromogenic in situ hybridization (CISH) because of background precipitate. In 4 cases, CISH suggested low-level amplification. Three of these cases subsequently were found to have chromosome 17 polysomy. In the remaining case, the initial section chosen was suboptimal, showing weak signals by both methods. If a probe for chromosome 17 (now available for CISH) is used in cases of questionable HER-2/neu amplification, CISH seems to be as accurate and more practical than FISH.

Breast Neoplasms↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Histologic findings proving the existence of humoral rejection in a cardiac allograft.

Humoral rejection (HR) of the cardiac allograft is neither well characterized nor universally recognized in the transplant/pathology-related literature. One reason for this is that the histologic light-microscopic features are inconsistent, making HR difficult to recognize in the majority of cases. We report an unusual case of cardiac allograft rejection in a patient with a complicated postoperative course who ultimately died within 6 months of transplant. Premortem, HR was not diagnosed in multiple cardiac biopsies. The autopsy revealed unequivocal histologic and immunohistochemical evidence of HR. Vascular distension and endocardial infiltration by numerous macrophages were noted only in the cardiac allograft and were notably absent in the native tissue present within the anastomotic sites. There was capillary deposition of immunoglobulin and complement shown by immunofluorescence staining of frozen tissue, and there was diffuse immunohistochemical staining for C4d within the intramyocardial vessels. This case appears to represent an exaggerated antibody-mediated rejection of the cardiac allograft.

Adult↗