Publications by authors named "Kristian Punu"
Small cuts, big questions: the impact of incision length in minimally invasive robotic cardiac surgery.
Front Cardiovasc Med
June 2025
Introduction: Evidence on incision lengths for ports and cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) cannulation in robotic cardiac surgery is limited. This study aimed to assess these metrics and influencing factors.
Methods: 204 patients underwent robotic mitral valve repair (MVR) (54.
Objective: The study objective was to explore medical students' perceptions of mentorship in cardiothoracic surgery in the United States.
Methods: A voluntary, anonymous electronic survey was distributed to medical students through the Thoracic Surgery Medical Student Association. The survey included 28 questions across 4 domains: demographic information, current mentorship status, goals and qualities sought in mentorship, and self-reported barriers to mentorship.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates how the duration of ex-vivo heart perfusion (EVHP) affects patient outcomes after DCD heart transplantation, using data from 12/2019 to 09/2023.
- Results show that recipients of hearts with prolonged perfusion times (over 8.3 hours) had significantly higher 6-month mortality rates compared to those with standard perfusion times, though early 30-day mortality rates were similar.
- The findings indicate that longer EVHP durations could negatively impact long-term survival and increase hospital stay or dialysis requirement, suggesting the need for further research on improving organ preservation during EVHP.
Article Synopsis
- The study investigates spinal cord ischemia (SCI) after thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR), focusing on whether extended aortic coverage increases the risk of SCI, which affects about 10% of patients.
- A review of 277 patients revealed that those with ≥205 mm of aorta coverage had specific risk factors like smoking and previous strokes, but there was no significant increase in SCI rates (4.7% vs. 4.2%) compared to standard coverage.
- The findings suggest that the lack of increased SCI risk with extended coverage may be due to a higher use of preventive lumbar drainage in that patient group, even though they experienced more type II endoleaks.
Interleukin 24 is a member of the IL-10 family with crucial roles in antitumor, wound healing responses, host defense, immune regulation, and inflammation. Interleukin 24 is produced by both immune and nonimmune cells. Its canonical pathway relies on recognition and interaction with specific Interleukin 20 receptors in the plasma membrane and subsequent cytoplasmic Janus protein tyrosine kinases (JAK)/signal transducer and activator of the transcription (STAT) activation.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: This study aimed to longitudinally compare expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (ePTFE)-valved conduits vs pulmonary homograft (PH) conduits after right ventricular outflow tract reconstruction in the Ross procedure.
Methods: Patients undergoing a Ross procedure from June 2004 to December 2021 were identified. Echocardiographic data, catheter-based interventions, or conduit replacements, as well as time to first reintervention or replacement, were comparatively assessed between handmade ePTFE-valved conduits and PH conduits.
The impact of prolonged mechanical ventilation after acute type A aortic dissection repair.
J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg
May 2024
Objective: Patients with type A aortic dissection have increased resource use. The objective of this study was to describe the relationship between prolonged mechanical ventilation and longitudinal survival in patients undergoing type A aortic dissection repair.
Methods: We conducted a retrospective analysis of patients with type A aortic dissection undergoing repair from 2010 to 2018; Kaplan-Meier function and adjusted Cox regression analysis were used to compare in-hospital mortality and longitudinal survival accounting for time on mechanical ventilatory support.