The atrial neoannulus technique for mitral valve replacement in patients with severe mitral annular calcification.

Objectives: Mitral valve replacement (MVR) in patients with severe mitral annular calcification (MAC) remains technically challenging because of the risk of annular disruption and associated complications. We report short-term outcomes of a novel surgical approach that creates an atrial neoannulus for prosthetic valve implantation in high-risk patients with severe mitral stenosis or mixed disease.

Methods: Between September 2021 and January 2025, 27 consecutive patients with severe MAC underwent MVR at a tertiary referral center.

Influences of age and obesity on heart transplant outcomes.

Objective: Obesity and older age have both been identified as risk factors for a worse long-term prognosis after heart transplantation. We sought to determine the 5-year outcomes for heart transplant patients with high-risk body mass index (BMI) >30 (HRB), high-risk age >70 years (HRA), or both (HRAB) as compared with recipients with normal risk (NR) in the modern era.

Methods: Records of isolated heart transplants in the United States from 2014 to 2023 were obtained for adults older than 18 years.

Early Outcomes of Primary Graft Dysfunction Comparing Donation After Circulatory and Brain Death Heart Transplantation: An Analysis of the UNOS Registry.

Background: Primary graft dysfunction (PGD) represents a leading cause of mortality in patients undergoing donation after brain death (DBD) orthotopic heart transplantation (OHT), requiring timely escalation to mechanical circulatory support. There is a lack of nationwide data regarding PGD after donation after circulatory death (DCD). Here, we evaluated the incidence and short-term outcomes of PGD following DCD.

Impact of the Composite Allocation Score on Lung Transplant Waitlist and Posttransplant Outcomes.

Background: On March 9, 2023, the Composite Allocation Score (CAS) was introduced for all lung transplantation (LT) candidates. We analyzed waitlist and posttransplant outcomes after CAS implementation.

Methods: Using the United Network for Organ Sharing registry (2022-2024), adult patients listed for isolated LT were divided into 2 eras: era 1 (pre-CAS: March 1, 2022-March 8, 2023) and era 2 (post-CAS: March 9, 2023-September 30, 2024).

The Use of Normothermic Machine Perfusion for Staged Combined Heart-Liver Transplant.

For patients with cardiac cirrhosis, combined heart-liver transplant (CHLT) has been increasingly performed with improving outcomes. The standard heart-then-liver approach may increase ischemic times and postreperfusion syndrome (PRS) risk. Achieving adequate hemodynamic stability may also pose a challenge.

Complications Leading to Death in Patients Supported by the Impella 5.5: Analysis From the FDA MAUDE Database.

Background: The Impella 5.5 is increasingly being used in patients with cardiogenic shock, but experience with the device remains limited, and severe complications, including death, have been reported. This study aims to investigate causes of Impella 5.

National Trends and Outcomes of Combined Lung-Liver Transplantation: An Analysis of the UNOS Registry.

Purpose: Combined lung-liver transplant (CLLT) is a complex yet life-saving procedure for patients with simultaneous end-stage lung and liver disease. Given the geographical allocation change to the lung allocation score (LAS) in 2017 and the recent SARS-CoV-2 outbreak in 2019, we aim to provide an updated analysis of the patient selection and outcomes of CLLTs.

Methods: The UNOS registry was used to identify all patients who underwent CLLT between January 2014 and June 2023.

Differences in outcomes of combined heart-liver transplantation by primary cardiac diagnosis.

Background: Combined heart-liver transplantation (CHLT) is a complex procedure with rising demand and is subject to ongoing assessment. Here, we provide an update on indications, patient outcomes, and risk factors.

Methods: This retrospective study utilized CHLT data from the United Network for Organ Sharing registry between 1990 and 2023.

The state of combined thoracoabdominal triple-organ transplantation in the United States.

Background: As triple-organ transplantation (TOT) has become more common, we evaluate patient characteristics, risk factors, and clinical outcomes of patients undergoing thoracoabdominal TOT.

Methods: This retrospective study utilized data from heart-lung-liver (HLL), heart-lung-kidney (HLK), heart-kidney-liver (HKL), and heart-kidney-pancreas (HKP) recipients from the United Network for Organ Sharing registry between 1989 and 2023. Recipient and donor characteristics and risk factors for mortality were analyzed using Cox regression hazard models.

Promising Long-Term Outcomes of Lung Transplantation With Hepatitis C Positive Donors: Insights From the UNOS Registry.

Background: The development of effective direct-acting antiviral treatment (DAAT) for hepatitis C virus (HCV) has opened the possibility of using HCV+ donors. We aimed to assess the long-term feasibility of lung transplantation using organs from HCV+ donors.

Methods: We used the UNOS database to evaluate adult lung transplant recipients between 2000 and 2023.

National Trends in Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Mortality from Mechanical Complications of Cardiac Valves and Grafts (1999-2020).

: The volume of cardiac valve and coronary artery revascularization procedures is rising in the United States. This cross-sectional study explores ethnic disparities in mortality in cardiac surgery attributed to mechanical failures of implantable heart valves and coronary artery grafts. : We used the CDC Wide-Ranging Online Data for Epidemiologic Research Multiple Causes of Death database to identify patients whose single cause of death was categorized by complications of cardiovascular prosthetic devices, implants, and grafts (ICD-10 code T82) between 1999 and 2020.

Impact of donor obesity on outcomes of donation after circulatory death heart transplantation.

Background: In the setting of the obesity epidemic and donor organ shortage in the United States, there is a growing need to expand the donor organ eligibility criteria for orthotopic heart transplantation (OHT). Donation after circulatory death (DCD) has emerged as a promising solution, but the outcomes with obese donor hearts in DCD OHT remains unknown.

Methods: Using the United Network for Organ Sharing registry between 2019 and 2024, recipients of DCD OHT were stratified into 3 donor obesity categories by body mass index (BMI): underweight/normal (BMI <25 kg/m), overweight (BMI 25-30 kg/m), and obese (BMI >30 kg/m).

Correction to: Suprasternal approach for insertion of Impella 5.5 into the proximal right subclavian artery.

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1007/s12055-024-01699-5.].

Impact of institutional variables on centre performance in long-term survival after heart transplant.

Objectives: The gold standard metric for centre-level performance in orthotopic heart transplantation (OHT) is 1-year post-OHT survival. However, it is unclear whether centre performance at 1 year is predictive of longer-term outcomes. This study evaluated factors impacting longer-term centre-level performance in OHT.

Suprasternal approach for insertion of Impella 5.5 into the proximal right subclavian artery.

The Impella 5.5 (Abiomed) is a percutaneous, temporary left ventricular assist device (LVAD) that serves as an important method of treatment of acute cardiogenic shock refractory to medical management. The Impella 5.

Changes in heart transplant outcomes of elderly patients in the new allocation era.

Objective: Studies demonstrate that heart transplantation can be performed safely in septuagenarians. We evaluate the outcomes of septuagenarians undergoing heart transplantation after the US heart allocation change in 2018.

Methods: The United Network for Organ Sharing registry was used to identify heart transplant recipients aged 70 years or more between 2010 and 2021.

Donor utilization in heart transplant with donation after circulatory death in the United States.

Heart transplantation using donation after circulatory death (DCD) was recently adopted in the United States. This study aimed to characterize organ yield from adult (≥18 years) DCD heart donors in the United States using the United Network for Organ Sharing registry. The registry does not identify potential donors who do not progress to circulatory death, and only those who progressed to death were included for analysis.

A review of novel green adsorbents as a sustainable alternative for the remediation of chromium (VI) from water environments.

The presence of heavy metal, chromium (VI), in water environments leads to various diseases in humans, such as cancer, lung tumors, and allergies. This review comparatively examines the use of several adsorbents, such as biosorbents, activated carbon, nanocomposites, and polyaniline (PANI), in terms of the operational parameters (initial chromium (VI) concentration (C), temperature (T), pH, contact time (t), and adsorbent dosage) to achieve the Langmuir's maximum adsorption capacity (q) for chromium (VI) adsorption. The study finds that the use of biosorbents (fruit bio-composite, fungus, leave, and oak bark char), activated carbons (HCl-treated dry fruit waste, polyethyleneimine (PEI) and potassium hydroxide (KOH) PEI-KOH alkali-treated rice waste-derived biochar, and KOH/hydrochloric acid (HCl) acid/base-treated commercial), iron-based nanocomposites, magnetic manganese-multiwalled carbon nanotubes nanocomposites, copper-based nanocomposites, graphene oxide functionalized amino acid, and PANI functionalized transition metal are effective in achieving high Langmuir's maximum adsorption capacity (q) for chromium (VI) adsorption, and that operational parameters such as initial concentration, temperature, pH, contact time, and adsorbent dosage significantly affect the Langmuir's maximum adsorption capacity (q).

New insights into MXene applications for sustainable environmental remediation.

Multiple ecological contaminants in gaseous, liquid, and solid forms are vented into ecosystems due to the huge growth of industrialization, which is today at the forefront of worldwide attention. High-efficiency removal of these environmental pollutants is a must because of the potential harm to public health and biodiversity. The alarming concern has led to the synthesis of improved nanomaterials for removing pollutants.

Outcomes of Over 1000 Heart Transplants Using Hepatitis C-Positive Donors in the Modern Era.

Background: Advances in hepatitis C virus (HCV) treatment and the ongoing opioid epidemic have made HCV-positive donors increasingly available for heart transplantation (HT). This analysis reports outcomes of over 1000 HCV-positive HTs in the United States in the modern era.

Methods: The United Network of Organ Sharing registry was used to identify HTs between 2015 and 2021.

The HeartMate 3 left ventricular assist device as a strategy to bridge to transplant.

Purpose: Recent changes in the market for left ventricular assist devices have resulted in the HeartMate 3 (HM3) being the only commercially-available device. This study evaluates the outcomes of patients with a HM3 waitlisted for and undergoing orthotopic heart transplantation (OHT).

Methods: Patients waitlisted for isolated OHT with a HM3 or undergoing OHT after bridge-to-transplant (BTT) with a HM3 between 2015 and 2021 were identified from the UNOS registry and included in this study.