Heart transplantation at Cheng Hsin General Hospital in Taiwan: 15-year experience

Fate of Atrioventricular Valve Function of the Transplanted Heart

“…8,14-16 However, another study demonstrated that the standard technique also resulted in a lower incidence of TR and conduction anomalies. 17 The present study found an incidence of moderate-to-severe TR that seemed to be slightly lower for bicaval anastomosis than for standard anastomosis but there was no statistically significant difference between the 2 groups.…”

Tricuspid Regurgitation after Orthotopic Heart Transplantation

“…5 These benefits were questioned by another study that reported lower incidence of TR with biatrial anastomosis. 6 Another comparison study reported no significant difference between the early (1 month) and later (1 year) rates of TR between the standard and bicaval techniques. 7 It has been proposed that standard atrial anastomosis alters atrial integrity and geometry and may contribute to the development of progressive TR.…”

“…Bicaval anastomosis technique was proposed by Kendall and colleagues as a method to result in less TR by avoiding impairment of functional integrity of the valvular status and maintaining right atrial morphology with preserved synchronous atrial contractility 5 . These benefits were questioned by another study that reported lower incidence of TR with biatrial anastomosis 6 . Another comparison study reported no significant difference between the early (1 month) and later (1 year) rates of TR between the standard and bicaval techniques 7 …”

Urban legends: pemphigus vulgaris

“…Among them, septicemia followed by cardiovascular problems (including cerebrovascular disease) is a common cause of fatalities and, according to a recent large study significantly more common among patients with PV than in the general population (Huang et al , 2012). Interestingly, growing evidence suggests that patients who were exposed to dosages of glucocorticoids greater than the equivalent of 7.5 mg of prednisolone per day during 1–5 years of follow‐up had substantially higher rates of all cardiovascular diseases, including myocardial infarction, heart failure, and cerebrovascular disease ((Wei et al , 2004). Unfortunately, available data are too patchy (Table 3) to determine which treatment constitutes the major risk, despite a general belief that adjuvant therapies have decreased PV mortality.…”