Faculty Bibliography

The presence of underrepresented minorities (URMs) in cardiothoracic anesthesiology is underwhelming, and progress toward diversity has been slow at best. Despite decades of efforts, change seems hard to achieve. For example, it took more than 30 years for women to make up 50% of medical school matriculants. However, women continue to be underrepresented in our professional subspecialty and notably. This slow movement is not idiosyncratic to women but also applies to equity related to race and ethnicity. Given this current state, this article seeks to bring attention to the lack of diversity in cardiac anesthesiology and is a call to action to accelerate efforts and the pace of change toward greater equity both in our field and in medicine in general. This piece is the final part of a 4-part series exploring opportunities for improving diversity in cardiac anesthesiology. The authors focus specifically on the professional experience of URMs in medicine in our subspecialty and the opportunities for improving diversity. While many barriers for URM physicians reflect those of women, the experience of URM practicing physicians is unique and solutions need to incorporate.

OBJECTIVES/OBJECTIVE:This study aims to characterize the risks and benefits of in-OR extubation after cardiac surgery. DESIGN/METHODS:This is a retrospective chart review. SETTING/METHODS:Single tertiary care hospital. PARTICIPANTS/METHODS:Cardiac surgical patients >18 years. Exclusion criteria included patients extubated after 6 h in the ICU, those with a history of congenital heart disease (CHD), those intubated prior to arrival to the OR, procedures including circulatory arrest and/or selective cerebral perfusion, cardiothoracic transplantation, and intraoperative death. De-identified data was collected via the hospital's electronic medical record. INTERVENTIONS/METHODS:None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS/RESULTS:Perioperative data was collected for 726 patients, of which 303 (42 %) were extubated in the OR. Multivariable regression models were derived with covariates based on expert clinical reasoning. When compared to fast track extubation, in-OR extubation was independently associated with decreased index hospitalization length of stay (-1.74, 95 % CI [-2.22, -1.08], p < 0.001) and decreased incidence of in-hospital new post-operative atrial fibrillation (OR 0.56 95 % CI [0.37, 0.86], p < 0.01). There were no differences in persistent vasoactive therapy requirement, postoperative mechanical circulatory support or extubation failure. CONCLUSIONS:In-OR extubation is associated with decreased index hospitalization length of stay and decreased new onset in-hospital atrial fibrillation.

BACKGROUND:Mitral leaflet elongation is common in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), contributes to obstructive physiology, and presents a challenge to dual surgical goals of abolition of outflow gradients and mitral regurgitation. Anterior leaflet shortening, performed as an ancillary surgical procedure during myectomy, is controversial. METHODS:This was a retrospective study of all patients undergoing myectomy from 1/2010 to 3/2020 analyzing survival and echocardiographic results. We compared outcomes of patients treated with myectomy and concomitant mitral leaflet shortening with patients treated with myectomy alone. Over this time technique for mitral shortening evolved from anterior leaflet plication to residual leaflet excision (ReLex). RESULTS:Myectomy was performed on 416 patients age 57.5±13.6 years, 204 (49%) female. Average follow up was 5.4±2.8 years. Survival follow-up was complete in 415. Myectomy without valve replacement was performed in 332 patients, of whom 192 had mitral valve shortening (58%). Mitral leaflet plication was performed in 73, ReLex in 151 and both in 32. Hospital mortality for patients undergoing myectomy was 0.7%. At 8 years, cumulative survival was 95% for both myectomy plus leaflet shortening and myectomy alone groups, with no difference in survival between the two. There was no difference in survival between anterior leaflet plication and ReLex groups. Echocardiography 2.5 years after surgery showed a decrease in resting and provoked gradients, mitral regurgitation and left atrial volume and no difference in key variables between ancillary leaflet shortening and myectomy alone patients. CONCLUSIONS:These results affirm that mitral shortening may be an appropriate surgical judgment for selected patients.

Barth syndrome (BTHS) is a rare disorder caused by mutations in the TAFAZZIN gene. Previous studies from both patients and model systems have established metabolic dysregulation as a core component of BTHS pathology. In particular, features such as lactic acidosis, pyruvate dehydrogenase (PDH) deficiency, and aberrant fatty acid and glucose oxidation have been identified. However, the lack of a mechanistic understanding of what causes these conditions in the context of BTHS remains a significant knowledge gap, and this has hindered the development of effective therapeutic strategies for treating the associated metabolic problems. In the current study, we utilized tafazzin-knockout C2C12 mouse myoblasts (TAZ-KO) and cardiac and skeletal muscle tissue from tafazzin-knockout mice to identify an upstream mechanism underlying impaired PDH activity in BTHS. This mechanism centers around robust upregulation of pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase 4 (PDK4), resulting from hyperactivation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) and subsequent transcriptional upregulation by forkhead box protein O1 (FOXO1). Upregulation of PDK4 in tafazzin-deficient cells causes direct phospho-inhibition of PDH activity accompanied by increased glucose uptake and elevated intracellular glucose concentration. Collectively, our findings provide a novel mechanistic framework whereby impaired tafazzin function ultimately results in robust PDK4 upregulation, leading to impaired PDH activity and likely linked to dysregulated metabolic substrate utilization. This mechanism may underlie previously reported findings of BTHS-associated metabolic dysregulation.

The Society of Cardiovascular Anesthesiologists (SCA) is committed to improving the quality, safety, and value that cardiothoracic anesthesiologists bring to patient care. To fulfill this mission, the SCA supports the creation of peer-reviewed manuscripts that establish standards, produce guidelines, critically analyze the literature, interpret preexisting guidelines, and allow experts to engage in consensus opinion. The aim of this report, commissioned by the SCA President, is to summarize the distinctions among these publications and describe a novel SCA-supported framework that provides guidance to SCA members for the creation of these publications. The ultimate goal is that through a standardized and transparent process, the SCA will facilitate up-to-date education and implementation of best practices by cardiovascular and thoracic anesthesiologists to improve patient safety, quality of care, and outcomes.