Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
5
pubmed:dateCreated
1999-2-3
pubmed:abstractText
Following a recent enquiry into surgery at a paediatric cardiac centre in England, there will be substantial changes in the way that the success and failure of surgical procedures will be monitored and investigated. Post-mortem examinations on patients dying after cardiac surgery are likely to be performed and reported in more detail. This review describes the protocol that we have developed and summarizes recent clinical and pathological studies that have increased our understanding of postoperative pathophysiology. Close attention should be paid to the history, particularly the operation note. Cardiac failure is the commonest cause of death. We believe this is a clinicopathological diagnosis and provide definitions of preoperative and perioperative cardiac failure. Haemorrhage, stroke, pulmonary emboli and infection are other important causes of death. Methods of dissection are suggested for bypass grafts and valve replacements. Two recent studies show that the post-mortem examination provides answers to most clinical questions and reveals an unexpected cause of death in 10-15% of patients. There are limitations however: an incomplete or indeterminate cause of death is found in 14-25% of patients, most commonly sudden clinically unexplained death or clinically unexplained cardiac failure soon after surgery.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Nov
pubmed:issn
0309-0167
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Print
pubmed:volume
33
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
399-405
pubmed:dateRevised
2005-11-16
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
1998
pubmed:articleTitle
Post-mortem examination after cardiac surgery.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of Pathology, Southampton University Hospital, UK.
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Review