• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• 제22권4호
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• pp.525-534
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• 2021

Objective: To assess the effect of left atrial appendage (LAA) isolation on LAA emptying and left atrial (LA) function using cardiac MRI in patients who underwent successful catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation (AF). Materials and Methods: This retrospective study included 84 patients (mean age, 59 ± 10 years; 67 males) who underwent cardiac MRI after successful catheter ablation of AF. According to the electrical activity of LAA after catheter ablation, patients showed either LAA isolation or LAA normal activity. The LAA emptying phase (LAA-EP, in the systolic phase [SP] or diastolic phase), LAA emptying flux (LAA-EF, mL/s), and LA ejection fraction (LAEF, %) were evaluated by cardiac MRI. Results: Of the 84 patients, 61 (73%) and 23 (27%) patients showed LAA normal activity and LAA isolation, respectively. Incidence of LAA emptying in SP was significantly higher in LAA isolation (91% vs. 0%, p < 0.001) than in LAA normal activation. LAA-EF was significantly lower in LAA isolation (40.1 ± 16.2 mL/s vs. 80.2 ± 25.1 mL/s, p < 0.001) than in LAA normal activity. Furthermore, LAEF was significantly lower in LAA isolation (23.7% ± 11.2% vs. 31.1% ± 16.6%, p = 0.04) than in LAA normal activity. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that the LAA-EP was independent from LAEF (p = 0.01). Conclusion: LAA emptying in SP may be a critical characteristic of LAA isolation, and it may adversely affect the LAEF after catheter ablation of AF.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• 제47권4호
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• pp.358-366
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• 2014

Background: To improve sinus rhythm conversion, the Cox maze III procedure with narrow mazes (width: ${\leq}3.0cm$) was performed in combination with left atrial volume reduction. Methods: From October 2007 to April 2013, 87 patients with atrial fibrillation (paroxysmal in 3, persistent in 14, and permanent in 70) underwent the Cox maze procedure concomitant with another cardiac procedure. They were followed-up with serial electrocardiographic and echocardiographic studies. We used 24-hour Holter monitoring tests to evaluate postoperatively symptomatic patients. Results: At the mean follow-up time of 36.4 months, 81 patients (94.2%) had sinus rhythm and two were on anti-arrhythmic medication (one on a beta-blocker and the other on amiodarone). Five patients (5.8%) with postoperative recurrent and persistent atrial fibrillation never experienced sinus rhythm conversion; however, they did not require any medication for rate control. On postoperative echocardiography, the left atrial A waves were more frequently observed after concomitant mitral valve repair than after concomitant mitral valve replacement (82.4% vs. 40.4%, respectively; p<0.001). Conclusion: For the Cox maze procedure, narrow mazes and atrial volume reduction resulted in excellent sinus rhythm conversion without the preventive use of anti-arrhythmic drugs, and they did not affect the presence of the left atrial A waves on echocardiography.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• 제41권3호
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• pp.313-319
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• 2008

배경: 심방세동의 외과적 치료방법으로는 Cox maze-III 수술이 가장 효과적이다. 그러나 수술시간이 길고 합병증이 증가할 수 있어서 수술시간을 단축하고자 좌측 심방의 maze수술이나 폐정맥분리술만을 시행하기도 한다. 저자들은 절개-봉합법을 이용한 심방세동 수술방법의 변형이 심방세동의 수술결과에 어떤 영향을 주는지 알아보았다. 대상 및 방법: 1999년 2월부터 2005년 6월까지 기존 심장질환과 심방세동을 동반한 40예(남 17예; 여 23예)에서 심방세동 수술을 시행하였다. 23예에서 Cox maze-III 수술을, 10예에서 좌심방 maze 수술을, 7예에서 폐정맥 분리술을 시행하였다. 심방에 전도차단 병변을 만들기 위해 절개봉합법이 이용되었으나, 폐분리절개선에서 승모판륜까지의 심방벽과 관상정맥동의 전도차단에는 냉동프로브가 사용되었다. 결과: 심방세동 수술 후 $50.0{\pm}21.6$개월의 추적결과 Cox maze-III 수술을 받은 23예는 모두 정규리듬(동리듬이나 심방리듬)으로 전환되었고, 좌심방 maze 수술을 받은 10예 중 7예(70%)에서, 폐정맥 분리술을 받은 7예 중 4예(57.1%)에서 각각 정규리듬으로 전환되었다(p=0.002). 결론: 심방세동 수술에서 동리듬이나 심방리듬으로 높은 전환율을 얻기 위해서는 양심방에 Cox maze-III 수술을 시행해야 하며, 좌심방 maze 수술이나 폐정맥 분리술 같은 국한적인 수술방법은 심방세동의 치료율을 떨어뜨릴 수 있다.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• 제46권2호
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• pp.98-103
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• 2013

Background: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is a common complication in elderly patients with atrial septal defect (ASD). The purpose of this study was to examine the efficacy of the maze procedure in these patients. Materials and Methods: Between February 2000 and May 2011, 46 patients underwent the maze procedure as a concomitant operation with ASD closure. Three patients who underwent a right-sided maze were excluded, and one patient was lost to follow-up. The mean follow-up duration was $3.2{\pm}2.5$ years. Electrocardiography was performed 1 month, 3 months, 6 months, and 1 year after surgery, and checked annually after that. Results: AF persisted in 4 patients after surgery. One year after surgery, among 38 patients, 55.3% remained in sinus rhythm without antiarrhythmic drugs. However, when including the patients who took antiarrhythmic drugs, 92.1% were in sinus rhythm. Freedom from AF recurrence at 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, 3 years, and 5 years after surgery were $97.4{\pm}2.6$, $94.4{\pm}3.8$, $91.2{\pm}4.9$, $87.8{\pm}5.8$, $79.5{\pm}7.6$, and $68.2{\pm}12.4$, respectively. There was no early mortality after operation. Conclusion: Concomitant treatment with the maze procedure and ASD closure is safe and effective for restoring the sinus rhythm.

• Korean Circulation Journal
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• 제53권5호
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• pp.331-343
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• 2023

Background and Objectives: The prognostic implication of right atrial (RA) and left atrial (LA) size for an immediate success of direct current cardioversion (DCCV) in atrial fibrillation (AF) remains unclear. This study aimed to compare RA and LA size for the prediction of DCCV success. Methods: Between 2012 and 2018, 734 consecutive outpatients were screened for our prospective registry. Each eligible patient received a medical history, blood analysis, and transthoracic echocardiography with a focus on indexed RA (iRA) area and LA volume (iLAV) prior to DCCV with up to three biphasic shocks (200-300-360 J) or additional administration of amiodarone or flecainide to restore sinus rhythm. Results: We enrolled 589 patients, and DCCV was in 89% (n=523) successful. Mean age was 68 ± 10 years, and 40% (n=234) had New York heart association class >II. A prevalence of the male sex (64%, n=376) and of persistent AF (86%, n=505) was observed. Although DCCV success was associated with female sex (odds ratio [OR], 1.88; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.06-3.65), with absence of coronary heart disease and normal left ventricular function (OR, 2.24; 95% CI, 1.26-4.25), with short AF duration (OR, 1.93; 95% CI, 1.05-4.04) in univariable regression, only iRA area remained a stable and independent predictor of DCCV success (OR, 0.27; 95% CI, 0.12-0.69; area under the curve 0.71), but not iLAV size (OR, 1.16; 95% CI, 1.05-1.56) in multivariable analysis. Conclusions: iRA area is superior to iLAV for the prediction of immediate DCCV success in AF.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• 제32권3호
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• pp.255-261
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• 1999

배경: 심방세동은 모든 부정맥중에서 가장 흔하고 승모판질환을 가진 환자의 79%를 차지한다. 이 연구에서는 승모판 수술을 시행하는 환자의 심방세동이 냉동절제 없이 시행한 Maze 술식으로 제거되는지를 관찰하였다. 대상 및 방법: 1997년 5월에서 1998년 4월까지 승모판 질환과 심방세동이 있는 14명의 환자에서 냉동절제 없이 Maze III 술식을 시행하였다. 남자는 6례, 여자는 8례였고, 평균 나이는 46.2$\pm$10.7세 였다. 승모판막 협착증 11례, 그리고 승모판막 폐쇄부전 3례였다. 동반 질환으로 대동맥판막 질환 4례, 삼첨판막 폐쇄부전이 1례, 그리고 심방중격결손증이 2례였다. 경흉적 심초음파 검사상 좌심방의 평균 크기는 54.7$\pm$5.3 mm였고, 좌심방내에서 혈전이 관찰된 경우는 2례였다. 수술후 심초음파 검사상 승모판막을 통과하는 혈류를 측정함으로써 초기 충전파의 최고 속도와 심방수축파의 최고 속도 사이의 비(A/E ratio)를 계산하였다. 수술은 대동맥판막 치환술 4례, DeVega 판륜성형술 1례, 그리고 심방중격결손 폐쇄술 2례를 동반하여 승모판막 치환술을 13례에서 시행하였고, 나머지 1례는 Maze III 술식만 시행하였다. 결과: 5례(38%)의 경우에서 일시적인 심방세동이 재발하였고, 수술후 평균 38.8$\pm$23.5일에 flecainide 또는 amiodarone의 투여로 정상동방결절율동으로 전환되었다. 수술후 합병증은 일시적인 접합부율동 6례, 일시적인 심방세동 5례, 출혈로 인한 재수술 3례, , 술후 심막절개증후군 1례, 편측 성대마비 1례, 정신증 1례, 그리고 심근경색이 1례였다. 수술후 A/E비는 0.43$\pm$0.22였고, A파가 9(64%)례에서 양성이었다. 수술후 3개월에서 14개월(평균 추적관찰, 8.1개월)동안 14례에서 모두 정상 동방결절율동으로 전환되었고, 9례(64%)에서 좌심방의 수축을 관찰할수 있었으며, 11례(79%)에서는 항부정맥제를 투여하지 않고 있다. 결론: Maze III 술식에서 냉동절제를 시행하지 않더라도 승모판막 질환과 동반된 심방세동에 효과적인 수술임을 알 수 있었다.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• 제26권12호
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• pp.909-914
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• 1993

Complete and optimal visualization of the mitral apparatus is a prerequisite for accurate repair or replacement of the mitral valve. A vertical left atriotomy just posterior to the interatrial groove is the most commonly used approach. However,exposure can be difficult under certain circumstances,such as small left atrium or reoperation. Other approaches have been advocated to deal with this difficult situations. We used an extended transseptal approach in 10 patients and good clinical results and excellent educational effects were obtained. The extended transseptal approach combines two semicircular atrial incisions circumscribing the tricuspid and mitral annuli anteriorly and superiorly,allowing exposure of the mitral valve by deflecting the ventricular side using stay sutures. The right atrium is opened anteriorly along the atrioventricular sulcus. The atrial septum is incised vertically through the fossa ovalis. Right atrial and septal incisions are joined at the superior end of the interatrial septum and extended across the dome of the left atrium to the left atrial appendage. The mitral valve was replaced in all 10 patients. Four of 10 patients had other simultaneous valve procedure: one had aortic valve replacement: 2 underwent tricuspid annuloplasty: 1 had aortic valve replacement and tricuspid annuloplasty. There was no hospital death and complication. Among the 5 patients who had atrial fibrillation preoperatively,4 had atrial fibrillation postoperatively,1 converted to sinus rhythm. The five patients who were in normal sinus rhythm preoperatively remained in sinus rhythm after replacement. A review of our results with this approach confirms the efficacy and safty of this method. So we recommanded this approach for routine mitral valve procedure,especially difficult situations,such as a small left atrium or the redo operation.

• Journal of Electrical Engineering and Technology
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• 제12권1호
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• pp.346-355
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• 2017

Atrial fibrillation (AF) and Congestive heart failure (CHF) are increasingly widespread, costly, deadly diseases and are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. In this study, we analyzed three statistical methods for automatic detection of AF and CHF based on the randomness, variability and complexity of the heart beat interval, which is RRI time series. Specifically, we used short RRI time series with 16 beats and employed the normalized root mean square of successive RR differences (RMSSD), the sample entropy and the Shannon entropy. The detection performance was analyzed using four large well documented databases, namely the MIT-BIH Atrial fibrillation (n=23), the MIT-BIH Normal Sinus Rhythm (n=18), the BIDMC Congestive Heart Failure (n=13) and the Congestive Heart Failure RRI databases (n=25). Using thresholds by Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curves, we found that the normalized RMSSD provided the highest accuracy. The overall sensitivity, specificity and accuracy for AF and CHF were 0.8649, 0.9331 and 0.9104, respectively. Regarding CHF detection, the detection rate of CHF (NYHA III-IV) was 0.9113 while CHF (NYHA I-II) was 0.7312, which shows that the detection rate of CHF with higher severity is higher than that of CHF with lower severity. For the clinical 24 hour data (n=42), the overall sensitivity, specificity and accuracy for AF and CHF were 0.8809, 0.9406 and 0.9108, respectively, using normalized RMSSD.

• Journal of Chest Surgery
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• 제49권1호
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• pp.22-28
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• 2016

Background: Carotid endarterectomy (CEA) with selective shunting is the surgical method currently used to treat patients with carotid artery disease. We evaluated the incidence of major postoperative complications in patients who underwent CEA with selective shunting under transcranial Doppler (TCD) at our institution. Methods: The records of 45 patients who underwent CEA with TCD-based selective shunting under general anesthesia from November 2009 to June 2015 were reviewed. The risk factors for postoperative complications were analyzed using univariate and multivariate analysis. Results: Preoperative atrial fibrillation was observed in three patients. Plaque ulceration was detected in 10 patients (22.2%) by preoperative computed tomography imaging. High-level stenosis was observed in 16 patients (35.5%), and 18 patients had contralateral stenosis. Twenty patients (44.4%) required shunt placement due to reduced TCD flow or a poor temporal window. The 30-day mortality rate was 2.2%. No cases of major stroke were observed in the 30 days after surgery, but four cases of minor stroke were noted. Univariate analysis showed that preoperative atrial fibrillation (odds ratio [OR], 40; p=0.018) and ex-smoker status (OR, 17.5; p=0.021) were statistically significant risk factors for a minor stroke in the 30-day postoperative period. Analogously, multivariate analysis also found that atrial fibrillation (p<0.001) and ex-smoker status (p=0.002) were significant risk factors for a minor stroke in the 30-day postoperative period. No variables were identified as risk factors for 30-day major stroke or death. No wound complications were found, although one (2.2%) of the patients suffered from a hypoglossal nerve injury. Conclusion: TCD-based CEA is a safe and reliable method to treat patients with carotid artery disease. Preoperative atrial fibrillation and ex-smoker status were found to increase the postoperative risk of a small embolism leading to a minor neurologic deficit.

• Korean Circulation Journal
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• 제48권12호
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• pp.1033-1080
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• 2018

Atrial fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained cardiac arrhythmia in the general population. The Korean Heart Rhythm Society organized a Korean AF Management Guideline Committee and analyzed all available studies regarding the management of AF, including studies on Korean patients. This guideline is based on recent data of the Korean population and the recent guidelines of the European Society of Cardiology, European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery, American Heart Association, and Asia Pacific Heart Rhythm Society. Expert consensus or guidelines for the optimal management of Korean patients with AF were achieved after a systematic review with intensive discussion. This article provides general principles for appropriate risk stratification and selection of anticoagulation therapy in Korean patients with AF. This guideline deals with optimal stroke prevention, screening, rate and rhythm control, risk factor management, and integrated management of AF.