Each heart valve is composed of different structures of which each one has its own histological profile. Although the aortic and the pulmonary valves as well as the mitral and the tricuspid valves show similarities in their architecture, they are individually designed to ensure optimal function with regard to their role in the cardiac cycle. In this article, we systematically describe the structural elements of the four heart valves by different anatomical, light- and electron-microscopic techniques that have been presented. Without the demand of completeness, we describe main structural features that are in our opinion of importance in understanding heart valve performance. These features will also have important implications in the treatment of heart valve disease. They will increase the knowledge in the design of valve substitutes or partial substitutes and may participate to improve reconstructive techniques. In addition, understanding heart valve macro- and microstructure may also be of benefit in heart valve engineering techniques.

Introduction: Deep sternal wound infections (DSWIs) are rare but devastating complication after median sternotomy following cardiac surgery. Especially in the presence of artificial material or inadequate preliminary muscle flaps, the pedicled omentum flap is due to its immunological properties, the predetermined flap in salvage procedures. Methods: We treated 14 patients suffering a mediastinitis and open thorax using a pedicled omentoplasty as a salvage procedure because of persisting DSWIs. Omentoplasty was performed in combination with a split skin graft and the wound was closed by a vacuum-assisted therapy for 7 days. The patients’ sex and comorbid risk factors supporting DSWIs as well as the postoperative complications were recorded. Results: Retrospective analysis of 14 patients (10 males and four females) after a follow-up time of 24 months was performed. The average age was 75 years (range: 67–83). Heart surgery took place electively in eight cases, in three cases urgently and three for emergency reasons. The preoperative Euro Score was 16 (range 3.51–42.58). We had no flap loss in any patients. The skin graft showed a full take in all patients. Two patients needed revision of an abdominal wound dehiscence after laparotomy and one patient developed hernia in the late outcome. Discussion: The greater omentum flap has, over many years, become an ideal partner in the coverage and treatment of DSWIs. Especially due to its immunologic capacity and amorphous structure, it has the ability to fill up cavities and cover infected artificial material so residual infections can be controlled.

A number of factors limit the effectiveness of current aortic arch studies in assessing optimal neuroprotection strategies, including insufficient patient numbers, heterogenous definitions of clinical variables, multiple technical strategies, inadequate reporting of surgical outcomes and a lack of collaborative effort. We have formed an international coalition of centres to provide more robust investigations into this topic. High-volume aortic arch centres were identified from the literature and contacted for recruitment. A Research Steering Committee of expert arch surgeons was convened to oversee the direction of the research. The International Aortic Arch Surgery Study Group has been formed by 41 arch surgeons from 10 countries to better evaluate patient outcomes after aortic arch surgery. Several projects, including the establishment of a multi-institutional retrospective database, randomized controlled trials and a prospectively collected database, are currently underway. Such a collaborative effort will herald a turning point in the surgical management of aortic arch pathologies and will provide better powered analyses to assess the impact of varying surgical techniques on mortality and morbidity, identify predictors for neurological and operative risk, formulate and validate risk predictor models and review long-term survival outcomes and quality-of-life after arch surgery.

Most studies comparing off-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (OPCAB) with conventional on-pump coronary artery bypass grafting (ONCAB) include patients with aortic manipulation in the OPCAB group. Performing OPCAB without aortic manipulation, i.e., "anaortic" OPCAB (anOPCAB), may improve neurological outcome. We reviewed the perioperative data of all isolated CABG patients at two metropolitan hospitals for the period from January 2002 to December 2007. Multiple logistic regression analysis was performed to determine whether the type of procedure was an independent predictor of adverse neurological outcome. Out of a total of 3699 consecutive patients, 1346 were anOPCAB, 600 OPCAB and 1753 ONCAB cases. Neurological complications occurred in 0.9 % of all patients. Compared to the anOPCAB group, there was a statistically significant higher odds for neurological complications in the OPCAB group [odds ratio (OR) 7.01, 95 % confidence interval (CI) 1.4-35.0, P = 0.0175] and in the ONCAB group (OR 12.33, 95 % CI 2.9-52.2, P = 0.0007). In this series "anaortic" OPCAB surgery significantly decreases the risk of neurological complications compared to both ONCAB and OPCAB with aortic manipulation. If possible, we advocate avoiding aortic manipulation in OPCAB surgery.