title: Pediatric warm open heart surgery and prolonged cross-clamp time.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The safety of normothermic pediatric cardiac surgery remains controversial. This study evaluated the performance of normothermic cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) associated with intermittent warm blood cardioplegia during prolonged aortic cross-clamp time (CCT).
  
  
  METHODS
  This retrospective study included 234 consecutive patients weighing less than 10 kg operated under CPB from August 2006 to November 2007. Patients were divided into two groups: group 1 contained 38 patients with CCT exceeding 90 minutes, and group 2 had 196 patients with shorter CCT. Classic factors were used to analyze outcomes, and outcomes were compared with those from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons-European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery database.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Results, expressed as values for group 1 vs those for group 2, were mortality rate, 5.3% vs 2%; length of hospital stay exceeding 21 days, 5% vs 0.5%; delayed chest closure, 21% vs 2.6%; epinephrine infusion, 45% vs 11%; organ failure, 13% vs 2%; reoperation due to bleeding, 3% vs 0.5%; heart block, 3% vs 1%; time to extubation, in hours, 64 +/- 94 vs 19 +/- 48; plasma lactate concentrations after bypass, 2.6 vs 1.9 mmol/L; length of stay in intensive care, in hours, 100 +/- 105 vs 52 +/- 48.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Despite expected differences between the two groups, our results were within the range of values described in the literature. This led us to conclude that warm pediatric cardiac surgery with a long CCT is safe. A large, multicenter, randomized prospective study comparing normothermic and hypothermic pediatric cardiac surgery is underway.
authors.affiliation: Department of Perfusion and Intensive Care, Institut Hospitalier Jacques Cartier, Massy, France.
authors.forename: Yves D
authors.initials: YD
authors.lastname: Durandy
authors.forename: Mohamed
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Younes
authors.forename: Bruno
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Mahut
mesh_terms: D002315:Cardiopulmonary Bypass / Q000379:methods* / Q000401:mortality; D015331:Cohort Studies; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003250:Constriction; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D005602:France; D006324:Heart Arrest, Induced / Q000379:methods* / Q000401:mortality; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality* / Q000601:surgery*; D017052:Hospital Mortality / Q000639:trends*; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D011336:Probability; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment; D016019:Survival Analysis; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D052096:Warm Ischemia