title: Cardiopulmonary bypass and deep hypothermic circulatory arrest in a massively obese patient.
abstract: As a consequence of the rising global prevalence and magnitude of obesity, a greater proportion of patients presenting for cardiac surgery is morbidly obese. Being overweight (body mass index; BMI 25-29.9 kg/m(2)) or obese (BMI 30-35 kg/m(2)) appears to confer some survival benefit following cardiac surgery. By contrast, morbid obesity (BMI >40 kg/m(2)) is associated with an increased likelihood of postoperative complications and prolonged intensive care unit and hospital length of stay. The physical difficulties encountered when managing this group of patients is exemplified by those undergoing complex, multiple procedures requiring prolonged cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) and deep hypothermic circulatory arrest (DHCA). We present the successful management of a massively obese 19-year-old male (BMI 45 kg/m(2)) with Marfan's syndrome who required aortic root and arch replacement under DHCA. The selection of extracorporeal circuit components to accommodate a large circulating volume and permit high CPB flow rates (>9 l/min) is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anaesthesia, Papworth Hospital, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Molnar
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Colah
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Larobina
authors.forename: S R
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Large
authors.forename: J E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Arrowsmith
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Klein
mesh_terms: D001015:Aortic Arch Syndromes / Q000601:surgery*; D001022:Aortic Valve Insufficiency / Q000601:surgery*; D015992:Body Mass Index; D002315:Cardiopulmonary Bypass; D050792:Circulatory Arrest, Deep Hypothermia Induced; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009767:Obesity, Morbid / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000601:surgery; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D055815:Young Adult