Unicuspid aortic valve (UAV) morphology is a cause for aortic valve dysfunction in childhood or adolescence. Repair requires the use of patch material, and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) has been proposed for this purpose because of lack of calcification. We reviewed our mid-term experience with PTFE for the repair of UAV to analyse the durability of this technique.
 
  Out of 21 patients with an UAV undergoing aortic valve repair for severe aortic regurgitation between 2014 and 2016, 11 patients (52%) were treated using PTFE patch material. Aortic regurgitation was present in all patients, the primary indication for surgery was regurgitation in 8, stenosis in 2 and aneurysm in 1. Symmetric bicuspidization of the UAV was performed in all. One patient required additional root remodelling for root dilatation, and another 3 tubular ascending aortic replacement.
 
  No patient died in hospital or during follow-up. Seven patients (63.6%) required reoperation for progressive AR. Freedom from reoperation was 58% at 1 and 35% at 5 years postoperatively. At reoperation the PTFE patches were found dehisced from aortic wall and/or native cusp tissue. In 3 patients re-repair was performed; a stable result was achieved in 1. Two patients underwent valve replacement 3 months and 1 year postoperatively. The other 4 patients underwent valve replacement.
 
  The repair of UAVs using PTFE patch is associated with poor durability, a more durable patch with better healing characteristics material is needed.
 The repair of UAVs using PTFE patch is associated with poor durability, a more durable patch with better healing characteristics material is needed.
  Our goal was to assess the postoperative 90-day hospital costs of patients with prolonged air leak (PAL) including costs incurred after discharge from the initial index hospitalization.
 
  We performed a retrospective analysis of 982 patients undergoing lobectomy (898) or segmentectomy (78) (April 2014-August 2018). A total of 167 operations were open, 780 were video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery and 28 were robotic. A PAL was defined as an air leak >5 days.  https://www.selleckchem.com/peptide/tirzepatide-ly3298176.html  The 90-day postoperative costs included all fixed and variable costs incurred during the 90 days following surgery. The postoperative costs of patients with and without PAL were compared. The independent association of PAL with postoperative 90-day costs was tested after adjustment for patient-related factors and other complications by a multivariable regression analysis.
 
  PAL occurred in 261 patients (27%). Their postoperative stay was 4 days longer than that of those without PAL (9.6 vs 5.7; P < 0.0001). Compared to patients without PAL, those nly with increased index hospitalization costs but also with increased costs after discharge. Evaluation of the cost-effectiveness of measures to prevent air leaks should also include post-discharge costs.Up to now, Italy is one of the European centers with the most active Coronavirus cases with 233,836 positive cases and 33,601 total deaths as of June 3rd. During this pandemic and dramatic emergency, Italian hospitals had also to face neoplastic pathologies, that still afflict the Italian population, requiring urgent surgical and oncological treatment. In our Cancer Center Hospital, the high volume of surgical procedures have demanded an equally high volume of intraoperative pathological examinations, but also posed an additional major challenge for the safety of the staff involved. The current commentary reports our experience in the past two months (since March 9th) for a total of 1271 frozen exams from 893 suspect COVID-19 patients (31 confirmed).Infection caused by SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) is associated with an increased risk of thromboembolic disease. So-me authors recommend anticoagulation at therapeutic doses for, at least, the most severely ill patients; this practice is not free of risks, which is why only thromboembolic prophylaxis is recommended by other consensuses. In the case of previously anticoagulated patients, changing the oral anticoagulant for a low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) is generally recommended. We present the cases of two patients admitted due to COVID-19, without serious clinical data, in whom anticoagulation (acenocoumarol and rivaroxaban, respectively) was replaced by LMWH at therapeutic doses, both presenting abdominal bleeding. This type of bleeding is an infrequent complication in anticoagulated patients, but the concurrence of two cases in a short period of time in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic leads us to consider that there is not yet any clear evidence on therapeutic anticoagulation in SARS-CoV-2 infection.BACKGROUND Chylous ascites is a rare condition, which is defined by accumulation of a milky fluid due to high triglyceride levels. It is most commonly secondary to malignancy, liver cirrhosis, infection, and tuberculosis. CASE REPORT A 21-year-old woman from rural Indonesia, came to the hospital with chronic dyspnea and a history of repeated paracentesis. Six years ago, she was diagnosed with chronic hepatitis B. For the past 2 years, she had complaints of progressive dyspnea and increased abdominal swelling. On examination, there was dullness on chest percussion and decreased breath sounds. Shifting dullness was positive on abdominal examination. Paracentesis and thoracentesis were performed and showed high triglyceride levels. She underwent an abdominal computed tomography scan and was diagnosed with liver cirrhosis, complicated with chylous ascites and chylothorax. Repeated paracentesis was performed as a therapeutic approach; she had strict diet guidelines, and was prescribed octreotide, furosemide, spironolactone, and albumin. Despite this treatment, two years later, she developed an umbilical hernia complicated with ulceration. Hernia repair was not possible due to her comorbidities. She was indicated for a transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) for the refractory chylous ascites. However, this could not be performed as the patient could not afford this expensive procedure, which was not covered by insurance. CONCLUSIONS Management of refractory chylous ascites is challenging, especially in underdeveloped countries due to socioeconomic problems and limited health care facilities. Although TIPS is indicated in refractory chylous ascites, repeated paracentesis can be useful as an alternative method.