[Experiences with thermography in the surgical treatment of ischemic heart disease]

Possible use of thermography (AGA Thermovision 750) in heart surgery has been investigated in animal experiments and in human extracorporeal operations as well. In six open-chest isolated dog hearts, coronary circulation had been occluded and antero- and retrograde local cooling was employed. Following coronary occlusion, effective hypothermia was achieved retrograde via the coronary sinus. 22 patients were arranged into three groups according to the operation technique used, and the possibilities for effective cardiac cooling by cold cardioplegic solution were studied. Hearts of the six patients subjected to surgical intervention for valvular lesions (four mitral and two aortic) could be safely cooled by cold cardioplegic solution infused through the aorta or the coronary arteries. The hearts of the twelve patients with coronary artery stenosis could be cooled sufficiently by additional retrograde infusion only. Employing antero- and retrograde hypothermia, in four patients the size of the aneurysm of the left ventricle, and the area which had to be resected was determined by thermography. Thermography is considered to be a suitable non-invasive method to derive information concerning: the efficacy of cold cardioplegic solution in aortocoronary bypass grafting, quantitative changes in nutritive coronary flow, the size of left ventricular aneurysmectomy.