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The "T-shaped" thoracotomy for pericardiectomy after midline crossed IMA grafting
H Okamoto1, S Morita, K Fujimoto
1Division of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Yokkaichi Municipal Hospital, Japan.
In the presence of an internal mammary artery graft crossing the mid-sternal line, a median sternotomy may jeopardize the graft and consequently bring a hemodynamic compromise. We describe a case of successful radical pericardiectomy for postoperative constrictive pericarditis using a "T-shaped" thoracotomy in a 68-year-old male patient who had a right IMA graft to the left anterior descending coronary artery.
In the presence of an internal mammary artery graft crossing the mid-sternal line, a median sternotomy may jeopardize the graft and consequently bring a hemodynamic compromise. We describe a case of successful radical pericardiectomy for postoperative constrictive pericarditis using a "T-shaped" thoracotomy in a 68-year-old male patient who had a right IMA graft to the left anterior descending coronary artery.