Impact of pericardial calcification on early postoperative outcomes after pericardiectomy: a retrospective observational study

• Published in: Journal of cardiothoracic surgery 2024-07, Vol.19 (1), p.449-10, Article 449
• Main Authors: Lee, Soojin, Lee, Juhyun, Joo, Seohee, Park, You Kyeong, Kim, Kang Min, Jung, Joon Chul, Chang, Hyoung Woo, Lee, Jae Hang, Kim, Dong Jung, Kim, Jun Sung, Lim, Cheong
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Calcification; Calcinosis - surgery; Cardiac arrhythmia; Cardiovascular disease; Complications; Computed tomography; Constrictive pericarditis; Coronary artery bypass; CT imaging; Etiology; Female; Heart; Hospitals; Humans; Male; Medical records; Middle Aged; Mortality; Patients; Pericardial calcification; Pericardiectomy; Pericardiectomy - adverse effects; Pericarditis; Pericarditis, Constrictive - surgery; Pericardium; Physiology; Pleural effusion; Postoperative; Postoperative Complications; Postoperative period; Regression analysis; Retrospective Studies; Tomography, X-Ray Computed; Treatment Outcome
• ISSN: 1749-8090; 1749-8090
• DOI: 10.1186/s13019-024-02842-4

Owing to the lack of understanding of the clinical significance of pericardial calcification during pericardiectomy, whether pericardial calcification should be considered when determining the optimal timing for pericardiectomy is debatable. We aimed to investigate the effect of pericardial calcification on early postoperative outcomes in patients who underwent pericardiectomy for constrictive pericarditis. Altogether, 44 patients who underwent pericardiectomy for constrictive pericarditis were enrolled. After excluding three patients who underwent concurrent surgeries, a total of 41 patients were categorized into two groups based on the presence of pericardial calcification as determined by preoperative computed tomography and pathological examination. Preoperative clinical and imaging characteristics, intraoperative data, and early postoperative outcomes were compared between the two groups. A multivariable analysis was performed to identify the factors associated with postoperative complications. The group with and without PC comprised 21 and 20 patients, respectively. No significant differences were observed in 30-day mortality (n = 1 [5%]) in the group with pericardial calcification and no mortality in the group without pericardial calcification (p > 0.999). Other early postoperative outcome variables did not demonstrate any significant differences between the two groups. However, the use of cardiopulmonary bypass was associated with postoperative complications (p