Pulmonary Atresia and Intact Ventricular Septum in Transcatheter Perforation of Atretic Pulmonary Valve

Background and Objective: The use of mechanical perforation as an alternative to radiofrequency wire in the treatment of pulmonary valve atresia with an intact ventricular septum, which is a duct-dependent cyanotic congenital heart disease. We share our experience with this method, which is especially relevant for centers that do not have access to radiofrequency wires. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted between October 2011 and August 2022 on all infants referred to Shaheed Almehrab cardiac surgery and Catheterization Center‎ in Babylon, Iraq whose severe cyanosis and patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) dependent pulmonary valve atresia with an intact ventricular septum were confirmed by transthoracic echocardiography. A chronic total occlusion (CTO) wiring procedure was used to create perforation through the atretic pulmonary valve with subsequent pulmonary valve balloon dilation, through an antegrade (n=18) or retrograde approach (n=10). Findings: A total number of 28 infants with 14 infants younger than one month and 14 infants older than one month of age were included. 15 cases (53%) were male. The mean oxygen saturation before the intervention was 44.48±7.43% which significantly improved to 88.35±7.71% (p<0.001). Tripartite ventricles were found in 56.5% of patients. Successful perforation with subsequent balloon valvuloplasty was achieved in 23 cases (82.1%) and death as a complication of perforation was reported in 5 cases. The antegrade operation was associated with higher survival than the retrograde (p=0.041). There were 21.5% of patients who required an additional procedure including a bidirectional cavopulmonary shunt (Glenn shunt) or Blalock-Taussig (BT) shunt to augment pulmonary blood flow. Tricuspid regurgitation improvement was confirmed in 87% of patients‎. Conclusion: In conclusion, transcatheter perforation of atretic pulmonary valves followed by balloon valvuloplasty is a feasible and effective treatment option for pulmonary atresia and intact ventricular septum

Binary Ce(III) and Li(I) triflate salt composition for solid polymer electrolytes

This study describes the results of the characterization of solid polymer electrolytes using chitosan matrix plasticized with glycerol and doped with cerium and lithium triflates binary salt composition. The electrolytes were prepared by solvent casting method and characterized by thermal analysis (thermogravimetric analysis - TGA and differential scanning calorimetry - DSC), impedance measurements, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR). Samples are thermally stable up to 128-153ºC and most of them are amorphous. In some cases, the appearance of crystalline peaks is due to the diffraction of salt domains, which makes the samples less conductive. The room temperature conductivity maximum of 10-6 S cm-1 at 30ºC was obtained for the samples with the same total salts mass of 0.15 g (ChitCeTrif0.05LiTrif0.10 and ChitCeTrif0.10LiTrif0.05). Finally, the EPR analysis suggests that the local coordination environment of the paramagnetic Ce3+ is not the same in different samples. In summary, beside the modest conductivity values of these samples, they are still adequate for some electrochemical applications.We are grateful to the Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia and FEDER (Ref. UID/QUI/00686/2013 and UID/QUI/0686/2016) and program POCH/FSE for a grant SFRH/BD/97232/2013 (R. Alves) for financial support of this work. The authors are grateful to Mr. Marcos de Oliveira, Jr. for technical assistance. The financial support of the Brazilian agencies Capes and The Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) are gratefully acknowledged. Research was partially financed by the CeRTEV, Center for Research, Technology and Education in Vitreous Materials, FAPESP 2013/07793-6. M. M. Silva and A. Pawlicka acknowledges The Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) for grants provided by this institution (PVE grant 406617/2013-9 and PQ grant 305029/2013- 4).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio