Federica Jiritano1, Roberto Lorusso2, Giuseppe Santarpino3. 1. Cardio-Thoracic Surgery Dept., Heart & Vascular Centre, Maastricht University Medical Centre, and Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht (CARIM), Maastricht, the Netherlands, P. Debeylaan, 26, Maastricht 6220 AZ - The Netherlands; Cardiac Surgery Unit, University "Magna Graecia" of Catanzaro, Catanzaro, Italy. Electronic address: fede.j@hotmail.it. 2. Cardio-Thoracic Surgery Dept., Heart & Vascular Centre, Maastricht University Medical Centre, and Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht (CARIM), Maastricht, the Netherlands. 3. Paracelsus Medical University, Nuremberg, Germany; Città di Lecce Hospital, GVM Care & Research, Lecce, Italy.