| Literature DB >> 32584978 |
Giorgia Bonalumi1, Ilaria Giambuzzi1,2, Alessandro Barbone3, Camilla Ranieri4, Laura Cavallotti1, Piero Trabattoni1, Moreno Naliato1, Gianluca Polvani1,2, Lucia Torracca3, Stefano Pelenghi5, Franco Ragni6, Claudio Francesco Russo7, Francisco Guerra8, Santi Trimarchi2,9, Efrem Civilini3, Federico Romani7, Raffaello Bellosta10, Sergio Losa8, Maurizio Roberto1, Francesco Alamanni1,2.
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: During the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) pandemic, Northern Italy had to completely reorganize its hospital activity. In Lombardy, the hub-and-spoke system was introduced to guarantee emergency and urgent cardiovascular surgery, whereas most hospitals were dedicated to patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The aim of this study was to analyse the results of the hub-and-spoke organization system.Entities:
Keywords: Cardiovascular surgery; Coronavirus disease 2019; Hub-and-spoke
Mesh:
Year: 2020 PMID: 32584978 PMCID: PMC7337742 DOI: 10.1093/ejcts/ezaa204
Source DB: PubMed Journal: Eur J Cardiothorac Surg ISSN: 1010-7940 Impact factor: 4.191
Figure 1:Diagram of the hub-and-spoke system. (A) Interconnections between cardiovascular surgery hubs that cooperate and exchange information during weekly briefings. (B) Interconnections between a cardiac surgery hub and its spokes. (C) Interconnections between vascular surgery hub and its spokes.
Definitions of emergency, urgent and non-deferrable cardiac and vascular cases in the coronavirus disease 2019 era
| Pathology | Indications |
|---|---|
| Aortic disease |
Acute aortic dissection/intramural haematoma (exclusion criteria: age >80 years; coma; stroke; visceral organ malperfusion) Ascending aortic aneurysm ≥60 mm Ascending aortic aneurysm 55–60 mm in Marfan syndrome, yearly growth >5 mm, uncontrolled arterial hypertension |
| Severe aortic stenosis |
Symptomatic for syncope, angina, NYHA functional class IIIb–IV |
| Severe aortic regurgitation |
Acute pulmonary oedema with left ventricular dysfunction or haemodynamic instability |
| Severe mitral stenosis |
Haemodynamic instability or acute pulmonary oedema |
| Acute mitral regurgitation |
Papillary muscle or chordal rupture determining acute pulmonary oedema |
| Cardiac ischaemic disease |
Cardiac rupture or acute interventricular defect Untreatable unstable angina Left main coronary artery stenosis >70% Subocclusive stenosis of left main coronary artery or anterior interventricular coronary artery |
| Acute endocarditis |
Emergency (guidelines criteria) Urgent (guidelines criteria) |
| Prosthesis dysfunctions |
Heart failure Urgent if non-dischargeable |
| Masses |
Left atrial myxoma Other masses with high embolic risk |
| Acute limb ischaemia | |
| Ruptured aneurysm | |
| Chronic limb ischaemia |
Leriche III–IV grade |
| Thoracic and thoraco-abdominal aorta |
Diameter >7 cm Rapid growth (>1 cm in 6 months) Lesion instability at CT scan (blister, fissuring thrombus) |
| Abdominal aorta |
Diameter >6.5 cm Rapid growth (>1 cm in 6 months) Lesion instability on CT scan (blister, fissuring thrombus) |
| Carotid stenosis |
Symptomatic Stenosis >90%, monolateral and asymptomatic Ulcerated plaque |
CT: computed tomography; NYHA: New York Heart Association.
Figure 2:Flow chart for emergency and urgent cases. COVID: coronavirus disease; ICU: intensive care unit.
Figure 3:Flow chart for non-deferrable cases. COVID: coronavirus disease; OR: operating room.
Figure 4:Patients referred to the hub-and-spoke system
Operations performed at the spoke hospital
| Type of procedure | Negative for COVID-19 | Hospital | Diagnosis |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salvage procedure (7) | 7 (100%) | Spoke | 6 cardiac operations
2 unstable endocarditis 2 heart ruptures 1 acute mitral regurgitation after PTCA 1 aortic rupture |
| 1 vascular operation
Ruptured aortic abdominal aneurysm | |||
| Heart transplant (1) | 1 (100%) | Spoke | Catastrophic myocardial infarctions, unresponsive to PTCA and maximal mechanical support |
COVID-19: coronavirus disease 2019; PTCA: percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty.
Figure 5:Flow chart for treatment of acute limb ischaemia. COVID-19: coronavirus disease 2019; CPK: creatine phosphokinase; CT: computed tomography.