CTSNet Podcasts

#11: CTSNet Beat Podcast: COVID-19 Vaccines: Part II

This Beat episode, hosted by Jessica Luc, MD, covers part two of a two-part discussion on vaccines. Dr Jessica Luc interviews Dr Dimitrios Coutsinos, thoracic surgery fellow with a PhD in immunology, to review the background and data on the latest vaccines available, as well as discuss the developments in its rollout, and potential effectiveness or lack of thereof, against the new variants. 

For more information on this episode's topics, links are provided:

1. Baden LR, El Sahly HM, Essink B, Kotloff K, Frey S, Novak R, et al. Efficacy and safety of the mRNA-1273 SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. N Engl J Med. Dec 30, 2021.
2. Voysey M, Clemens SAC, Madhi SA, Weckx LY, Folegatti PM, Aley PK, et al. Safety and efficacy of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine (AZD1222) against SARS-CoV-2: an interim analysis of four randomised controlled trials in Brazil, South Africa, and the UK. Lancet. Dec 8, 2020.
3. Polack FP, Thomas SJ, Kitchin N, Absalon J, Gurtman A, Lockhart S, et al. Safety and efficacy of the BNT162b2 mRNA Covid-19 vaccine. N Engl J Med. 2020;383:2603-2615.

#10: CTSNet Beat Podcast: Survivors' Status After ECMO for Covid, Reperfusion Strategies, Adult Heart Surgeries Decrease, and Robotically-Assisted Congenital Cardiac Surgery

This Beat episode, featuring Joel Dunning, MD, focuses on survivors' longitudinal functional status of ECMO after COVID-19, a trial on advanced reperfusion strategies, an analysis on the decrease in all adult surgeries, and results of robotically-assisted congenital cardiac surgery. For more information on this episode's topics, links are provided:

• What Does Survival Look Like After ECMO for COVID-19? Small registry highlights need to analyze survivors' longitudinal functional status
  
  • https://www.medpagetoday.com/meetingcoverage/sts/90972
• Advanced reperfusion strategies for patients with out-of-hospital cardiac arrest and refractory ventricular fibrillation (ARREST): a phase 2, single centre, open-label, randomised controlled trial
  
  • https://www.thelancet.com/article/S0140-6736(20)32338-2/fulltext
• An analysis of national data revealed a 53% decrease in all adult heart surgeries, including a 40% decline in non-elective heart surgeries and a 65% drop in elective heart surgeries during the pandemic, compared to 2019.
  
  • https://consumer.healthday.com/b-2-2-pandemic-has-cut-heart-surgeries-in-half-and-more-patients-are-dying-2650177681.html   
  • https://www.ctsnet.org/article/totally-endoscopic-transaortic-septal-myectomy-hypertrophic-cardiomyopathy
• Early Results of Robotically Assisted Congenital Cardiac Surgery: Analysis of 242 Patients : JANS posting
  
  • https://www.ctsnet.org/jans/early-results-robotically-assisted-congenital-cardiac-surgery-analysis-242-patients

Why Is Atrial Fibrillation Undertreated in Patients With CABG and Structural Disease?

In this CTSNet To Go podcast episode, Niv Ad moderates a discussion on the importance of atrial fibrillation in decision-making in structural heart disease and coronary artery disease. He is joined by Marc Gerdisch of the Franciscan St. Francis Heart Center in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Joanna Chikwe of Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, USA;  and Vinod Thourani of the Piedmont Heart Institute in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

Role of Metastasectomy in Pulmonary Metastatic Disease

In this CTSNet To Go podcast episode, Mara Antonoff moderates a roundtable on the role of metastasectomy in pulmonary metastatic disease. She is joined by Erin M. Corsini of MD Anderson Cancer Center, Loretta Erhunmwunsee of City of Hope Cancer Center in California, and Neel Chudgar of  Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York. They discuss variability in practice patterns, specific tumor types, and patient selection.

Innovative Curriculum Design: What Are Programs Doing to Keep Graduates Relevant?

In this CTSNet To Go episode, David Tom Cooke moderates a discussion on innovative curriculum design in cardiothoracic surgery. He is joined by Rishindra M. Reddy of the University of Michigan, Amy G. Fiedler of the University of Wisconsin, Luis Armando Godoy of the University of California David Medical Center, and Thomas K. Varghese, Jr., of the University of Utah. They discuss the fundamental skill sets residents must learn before graduation, the current curriculum at each panelists' respective institutions, and innovative new ideas to guide curriculum development in the future.

#9: CTSNet Beat Podcast: STS 57th Annual Meeting, a Unique Technique for Robotic Lobectomy, and Managing Chest Tubes in COVID-19

This Beat episode, featuring Brian Mitzman, general thoracic surgeon with the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, discusses recent highlights submitted to CTSNet along with a look at this weekend's Society of Thoracic Surgeons 57th Annual Meeting. For more information on this episode's topics, links are provided:

1. Society of Thoracic Surgeons 57th Annual Meeting
2. Fontaine J-P, Parvathaneni A. Moffitt Technique. January 2021. doi:10.25373/ctsnet.13549418. 
3. Ceylan KC, Batihan G, Yazgan S, et al. Pleural complications in patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): How to safely apply and follow-up with a chest tube during the pandemic. Eur J Cardiothoracic Surg. 2020;58:1216-1221.

Surgical Management of Acute Aortic Dissections: Tricks and Tips to Simplify the Operation

In this CTSNet To Go podcast episode, Guest Editor Konstadinos A. Plestis and his panelists discuss the seven clinical videos of his recent Guest Editor Series: Surgical Management of Acute Aortic Dissections: Tricks and Tips to Simplify the Operation, highlighting key techniques in difficult cases that can be replicated by all cardiac surgeons. 

Improving Survival in Early Stage NSCLC by Incorporating a 14 Gene Molecular Risk Diagnostic Assay

David Jablons moderates this live event, which presented data about the development of a molecular assay based on resected tumor RNA expression from simple paraffin-fixed tissue samples. This is integrated into an algorithm that can assign a risk score for recurrence. This molecular risk score is fully independent of standard TNM staging and does not rely on any other clinical parameters. The assay has been widely validated in thousands of patients and demonstrates both significant prognostic information and the predictive benefit of adjuvant platinum based chemotherapy in high risk patients, as identified by this assay.

Giants of Cardiothoracic Surgery: An Interview With Lars Svensson

In this Giants of Cardiothoracic Surgery interview, Jessica Luc speaks with Lars G. Svensson of the Cleveland Clinic about his career in cardiac surgery. They discuss the elephant trunk procedure, the modified David reimplantation procedure, and the "J" incision, as well as Dr Svensson's tips for mentorship and leadership.

#8: CTSNet Beat Podcast: COVID-19 Vaccines: Part I

This Beat episode, hosted by Joel Dunning, MD, includes part I of a two-part discussion on vaccines. Dr Dunning reviews three papers on the three COVID-19 vaccines currently available.

For more information on this episode's topics, links are provided:

1. Baden LR, El Sahly HM, Essink B, Kotloff K, Frey S, Novak R, et al. Efficacy and safety of the mRNA-1273 SARS-CoV-2 vaccine. N Engl J Med. Dec 30, 2021.
2. Voysey M, Clemens SAC, Madhi SA, Weckx LY, Folegatti PM, Aley PK, et al. Safety and efficacy of the ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 vaccine (AZD1222) against SARS-CoV-2: an interim analysis of four randomised controlled trials in Brazil, South Africa, and the UK. Lancet. Dec 8, 2020.
3. Polack FP, Thomas SJ, Kitchin N, Absalon J, Gurtman A, Lockhart S, et al. Safety and efficacy of the BNT162b2 mRNA Covid-19 vaccine. N Engl J Med. 2020;383:2603-2615.