[HSF] Possible infected Freestyle

[Hgrmd at aol.com]

John,
  Welcome to our club.  I hope one of the principles you learn  from this 
case is that less is often more.  I don't know of many 80 yo  patients who would 
truly benefit from the hassle of a 25 mm stented  prosthesis.  If you had 
placed a 23 mm C-E Magna, you would have gotten the  same effective orifice area, 
and presumably not had this terrible  complication.  I'm not sure what Tea was 
implying about the use of pledgets  on the aortotomy, but I recommend you use 
them liberally.  Losing control  of an aortotomy is a very lonely feeling.
Hal



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