D Palomba

Publications (2)1.84 Total impact

• Article: Preliminary evidence for reduced preoperative cerebral blood flow velocity as a risk factor for cognitive decline three months after cardiac surgery: an extension study.

  S Messerotti Benvenuti, P Zanatta, C Valfrè, E Polesel, D Palomba
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  ABSTRACT: This extension study investigated the association between preoperative cerebral blood flow (CBF) velocity and postoperative cognitive decline (POCD) at a three-month follow-up in patients who underwent cardiac surgery. Continuous transcranial Doppler ultrasound on both middle cerebral arteries (MCAs) was used preoperatively in 31 right-handed cardiac surgery patients at rest. Each patient performed a neuropsychological evaluation to assess cognitive performance before surgery, at discharge and at three-month follow-up. Patients with POCD at the three-month follow-up had a marginally significantly lower preoperative CBF velocity in the left MCA than patients without POCD. Moreover, the group with POCD had a significantly lower CBF velocity in the left than in the right MCA, whereas no difference between the left and right CBF velocity was found in the group without POCD. These preliminary findings suggest that reduced preoperative CBF velocity in the left MCA may represent an independent risk factor for cognitive decline in patients three months after surgery.
  Perfusion 07/2012; · 0.92 Impact Factor
• Article: The role of asymmetry and the nature of microembolization in cognitive decline after heart valve surgery: a pilot study.

  Paolo Zanatta, S Messerotti Benvenuti, C Valfrè, F Baldanzi, D Palomba
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  ABSTRACT: Our objective was to determine the role of asymmetry and the nature of microembolization on postoperative cognitive decline in patients who had undergone heart valve surgery. Continuous transcranial Doppler ultrasound was intraoperatively used for both middle cerebral arteries in 13 right-handed heart valve surgery patients to detect microembolization. The Trail Making Test A and B, Memory with 10/30 s interference, the Digit Span Test and Phonemic Fluency were performed preoperatively, at discharge and three months after surgery. Our data suggest that early and late postoperative psychomotor and executive functions may be sensitive to microemboli in the left, but not in the right middle cerebral artery. Moreover, solid and gaseous microemboli are both similarly associated with early postoperative cognitive decline while, surprisingly, late postoperative cognitive decline is more likely to be associated with gaseous than solid microemboli.
  Perfusion 02/2012; 27(3):199-206. · 0.92 Impact Factor