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Abstract Objective: To determine the feasibility of aortic valve neocuspidization (AVNeo) with glutaraldehyde-treated autologous pericardium. Methods: One hundred and seventy (170) AVNeo (84 males/86 females) were performed from January 2017 through March 2019 in three centers. All the records were prospectively collected and retrospectively reviewed. Results: Most of the patients were older than 60 years and over 95% were operated for aortic stenosis. Preoperatively, pressure gradients were 69.9±21.3 mmHg for patients with aortic stenosis, and the surgical annular diameter was 21.0±2.0 mm for all patients. Effective orifice area (EOA) and indexed EOA (iEOA) averaged 0.7±0.3 cm2 and 0.4±0.2 cm2/m2 for patients with aortic stenosis before surgery, respectively. There was no conversion to prosthetic aortic valve replacement. Eight patients needed reoperation for bleeding, but no patient needed reoperation due to early infective endocarditis. There were five in-hospital deaths due to noncardiac cause. Compared to preoperative echocardiographic measurements, postoperative peak pressure gradient decreased significantly (-58.7±1.7 mmHg; P<0.001) and reached 11.2±5.6 mmHg, and mean pressure gradient also decreased significantly (-36.8±1.1 mmHg; P<0.001) and reached 6.0±3.5 mmHg. Accordingly, EOA and iEOA increased significantly 2.0 cm2 and 1.0 cm2/m2 (both P<0.001) to reach 2.7±0.6 cm2 and 1.4±0.3 cm2/m2 after surgery, respectively, with minimal significant aortic regurgitation (0.6% > mild). Conclusion: AVNeo is feasible and reproducible with good clinical results. Hemodynamically, AVNeo produces immediate postoperative low-pressure gradients, large EOA, and minimal regurgitation of the aortic valve. Further studies are necessary to evaluate mid- and long-term evolution.

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Abstract Objective: To compare the incidence of postoperative complications (PC) between diabetic and nondiabetic patients undergoing cardiovascular surgeries (CS). Methods: This is a retrospective cross-sectional study, based on the analysis of 288 medical records. Patients aged ≥ 18 years, admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) between January 2012 and January 2013, and undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) or vascular surgeries were included. The population was divided into those with and without type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), and then it was evaluated the incidence of PC between the groups. Results: The sample included 288 patients, most of them being elderly (67 [60-75] years old) male (64%) subjects. Regarding to surgical procedures, 60.4% of them were undergoing vascular surgeries and 39.6% were in the postoperative period of CABG. The incidence of T2DM in this population was 40% (115), just behind hypertension, with 72% (208). Other risk factors were also observed, such as smoking in 95 (33%) patients, dyslipidemias in 54 (19%) patients, and previous myocardial infarction in 55 (19%) patients. No significant difference in relation to PC (bleeding, atrial fibrillation, cardiorespiratory arrest, and respiratory complications) between the groups was observed (P>0.05). Conclusion: T2DM has a high incidence rate in the population of critically ill patients submitted to CS, especially in the elderly. However, in this small retrospectively analyzed study, there was no significant increase in PC related to diabetes for patients undergoing CS.

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Abstract Objective: Description of adult congenital heart disease (CHD) outpatient characteristics has not been reported and several aspects regarding these patients require attention. We describe the 12-year experience of a Brazilian unit. Methods: The main characteristics of 1168 patients were reviewed annotating for each patient age, gender, city of residence, main diagnosis, functional class at last examination, defect complexity and in-hospital referral pattern. Results: Increasing workload was documented. Among the CHD patients, 663 (57%) were between 14 and 30 years old and 920 (79%) lived in the referral region. Referrals were made by hospital cardiologists for 611 (52%) patients, while 519 (45%) were referred by pediatric cardiologists. Regarding CHD severity, 637 (55%) had a defect of mild complexity. Of the patients analyzed, 616 (53%) had undergone an intervention, mainly atrial septal defect (ASD) closure, correction of tetralogy of Fallot, ventricular septal defect (VSD) closure and relief of coarctation of the aorta (CoAo). The main diagnosis of the 552 (47%) patients not submitted to an intervention were ASD, VSD, aortic stenosis, complex CHD and pulmonary stenosis. Regarding functional class, 1016 (87%) were in class I and 280 (24%) were lost to follow-up. Seventy-three patients had died, mainly due to cardiac death. Conclusion: In a unit were complex pediatric congenital heart surgery started twenty years ago, an increasing adult CHD workload was documented. Referral came predominantly from cities around the unit, most patients had low complexity defects and were in functional class I, a significant loss of follow-up was documented, and the death of patients was mainly due to the heart defect.

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Abstract Objective: To analyze patients’ preoperative characteristics, surgical data, postoperative courses, and short- and long-term outcomes after implantation of different full-root prostheses for destructive aortic valve endocarditis. Methods: Between 1999 and 2018, 80 patients underwent aortic root replacement due to infective endocarditis in our institution. We analyzed the abovementioned data with standard statistical methods. Results: The Freestyle stentless porcine prostheses were implanted in 53 (66.25%) patients, biological valve conduits in 13 (16.25%), aortic root homografts in nine (11.25%), and mechanical valve conduits in five (6.25%). There were no significant preoperative differences between the groups. The incidence of postoperative complications and intensive care unit length of stay did not differ significantly between the groups. The 30-day mortality rate was low among Freestyle patients (n=8, 15.1%) and high in the mechanical conduit cohort (n=3, 60%), though with borderline statistical significance (P=0.055). The best mean survival rates were observed after homograft (13.7 years) and stentless prosthesis (8.1 years) implantation, followed by biological (2.8 years) and mechanical (1.4 years) conduits (P=0.014). The incidence of reoperations was low in the mechanical conduit group (0) and stentless bioroot group (n=1, 1.9%), but two (15.4%) patients with biological conduits and three (33.3%) patients with homografts required reoperations in the investigated follow-up period (P=0.005). Conclusion: In patients with the destructive form of aortic valve endocarditis, homografts and stentless porcine xenografts offer better survival rates than stented valve conduits; however, the reoperation rate among patients who received homograft valves is high.

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Abstract Objective: To investigate the predictive value of preoperative neutrophil-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) for long-term major adverse cardiac and cerebrovascular events (MACCE), which have not yet been well described, in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Methods: The records of 751 consecutive patients who underwent elective CABG between January 2008 and January 2010 were retrospectively enrolled and stratified according to quartiles of preoperative NLR. At 7.8-year follow-up, MACCE was considered as an endpoint. Results: Overall MACCE was 11.6% of all cases. Long-term myocardial infarction, percutaneous coronary intervention, stroke and cardiovascular mortality were found associated with the upper NLR quartile (P<0.001, P<0.001, P=0.005, P<0.001, respectively). In multivariate analysis, NLR on admission remained an independent predictor of long-term MACCE (OR 1.087, 95% CI 1.026-1.151; P=0.004), in all EuroSCORE risk groups (P<0.001; P<0.001; P=0.029). The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses revealed an NLR cut-off value of 4.32 predicting MACCE. Conclusion: NLR is a useful and readily available predictive marker of long-term MACCE following CABG, independent of the EuroSCORE.

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Abstract Objective: To compare the results of surgical repair via median sternotomy, right submammary thoracotomy, and right vertical infra-axillary thoracotomy for atrial septal defect (ASD). Methods: This is a retrospective analysis of the relative perioperative and postoperative data of 136 patients who underwent surgical repair for ASD with the abovementioned three different treatments in our hospital from June 2014 to December 2017. Results: The results of the surgeries were all satisfactory in the three groups. No statistically significant difference was found in operative time, duration of cardiopulmonary bypass, blood transfusion amount, postoperative mechanical ventilation time, duration of intensive care unit, length of hospital stay, and hospital costs. However, the median sternotomy group had the longest incision. Meanwhile, there was no significant difference in postoperative complications. Conclusion: All three types of surgical incisions can be safely and effectively used to repair ASD. The treatments via right submammary thoracotomy and right vertical infra-axillary thoracotomy have advantages over the treatment via median sternotomy in cosmetic results and should be the recommended options.

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Abstract Objective: To investigate the effects of lidocaine oropharyngeal spray applied before endotracheal intubation on hemodynamic responses and electrocardiographic parameters in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting. Methods: A total of 60 patients who underwent coronary artery bypass grafting surgery were included in this prospective randomized controlled study. Patients were randomly divided into two groups, the topical lidocaine group (administration of 10% lidocaine oropharyngeal spray, five minutes before laryngoscopy and endotracheal intubation) and the control group. Both groups were compared with each other in terms of main hemodynamic parameters including mean arterial pressure and heart rate, as well as P and QT wave dispersion durations, before and after endotracheal intubation. Results: The groups were similar in terms of age, gender, and other demographics and basic clinical characteristics. There was a statistically significant difference between the groups in terms of QT dispersion durations after laryngoscopy and endotracheal intubation. The increase in QT dispersion duration was not statistically significant in the topical lidocaine group, whereas the increase in QT dispersion duration was statistically significant in the control group. When the groups were compared in terms of P wave dispersion durations, there were significant decreases in both groups, but there was no significant difference between the groups. Conclusion: Our study revealed that the topical lidocaine administration before endotracheal intubation prevented increase of QT dispersion duration in patients undergoing coronary artery bypass grafting. Trial Registration: NCT03304431

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Abstract Objective: To evaluate the prognostic value of C-reactive protein to albumin ratio (CAR) in patients with severe aortic valve stenosis undergoing surgical aortic valve replacement (AVR). Methods: Four hundred seventy-six patients with severe degenerative aortic stenosis who underwent successful isolated surgical AVR were enrolled. Hospitalization due to heart failure, surgical aortic reoperation, paravalvular leakage rates, and long-term mortality were evaluated in the whole study group. The participants were divided into two groups, as 443 patients without mortality (group 1) and 33 patients with mortality (group 2) during the follow-up time. Results: CAR was lower in patients without mortality than in those with mortality during the follow-up time (0.84 [0.03-23.43] vs. 2.50 [0.22-26.55], respectively, P<0.001). Age (odds ratio [OR]: 1.062, confidence interval [CI]: 1.012-1.114, P=0.014), CAR (OR: 1.221, CI: 1.125-1.325, P<0.001), ejection fraction (OR: 0.956, CI: 0.916-0.998, P=0.042), and valve type (OR: 2.634, CI: 1.045-6.638, P=0.040) were also found to be independent predictors of long-term mortality. Additionally, rehospitalization (0.86 [0.03-26.55] vs. 1.6 [0.17-24.05], P=0.006), aortic reoperation (0.87 [0.03-26.55] vs. 1.6 [0.20-23.43], P=0.016), and moderate to severe aortic paravalvular leakage (0.86 [0.03-26.55] vs. 1.86 [0.21-19.50], P=0.023) ratios were associated with higher CAR. Conclusion: It was firstly described that CAR was strongly related with increased mortality rates in patients with isolated severe aortic stenosis after surgical AVR. Additionally, rehospitalization, risk of paravalvular leakage, and aortic reoperation rates were higher in patients with increased CAR than in those without it.

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Abstract Objective: To evaluate the clinical and echocardiographic outcomes in aortic valve replacement (AVR) patients with aortic bioprosthesis under oral anticoagulation (OA). Methods: Patients who underwent AVR with bioprosthesiswere prospectively enrolled. They were classified based on postoperative use of OA. Clinical and operative variables were collected. Echocardiographic and clinical follow-ups were performed two years after surgery. The primary outcome evaluated was change in transprosthetic gradient. Secondary outcomes analyzed were change in New York Heart Association (NYHA) class, major bleeding episodes, hospitalization, stroke, and transient ischemic attack. Results: We included 103 patients (61 without OA and 42 with OA). Clinical characteristics were similar among groups, except for younger age (76±6.3 vs. 72.4±8.1 years, P=0.016) and higher prevalence of atrial fibrillation (0% vs. 23.8%, P<0.001) in the OA group. Mean (21.4±10 mmHg vs. 16.8±7.7 mmHg, P=0.037) and maximum (33.4±13.7 mmHg vs. 28.4±10.2 mmHg, P=0.05) transprosthetic gradients were higher in patients without OA. Improvement in NYHA class was more frequent in patients with OA (73% vs. 45.3%, P=0.032). Major bleeding, stroke, and hospitalization were similar among groups. OA was the only independent predictor for improvement of NYHA class after multivariate logistic regression analysis (odds ratio [OR]: 5.9, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.2-29.4; P=0.028). Stratification by prosthesis size showed that patients with ≤ 21 mm prosthesis benefited from OA. Conclusion: Early anticoagulation after AVR with bioprosthesis was associated with significant decrease of transprosthesis gradient and improvement in NYHA class. These associations were seen mainly in patients with ≤ 21 mm prosthesis.

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Abstract Objective: We aimed to investigate the protective effect of adrenomedullin (ADM) on cerebral tissue of rats with cerebral ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. Methods: Thirty-two Wistar rats were randomized into four groups (n=8). In the I/R Group, bilateral common carotid arteries were clamped for 30 minutes and, subsequently, reperfused for 120 minutes. In the ADM Group, rats received 12 µg/kg of ADM. In the I/R+ADM Group, bilateral common carotid arteries were clamped for 30 minutes and, subsequently, the rats received 12 µg/ kg of ADM. Then, reperfusion was performed for 120 minutes. The Control Group underwent no procedure. Blood and brain tissue samples were collected for biochemical and histopathological analysis. Serum malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) were analysed. Brain tissue was evaluated histopathologically and neuronal cells were counted in five different fields, at a magnification of ×400. Results: Brain MDA in I/R Group was significantly higher than in ADM Group. Brain GPx and SOD in I/R+ADM Group were significantly higher than in I/R Group. The number of neurons was decreased in I/R Group compared to the Control Group. The number of neurons in I/R+ADM Group was significantly higher than in I/R Group, and lower than in Control Group. Apoptotic changes decreased significantly in I/R+ADM Group and the cell structure was similar in morphology compared to the Control Group. Conclusion: We demonstrated the cerebral protective effect of ADM in the rat model of cerebral I/R injury after bilateral carotid artery occlusion.

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Abstract Objective: To assess the effectiveness and safety of fast-track cardiac anesthesia using the short-acting opioid sufentanil in children undergoing intraoperative device closure of ventricular septal defect (VSD). Methods: This retrospective clinical study included 65 children who underwent intraoperative device closure of VSD between January 2017 and June 2017. Patients were diagnosed with isolated perimembranous VSD by transthoracic echocardiography. Then, they were divided into two groups, group F (n=30), whose patients were given sufentanil-based fast-track cardiac anesthesia, and group C (n=35), whose patients were given conventional cardiac anesthesia. Perioperative clinical data were analyzed. Results: No significant differences were found between the preoperative clinical parameters and intraoperative hemodynamic indices between the two groups. In group C, compared with group F, the postoperative duration of mechanical ventilation, the length of stay in the intensive care unit, the length of hospital stay, and the hospital costs were significantly increased. Conclusion: In this retrospective study at a single center, sufentanil-based fast-track cardiac anesthesia was shown to be a safe and effective technique for minimally-invasive intraoperative device closure of VSD in children, which was performed with reduced in-hospital costs.

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Abstract Objective: To compare the early and long-term results of patients in whom was performed modified closed coronary transfer with the results of patients in whom was performed trap-door transfer techniques by utilizing propensity-matching analysis to provide optimal identical patient matching for the groups. Methods: From August 2015 to December 2017, 127 consecutive patients underwent arterial switch operation due to simple and complex transposition of the great arteries, with or without additional arch and complex coronary pattern, by a single surgical team included into the study. Of these, in 70 patients it was performed modified closed coronary transfer technique and in 57 patients it was performed trap-door style coronary transfer technique. The patients were divided into two groups in terms of coronary transfer method. In the final model, after propensity matching, 47 patients from each group having similar propensity score were included into the study. Results: There was no significant difference between the groups regarding patient characteristics. Cross-clamp time and operation time were significantly lower in the modified technique group compared with the other group (P=0.03 and P=0.05, respectively). When compared the early and late postoperative outcomes, there was no significant difference between the groups. Postoperative echocardiographic findings were mostly similar between the groups. Conclusion: The patients in whom was performed our modified technique demonstrate overall good outcomes and the current technique ensures shorter arterial cross-clamp and operation times. It may be an alternative method to the trap-door technique for the coronary transfer during the arterial switch operation.

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Abstract Objective: The current study aims to investigate the role of echocardiographically measured epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) thickness in the prediction of new-onset atrial fibrillation (AF) following coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery. Methods: One hundred and twenty-four patients scheduled to undergo isolated on-pump CABG due to coronary artery disease were enrolled to the current study. Patient characteristics, medical history and perioperative variables were prospectively collected. EAT thickness was measured using transthoracic echocardiography (TTE). Any documented episode of new-onset postoperative AF (POAF) until discharge was defined as the study endpoint. Fortyfour participants with POAF served as AF group and 80 patients without AF served as Non-AF group. Results: Two groups were similar in terms of baseline echocardiographic and laboratory findings. In laboratory findings, the groups were similar in terms of the studied parameters, except N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT Pro-BNP), which was higher in AF group than in Non-AF group (P=0.035). The number of left internal mammary artery (LIMA) grafts was not different in both groups. AF group had higher cross-clamp (CC) and cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB) times than Non-AF group (P=0.01 and P<0.001). In multivariate logistic regression analysis, EAT was found an independent predictor for the development of POAF (OR 4.47, 95% CI 3.07-5.87, P=0.001). Conclusion: We have shown that EAT thickness is associated with increased risk of AF development and can be used as a prognostic marker for this purpose.

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Abstract Objective: Results from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and real-world study (RWS) appear to be discordant. We aimed to investigate whether data derived from RCTs and RWS evaluating long-term all-cause mortality of transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) versus surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) in patients with severe aortic stenosis (AS) were in agreement. Methods: RCTs or RWS comparing TAVI and SAVR, reporting longterm (≥2-year follow-up) all-cause mortality, were identified. We also carried out subgroup analyses to access the effect in different subgroups. A pre-designated data extraction form including 5 domains and 26 items was used to explore the relationship between RCTs and RWS. Mortality and effect in different subgroups were evaluated using random-effects meta-analyses. Results: Five RCTs (5421 participants, TAVI: 2759, SAVR: 2662) and 33 RWS (20839 participants; TAVI: 6585, SAVR: 14254) were identified. Pooled RCT analysis showed no difference in all-cause mortality between TAVI and SAVR (HR=0.97, 95% CI: 0.88-1.07; P=0.55). In RWS, TAVI was associated with an increased risk of allcause mortality (HR=1.46, 95% CI: 1.26-1.69; P<0.001) compared to SAVR. Conclusion: These results highlight the inconsistencies between RCTs and RWS in assessing long-term all-cause mortality in the treatment of AS using TAVI or SAVR, which may be caused by interactions of clinical characteristics or study design. RCTs as well as RWS are both developing and improving; the advantages of one kind of design, measurement and evaluation can and should be thoughtfully referred to the other.

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Abstract Objective: The current review evaluates recent literature on the different aspects of prophylaxis in postoperative pulmonary and venous thromboembolism and their main risk factors. Methods: The literature survey was carried out based on the PubMed data using the keywords “coronary artery bypass graft” and “venous thromboembolism” as components of the search field title. Results: Studies reported several risk factors for postoperative thromboembolism including advanced age, postoperative immobilization, type of thromboprophylaxis, obesity, and location of the surgery. Conclusion: According to the studies, tailored prophylaxis could be easily adapted to decrease the intensity and duration of postoperative thromboembolism in a patient with several disorders and comorbidities, especially in cardiovascular disease.

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Abstract Medical management of atrial fibrillation can be complex, challenging and requiring time to prove its effectiveness; furthermore, the response can be refractory and inconsistent if the underlying pathology is not permanently addressed. Surgical ablation has become a key intervention, and since its first intervention in 1987 (the Cox-maze procedure), the technique has evolved from a conventional open method to a minimally invasive technique whilst retaining excellent outcomes. Furthermore, recent advances in the use of a hybrid approach have been established as satisfactory approach in managing atrial fibrillation with satisfactory outcomes. This literature review focuses on the evidence behind the surgical success in managing atrial fibrillation throughout the past, present and the future of these surgical interventions.

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Abstract Total arch replacement and stent trunk were performed for two patients. One of these underwent a total bilateral carotid artery replacement in anatomical position while the other underwent partial carotid artery dissection. The first patient demonstrated no neurological complication after surgery and a postoperative computed tomography angiography (CTA) showed bilateral common carotid artery patency. However, the second patient had neurological dysfunction after surgery, while a postoperative CTA showed occlusion of the left common carotid artery. Anatomical replacement for a common carotid artery dissection with thrombus has the potential to significantly improve cerebral perfusion and reduce postoperative neurological complications.

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Abstract Coronary fistulas are rare anomalies that can affect approximately 1% of the population, presenting few specific symptoms, and are often found occasionally in coronary angiography. Here we describe the case of a 61-year-old patient with complaints of precordialgia and dyspnea since adolescence, with late diagnosis of coronary fistulas with drainage to the pulmonary artery, and with unsuccessful percutaneous treatment. Therefore, she underwent open surgery for the correction of the already known fistulas, in addition to the hemangioma involving such vessels, which made the understanding and resolution of this case more complex.

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Abstract Coronary artery bypass grafting is a commonly performed procedure for coronary revascularization. We describe the successful management of left ventricular dissecting hematoma, caused by the tissue stabilizer, while performing off-pump coronary artery bypass graft procedure.

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Abstract Primary malignant neoplasms of the heart are rare. Cardiac rhabdomyosarcoma is the second most common primary sarcoma. We report a rare case of a 49-year-old woman with a huge biatrial cardiac rhabdomyosarcoma treated by performing surgical resection followed by salvage chemotherapy for local recurrence. Cardiac sarcoma that occupy both atria are extremely rare. Although the prognosis of cardiac rhabdomyosarcoma is dismal, surgical resection should be recommended as a first line therapy to clarify the diagnosis and to relieve symptoms associated with the tumor.

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Abstract Type II Aortopulmonary window (APW) accounts for only 10% of total cases of APW, which by itself is a rare congenital anomaly. Various cardiac malformations have been reported to be associated with this rare anomaly. We report one such association of origin of left subclavian artery (LSCA) from left pulmonary artery (LPA) via ductus arteriosus that was surgically repaired.