Sinus of Valsalva aneurysm (SOVA), a congenital or acquired cardiac defect that is present in roughly 0.09% of the general population, often presents as an incidental finding during cardiac imaging. Although an echocardiogram is the standard imaging technique for such findings, cardiac computed tomography angiography (CCTA) has been increasingly utilized. If SOVA is diagnosed, CCTA is also a useful test for patients who are at low to intermediate risk for coronary artery disease (CAD) prior to surgical repair. CCTA can accurately rule out CAD, obviating the need for invasive angiography in most cases, which may be more risky in SOVA patients because their coronaries may be more difficult to engage and their aortic root may be more prone to injury. Although surgery has previously been the treatment of choice, transcatheter techniques have added to the spectrum of nonsurgical alternatives for repair. We report here 4 incidental SOVA cases and review the current literature.

Background Hypermetabolism has been described in stress states such as trauma, sepsis, acute respiratory distress syndrome, and severe burn injuries. We hypothesize that patients with Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) may develop a hypermetabolic state, which may be a major contributing factor to the extraordinary ventilatory and oxygenation demands in patients with COVID‐19. Method Resting energy expenditure (REE), carbon dioxide production (VCO2), and oxygen consumption (VO2) were measured by indirect calorimetry on 7 critically ill patients with COVID‐19. Results The median measured REE was 4044 kcal/d, which was 235.7% ± 51.7% of predicted. The median VCO2 was 452 mL/min (range, 295–582 mL/min), and the median VO2 was 585 mL/min (range, 416–798 mL/min). Conclusion Critically ill patients with COVID‐19 are in an extreme hypermetabolic state. This may explain the high failure rates for mechanical ventilation for these patients and highlights the potential need for increased nutrition requirements for such patients.

Patients undergoing cardiac surgery with preoperative prealbumin levels of ≤ 20 mg/dL have an increased risk for postoperative infections and the need for longer mechanical ventilation. If feasible, nutrition optimization of such patients may be considered prior to cardiac surgery.