In the Original Article entitled “Short- and long-term outcomes of continuous-flow left ventricular assist device therapy in 79 patients with end-stage heart failure” published in the July–August 2020 issue (Biełka A, Kalinowski M, Pacholewicz J, et al. Pol Arch Intern Med. 130: 589–597. doi:10.20452/pamw.15362), corrections were needed.

The following corrections were made in the abstract on page 589: the sentence “The mean time on CF-LVAD support was 605 days (range, 1–1834 days).” should have read “The mean time on CF-LVAD support was 604 days (range, 1–1758 days).”; the sentence “Major gastrointestinal bleeding and pump thrombosis were reported in 13 patients (16.4%), while 18 patients (22.8%) developed driveline infections (recurrent in 15 patients [19%]).” should have read “Major gastrointestinal bleeding and pump thrombosis were reported in 13 patients (16.5%), while 18 patients (22.8%) developed driveline infections (recurrent in 15 patients [19%]).”; and the sentence “Survival probability was 0.9 at 1 month and 0.8, 0.69, 0.58, and 0.46 at 1, 2, 3, and 4 years, respectively.” should have read “Survival probability was 0.9 at 1 month and 0.81, 0.71, 0.61, and 0.53 at 1, 2, 3, and 4 years, respectively.”

On page 590, the sentence “Patients were followed until death, pump explantation, or OHT.” should have read “Patients were followed until death, pump explantation, end of follow-up, or OHT.”; the sentence “Ischemic cardiomyopathy was the major cause of HF (36%–45.5% of patients), followed by dilated cardiomyopathy (27%–34.1% of patients).” should have read “Ischemic cardiomyopathy was the major cause of HF (36 [45.6%] of patients), followed by dilated cardiomyopathy (27 [34.2%] of patients).”; the sentence “At the time of LVAD implantation, 57 patients (72.1%) were on inotropic support, while 34 patients (43%) were bridged with temporary circulatory support (TCS): 30 (37.9%) with an intra-aortic balloon pump; 2 (2.5%), with venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO); 1 (1.2%), with an Impella device; and 1 (1.2%), with a CentriMag device.” should have read “At the time of LVAD implantation, 57 patients (72.1%) were on inotropic support, while 34 patients (43%) were bridged with temporary circulatory support (TCS): 30 (38%) with an intra-aortic balloon pump; 2 (2.5%), with venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO); 1 (1.3%), with an Impella device; and 1 (1.3%), with a CentriMag device.”

In Table 1 on page 591, the number (percentage) of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease should be “3 (3.8)” instead of “3 (3.7)”, with atrial fibrillation or flutter—“45 (57)” instead of “45 (56.9)”, and with prior myocardial infarction—“33 (41.8)” instead of “33 (41.7)”. Moreover, the characteristic “Chronic kidney disease stage 3 or lower” should have read “Chronic kidney disease stage 3 or higher.”

On page 591, the sentence “In 70 patients (90.9%), nitric oxide inhalation was used postoperatively at a mean time of 15.9 hours (median, 16 hours; range, 1–131 hours).” should have read “In 70 patients (88.6%), nitric oxide inhalation was used postoperatively at a mean time of 15.9 hours (median, 16 hours; range, 1–131 hours).” Also, the sentence “The overall reoperation rate was 30.4% (24 patients), and the predominant cause was bleeding (23%–29.1%).” should have read “The overall reoperation rate was 30.4% (24 patients), and the predominant cause was bleeding (23 [29.1%]).”

On page 592, the passage “In the postoperative period, 3 patients (3.9%) developed wound infection at a mean time of 46 days (median, 41 days; range, 19–79 days) and 1 patient developed bacterial peritonitis after 45 days from LVAD implantation. Pneumonia (confirmed by chest radiography or microbiological tests) was reported in 17 patients (22.1%); 20 patients (26%) developed other kind of infection; and in 14 patients (18.2%), fever of unknown origin was observed (all microbiological tests were negative). One patient (1.3%) had fungemia and 8 patients (10.4%) had bacteremia after a mean time of 19.4 days (median, 17 days; range, 0–42 days) from implantation.” should have read “In the postoperative period, 3 patients (3.8%) developed wound infection at a mean time of 46 days (median, 41 days; range, 19–79 days) and 1 patient developed bacterial peritonitis after 45 days from LVAD implantation. Pneumonia (confirmed by chest radiography or microbiological tests) was reported in 17 patients (21.5%); 20 patients (25.3%) developed other kind of infection; and in 14 patients (17.7%), fever of unknown origin was observed (all microbiological tests were negative). One patient (1.3%) had fungemia and 8 patients (10.1%) had bacteremia after a mean time of 19.4 days (median, 17 days; range, 0–42 days) from implantation.” Also, the sentence “Driveline infections were present in 18 patients (22.8%), of whom 15 (18.9%) developed a chronic condition.” should have read “Driveline infections were present in 18 patients (22.8%), of whom 15 (19%) developed a chronic condition.”

On page 593, the sentence “When postimplantation factors were considered, death correlated with bacteremia (P = 0.01), renal replacement therapy (P = 0.002), and the postoperative use of inotropes for RHF.” should have read “When postimplantation factors were considered, death correlated with bacteremia (P = 0.01), renal replacement therapy (P = 0.002), and the postoperative use of inotropes for RHF (P = 0.046).” Furthermore, the sentence “Mortality was associated with HS (P ≤0.001) and bacteremia (P = 0.01), while no associations were observed for IS (P = 0.59), TIA (P = 0.06), GI bleeding (P = 0.39), NB (P = 0.43), and DLI (P = 0.46).” should have read “Mortality was associated with HS (P ≤0.001) and bacteremia (P = 0.01), while no associations were observed for IS (P = 0.59), PT (P = 0.35), TIA (P = 0.06), GI bleeding (P = 0.39), NB (P = 0.43), and DLI (P = 0.46).”

On page 594, the sentence “It is also in line with a study by Tsiouris et al,12,13 including 200 patients (mean duration of LVAD support, 581 days), who reported the 30-day, 6-month, as well as 1-, 2-, 3-, and 4-year survival rates of 94%, 96%, 78%, 71%, 62%, and 45%, respectively (as compared with 90%, 81%, 71%, 61%, and 53%, respectively, in our study).” should have read “It is also in line with a study by Tsiouris et al,12,13 including 200 patients (mean duration of LVAD support, 581 days), who reported the 30-day, 6-month, as well as 1-, 2-, 3-, and 4-year survival rates of 94%, 96%, 78%, 71%, 62%, and 45%, respectively (as compared with 90%, 87%, 81%, 71%, 61%, and 53%, respectively, in our study).”

The article is correct at www.mp.pl/paim.