Surgery for acute type A aortic dissection using retrograde cerebral perfusion.
OBJECTIVE
We reviewed the surgical management of acute type A aortic dissection between 1989 and 1998.


METHODS
Subjects were 28 consecutive patients (mean age: 61.8 +/- 10.7 years) with acute type A aortic dissection were studied. The mean duration between aortic dissection onset and surgery was 17.5 +/- 17.0 hours. In surgery, aortic pathology and flow patterns in dissected aortic channels were evaluated using transesophageal and epiaortic echo. Simple, safe combination of profound hypothermic circulatory arrest with retrograde cerebral perfusion and open aortic anastomosis was used for brain protection. Hypothermic circulatory arrest was 46.9 +/- 24.8 minutes. Aortic repair consisted in ascending aortic replacement in 5 patients, with hemiarch repair in 17, and total arch repair in 6. Intimal tears were resected in all but 2 patients. Concomitantly resuspension of the aortic valve was done in 9 and aortic root replacement in 2.


RESULTS
No operative (30-day) deaths occurred, although 2 died from unrelated hepatic failure during hospitalization or late-stage pancreatic cancer in the late stage. In cerebral sequellae, 1 patient suffered a stroke and 2 patients developed temporary neurologic dysfunction.


CONCLUSIONS
Our experience demonstrated that the simplified conjunction of hypothermic circulatory arrest with retrograde cerebral perfusion and open aortic anastomosis, associated with real-time assessment by transesophageal and epiaortic echo, is safe and useful during emergency aortic repair for acute type A aortic dissection.
Ogino
H
H
Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, National Cardiovascular Center, Osaka, Japan.
Ueda
Y
Y
Sugita
T
T
Sakakibara
Y
Y
Matsuyama
K
K
Matsubayashi
K
K
Nomoto
T
T
D000208:Acute Disease; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000714:Anastomosis, Surgical; D000784:Aortic Dissection / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D001011:Aorta / Q000601:surgery; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000601:surgery; D001014:Aortic Aneurysm / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D001021:Aortic Valve / Q000601:surgery; D019917:Blood Vessel Prosthesis Implantation; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation; D017548:Echocardiography, Transesophageal; D005260:Female; D006324:Heart Arrest, Induced / Q000379:methods*; D019918:Heart Valve Prosthesis Implantation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010477:Perfusion / Q000379:methods