title: Stent-graft repair for acute traumatic thoracic aortic rupture.
abstract: Traumatic rupture of the thoracic aorta is potentially life-threatening and leads to death in 75 to 90 per cent of cases at the time of injury. In high-risk patients, as traumatic injuries of the aorta combine with multiple associated injuries, endoluminal repair is now reported as a promising therapeutic strategy with encouraging results. This study determined the outcome of patients with traumatic thoracic aortic injury treated endovascularly during the past 7 years at our institution. Thirteen patients, 11 males and 2 females (mean age, 39 years; range, 19-82), with traumatic rupture of the otherwise unremarkable descending aorta (10 acute, 3 chronic), out of a series of 64 endovascular thoracic stent-graft procedures, were treated by implantation of Talent (n = 8), Vanguard (n = 5), and Excluder (n = 2) self-expanding devices between January 1996 and August 2003. The immediate technical success rate was 92 per cent (12/13). One patient showed a proximal endoleak type I, which was treated successfully by an additional stent-graft procedure. Secondary success rate was 100 per cent. The mortality rate was 0 per cent. Two additional stent-graft procedures were performed due to type I endoleaks after 18 and 28 months. There was no other intervention-related morbidity or mortality during the mean follow-up time of 26.4 months' (range, 6-86). Endovascular stent-graft repair of traumatic thoracic aortic injuries is a safe, effective, and low-morbidity alternative to open thoracic surgery and has promising midterm results.
authors.affiliation: Department of Vascular Surgery, University Hospital Innsbruck, Innsbruck, Austria.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Neuhauser
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Czermak
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Jaschke
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Waldenberger
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fraedrich
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Perkmann
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D017130:Angioplasty / Q000379:methods; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000293:injuries / Q000601:surgery; D017545:Aortic Aneurysm, Thoracic / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D001019:Aortic Rupture / Q000601:surgery*; D001807:Blood Vessel Prosthesis; D019917:Blood Vessel Prosthesis Implantation / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009104:Multiple Trauma / Q000150:complications / Q000601:surgery*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D015607:Stents; D016896:Treatment Outcome