title: Surgical and long-term mortality in 2634 consecutive patients operated on the proximal thoracic aorta.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To assess surgical and long-term mortality in a large, contemporary, unselected cohort of patients undergoing operations on the proximal thoracic aorta.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients in the Swedish Heart Surgery register operated 1992-2004 were identified and data cross-linked with the in-hospital and cause-of-death registers. Factors associated with surgical, intermediate, and long-term mortality were studied with separate Cox analyses. Long-term survival was estimated by Kaplan-Meier analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  2634 patients (68% men, mean age 60 years) were operated for aortic aneurysm (n=1821, 69%) or aortic dissection (n=813, 31%). Overall, increased age, aortic dissection, emergency operation, coronary artery bypass grafting, postoperative stroke, and postoperative renal failure were independently associated with surgical mortality. Only age was independently associated with long-term mortality. Later era of treatment (1998-2004 vs 1992-1997) was associated with lower risk only for aneurysm patients, despite similar changes in surgical approach. Long-term survival for all patients was 83% at 1 year, 77% at 5 years, and 73% at 10 years and identical for aneurysm and dissection when adjusted for surgical mortality.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Increased age was associated with increased mortality across follow-up, implicating early surgery when possible. Results improved over time for aneurysms but not dissections; however, long-term survival was equal.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Thoraxkliniken, Uppsala University Hospital, Akademiska sjukhuset, SE-751 85 Uppsala, Sweden. christian.olsson@surgsci.uu.se
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Olsson
authors.forename: Niclas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Eriksson
authors.forename: Elisabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Ståhle
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Thelin
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000784:Aortic Dissection / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D017545:Aortic Aneurysm, Thoracic / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery*; D002648:Child; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D053208:Kaplan-Meier Estimate; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011183:Postoperative Complications; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome