Long-term follow-up, computed tomography, and computational fluid dynamics of the Cabrol procedure.
OBJECTIVE
The Cabrol procedure is characterized by insertion of an ascending aortic composite graft with reimplantation of the coronary arteries by the interposition of a graft tube. Our purpose is to report the clinical long-term follow-up and computed tomographic findings in patients having undergone the Cabrol procedure and to determine blood flow in the Cabrol graft using computational fluid dynamics.


METHODS
Clinical follow-up (76.6 +/- 16.6 months) and dual-source computed tomographic angiography data of 7 patients (all men, mean age 54.9 +/- 9.6 years) with 12 Cabrol grafts (left main coronary artery, n = 7; right coronary artery, n = 5) were reviewed. In 2 patients, the right coronary artery was directly reattached to the aortic graft. Computational fluid dynamics were calculated using computed tomographic data of a patient with the Cabrol procedure and compared with those in a Valsalva graft and a healthy aortic root.


RESULTS
Computed tomography showed Cabrol graft occlusions to 1 of 7 (14%) left main and of 2 of 5 (40%) right coronary arteries. Six grafts to the left main and 3 to the right coronary artery were fully patent, similar to the 2 directly reattached right coronary arteries to the aortic graft. Computational fluid dynamics results show similar blood flow parameters into the coronaries for the healthy aortic root and Valsalva graft. In the Cabrol graft, a spiraling flow pattern with low flow into the right coronary artery was found (right coronary artery = 1 mL/min at both systole and diastole).


CONCLUSIONS
Our study indicates low flow rates particularly in the right Cabrol graft correlating with a higher incidence of occlusions of the right as compared with the left Cabrol graft at long-term follow-up.
Knight
Joseph
J
Laboratory of Thermodynamics in Emerging Technologies, Department of Mechanical and Process Engineering, ETH Zurich, Switzerland.
Baumüller
Stephan
S
Kurtcuoglu
Vartan
V
Turina
Marko
M
Turina
Juraj
J
Schurr
Ulrich
U
Poulikakos
Dimos
D
Marshall
William
W
Alkadhi
Hatem
H
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001011:Aorta / Q000601:surgery*; D001021:Aortic Valve / Q000601:surgery*; D001027:Aortography / Q000379:methods; D001807:Blood Vessel Prosthesis; D006348:Cardiac Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000601:surgery*; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012039:Regional Blood Flow; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013997:Time Factors; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D014656:Vascular Surgical Procedures / Q000379:methods