title: Frozen versus conventional elephant trunk technique: application in clinical practice.
abstract: SummaryTreating complex aortic arch disease with proximal and distal aortic segment involvement is challenging. In recent years, different surgical and endovascular techniques have been applied in a single or multiple-stage approach with the aim to cure and simplify these conditions. The first procedure available for this purpose was the conventional elephant trunk technique. Its recent evolution is the frozen elephant trunk, which treats the descending thoracic aorta using the antegrade release of a self-expandable stent graft. In the following review article, we analyse the advantages and drawbacks of both techniques from clinical and practical perspectives.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Alma Mater studiorum-University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Di Bartolomeo
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Alma Mater studiorum-University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy giacomo.murana@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Giacomo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Murana
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Alma Mater studiorum-University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Luca
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Di Marco
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Alma Mater studiorum-University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pantaleo
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Alma Mater studiorum-University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Jacopo
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Alfonsi
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Alma Mater studiorum-University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Alessandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Leone
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Alma Mater studiorum-University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Davide
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pacini
mesh_terms: D000784:Aortic Dissection / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000601:surgery; D001014:Aortic Aneurysm / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery; D001018:Aortic Diseases / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D001807:Blood Vessel Prosthesis; D019917:Blood Vessel Prosthesis Implantation / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed
keywords: Aortic; Aortic arch; Cerebral perfusion; Elephant trunk; Frozen elephant trunk