Acute type A aortic dissection and the consequences of a patent false lumen

Balloon and Glue Technique: A Modification of Distal Reinforcement to Prevent Anastomotic New Entry, Reducing Replacement Range in Acute Type A Aortic Dissection

In emergency surgery for acute type A aortic dissection, the creation of needle holes can cause various issues and complications. One persistent challenge is the prevention of distal anastomotic new entry tears, which frequently necessitate additional intervention. Modification of the distal reinforcement technique offers a straightforward solution by combining existing hemostatic agents with tools such as occlusion balloons. We describe a modified distal reinforcement procedure employing a balloon-and-glue technique to help prevent new entry tears at the distal anastomosis and avoid total arch replacement. Ten patients with acute type A aortic dissection were treated using this technique. Postoperative computed tomography indicated no evidence of distal anastomotic entry tears. In conclusion, this modified distal reinforcement technique represents not only a method to prevent distal anastomotic new entry tears but also a palliative approach that may obviate the need for total arch replacement in patients in poor condition or of advanced age.

Commentary: The Balloon and Glue Technique in Acute Type A Aortic Dissection: Considerations for Optimization and Clinical Application

See Article page 65.

Clinical Imaging and Innovations in Aortic Aneurysm and Dissection

Imaging plays a central role in the management of patients with aortic disease. Such imaging can be made particularly complex by changing terminology and definitions, overlapping pathologies, and unfamiliarity with evolving endovascular treatment approaches. This article will review basic principles of aortic imaging that can be applied across a variety of settings and pathologies, with a description of key best practices and potential pitfalls for image acquisition, diagnostic assessment, and reporting. Additionally, the topic of imaging in the setting of endovascular aortic repair will be addressed, as well as a variety of imaging-related diagnostic challenges in the setting of chronic aortic dissection, including surgically repaired type A and uncomplicated type B dissections. Finally, recent developments in advanced aortic imaging will be highlighted with descriptions of several areas of promising research that may yield significant advances in imaging of aortic disease.

Aortic Dissection Complicated by Mesenteric Malperfusion Syndrome Presenting As Hepatic Ischemia: A Case Report and Literature Review

Aortic dissection (AD) is a medical emergency that occurs as a result of a compromise in the structural integrity of the aorta. If left untreated, AD can have severe consequences such as organ dysfunction or even death. Malperfusion syndrome is a major complication of aortic dissection with mesenteric malperfusion syndrome being a rare but devastating form that can lead to mesenteric ischemia and is associated with poor prognosis despite timely management. Here we report a case of a 31-year-old woman who was diagnosed with mesenteric ischemia secondary to incidental findings of aortic dissection whilst being investigated for ischemic hepatitis. She underwent emergency surgery to repair the aortic dissection but faced challenges due to unusual arterial vasculature. Despite best efforts, the patient's condition deteriorated, leading to severe brain injury. Management of aortic dissection complicated by mesenteric malperfusion remains a clinical challenge with high mortality rates and despite this, there is currently no definitive national guideline for the best management approach.

Redo aortic arch repair using trifurcated hybrid prosthesis after failed Ascyrus medical dissection stent treatment

BACKGROUND

The management of acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD) using the Ascyrus Medical Dissection Stent (AMDS) can lead to complications due to the persistence of the false lumen (FL). This case report presents two instances of failed AMDS treatment for ATAAD, highlighting the novel use of a trifurcated hybrid prosthesis for redo aortic arch repair using a minimally invasive frozen elephant trunk (FET) technique.

CASE PRESENTATION

Case 1: A 57-year-old male, previously treated with AMDS for ATAAD, presented with an enlarging aortic arch and persistent FL two years post-surgery caused by re-entry in the distal aortic arch. Redo surgery using the FET technique with an E-vita OPEN NEO Trifurcated hybrid prosthesis resulted in successful repair and partial FL thrombosis. Case 2: A 51-year-old male with prior AMDS treatment for ATAAD presented with severe aortic valve regurgitation and a maintained FL perfusion due to a residual re-entry in the proximal region of the descending aorta. Redo surgery using the FET technique with the same hybrid prosthesis led to successful repair and good recovery, confirmed by follow-up imaging.

CONCLUSIONS

The use of the E-vita OPEN NEO Trifurcated hybrid prosthesis in the FET technique offers a promising solution for redo aortic arch repair in cases of failed AMDS treatment for ATAAD. This approach can improve patient outcomes by addressing complications associated with persistent FL and enhancing long-term survival.

Aortic arch registry of type a aortic dissection (AoArch) - rationale, design and definition criteria

BACKGROUND

Type A acute aortic dissection (TAAAD) is a deadly condition that demands immediate surgery, because it involves a critically. The mortality and morbidity associated with it are significant, and it is vital that the patient's conditions and treatment strategies are fully understood to ensure the appropriate management of TAAAD. This study aims to ascertain whether hemiarch repair (HAR) versus extended arch repair (EAR) with or without descending aortic intervention results in better perioperative and late outcomes for patients with TAAAD.

METHODS

Four leading centers of cardiac surgery from two European countries have joined forces to create a groundbreaking multicenter observational registry (AoArch). This study was approved by the institutional review board (IRB 202201173). We conducted a retrospective review (NCT00591263) of our prospectively maintained database for patients who underwent operative repair of DeBakey type I or type II dissection from January 1, 2005 to March 2024 (NCT05927090). We will analyze how patient co-morbidities, referral conditions, and surgical strategies involving hemi-arch repair (HAR) and extended arch repair (EAR) impact early and late adverse events. We have developed a procedure urgency algorithm based on the severity of preoperative hemodynamic conditions and malperfusion due to TAAAD, and we will use it to assess the primary clinical outcomes: in-hospital mortality, late mortality, and reoperations on the aorta. We will define secondary outcomes as permanent neurologic deficit, the need for new dialysis, respiratory failure, a composite of major adverse events (myocardial infarction, cerebrovascular accidents, the need for dialysis, or the need for tracheostomy), and a composite of major adverse pulmonary events (intubation over 48 h, pneumonia, reintubation, tracheostomy), and reoperation due to bleeding.

DISCUSSION

This multicenter registry will definitively determine the prognostic significance of critical preoperative conditions and the efficacy of extended arch interventions and hemiarch repair in reducing the risk of early adverse events after surgery for TAAAD. This registry will provide insights into the long-term durability of different strategies of surgical repair for TAAAD.

Frozen elephant use in type a dissection: fundamentals, innovations, and pitfalls

INTRODUCTION

Type A acute aortic dissection (TA-AAD) is a great challenge for aortic surgeons. The establishment of a standardized surgical approach, particularly the determination of whether and when to address the aortic arch and the distal aorta in the same operation as the proximal aorta, is still unclear.

AREAS COVERED

Frozen elephant trunk (FET) has emerged as a valuable treatment for TA-AAD over the last decade. Here, we discuss the fundamentals and pitfalls of frozen elephant trunk procedures and present the latest innovations.

EXPERT OPINION

FET has the potential to simplify arch reconstruction in patients with complex arch tears and rupture, optimize perfusion in the distal true lumen for those with a compressed true lumen and malperfusion, address distal reentry tears, and promote false lumen thrombosis and late aortic remodeling. Nevertheless, FET is still associated with non-negligible mortality and morbidity rates. Patient selection, surgical expertise, and postoperative care remain crucial determinants in ensuring successful outcomes. Recent innovations in FET surgery involve the development of techniques to minimize or avoid hypothermic circulatory arrest and new FET devices with different arch branch configurations aiming to facilitate subsequent aortic reinterventions. We believe that both these advancements have the potential to improve patient outcomes.

Is TEVAR an Effective Approach to Prevent Complications after Surgery for Aortic Dissection Type A? A Systematic Review

Introduction: A residual false lumen after treatment for Aortic Dissection type A (AD) has been associated with early complications, such as A malperfusion or rupture and mid-term or delayed complications, such as aneurysm formation or dissection expansion. Thoracic Endovascular Aortic Repair (TEVAR) is considered an effective solution by several surgical teams to prevent future complications. In this systematic review, all published data regarding the implementation of TEVAR after previous treatment for AD were collected in order to investigate indications, methods, clinical outcomes and aortic remodeling in these patients. Methods: The aim of this study was to investigate the indications, the methods and the efficacy of TEVAR usage after surgical treatment of AD. Data for this study were collected from four widely used medical databases (MEDLINE, SCIENCE DIRECT, GOOGLE SCHOLAR, OVID). All the results for each database were recorded and were analyzed with a systematic method. Techniques and clinical outcomes were investigated. Aortic remodeling was evaluated based on the following parameters in these studies: aortic diameter, true lumen diameter, false lumen diameter, false lumen thrombosis and false lumen patency. Results: The results obtained from the search among all databases comprised 1410 articles and of these articles 9 were included in the review. The majority of the studies were retrospective (seven out of nine studies), while no study was randomized. The total number of patients was 157 and 133 of them (84.7% of patients) were treated with TEVAR in zone 3 without extension below the diaphragm intraoperatively. Among 142 patients, the calculated mortality rate was 12.7% (18 of 142 patients), with 2.8% (4 of 142 patients) presenting with stroke. The percentage of patients with total or partial thrombosis combined was 65.9% (62 patients in a population of 92). The reintervention rate was 18.7%. Conclusions: TEVAR after AD surgery is an approach usually chosen in clinical practice, but the criteria of its usage are uncertain. This method is safe and enhances aortic remodeling with an acceptable reintervention rate. Definite guidelines in this field should be created in order to delineate whether TEVAR after AD surgery is beneficial as a preventive measure to aorta-related complications and to decide under which criteria this approach should be chosen.

The frozen elephant trunk: seeking a more definitive treatment for acute type A aortic dissection

OBJECTIVES

Conventional treatment for type A aortic dissection includes replacement of the ascending aorta with an open distal anastomosis in the hemiarch position. The frozen elephant trunk (FET) is a hybrid technique that extends the repair to the descending thoracic aorta. The goal is to improve resolution of malperfusion syndrome and to induce positive aortic remodelling and reduce the need for reintervention on the downstream aorta. We aim to summarize the data on the short and long-term outcomes of this technique.

METHODS

A thorough search of the literature was conducted isolating all articles dealing with aortic remodelling after the use of FET in case of type A acute aortic dissection. Keywords 'aortic dissection', 'frozen elephant trunk', 'aortic remodelling' and 'false lumen thrombosis' were used. Data for type B and chronic aortic dissections were excluded.

RESULTS

FET use favourably influences aortic remodelling. The main advantages lie in the exclusion of distal entry tears in either the aortic arch or descending aorta thus restoring antegrade blood flow in the true lumen and inducing false lumen thrombosis. False lumen thrombosis is not only induced at the level of the stent deployment but also lower in the distal descending aorta. Moreover, it offers an adequate landing zone in the mid-descending aorta for second-stage endovascular or open surgical aortic repair, if needed.

CONCLUSIONS

FET can be advantageous in the treatment of acute type A aortic dissection dealing with extended aortic pathology.

Three-year outcomes of the Dissected Aorta Repair Through Stent Implantation trial

OBJECTIVE

The study objective was to evaluate the clinical and radiographic outcomes of the Ascyrus Medical Dissection Stent in a prospective, nonrandomized, international study (Dissected Aorta Repair Through Stent Implantation) of patients with acute DeBakey type I aortic dissection.

METHODS

The Ascyrus Medical Dissection Stent was used in combination with the standard surgical management of acute DeBakey type I aortic dissection I to treat patients with (56.5%, 26/46) and without (43.5%, 20/46) preoperative clinical and radiographic malperfusion. All patients had a primary entry tear in the ascending aorta, and 97.8% (45/46) were treated with a hemiarch repair. Median follow-up was 3 years.

RESULTS

All 47 patients underwent emergency surgical repair with successful Ascyrus Medical Dissection Stent implantation. One patient was excluded from analysis due to use in iatrogenic dissection. Overall mortality at 30 days and 3 years was 13.0% (6/46) and 21.7% (10/46), respectively. Overall new stroke rate at 30 days was 15.2% (7/46). No devices were explanted at any time during the 3-year median follow-up. At 3 years, the total aortic diameter in zones 0, 1, and 2 decreased or remained stable in 91.7%, 72.7%, and 75.0%, respectively. The false lumen was completely or partially thrombosed in 90.5% in zone 0, 60.0% in zone 1, and 68.2% in zone 2 at 3 years.

CONCLUSIONS

The use of the Ascyrus Medical Dissection Stent in the treatment of acute DeBakey type I aortic dissection I holds promise as a simple technology that enables repair of the aortic arch and proximal descending aorta, while promoting positive aortic remodeling. Ongoing follow-up of the Dissected Aorta Repair Through Stent Implantation trial will provide long-term, prospective, clinical outcomes and radiographic data on positive remodeling of the aortic arch.

Hybrid noncovered open stents in repair of DeBakey type 1 acute aortic dissections

OBJECTIVES

The indications for use, evidence base and experience with the novel noncovered open hybrid surgical stents for acute type A aortic dissection repair for concurrent stabilization of the 'downstream' aorta remains limited. We review the evidence base and the development of these stents.

METHODS

Data were collected from Pubmed/Medline literature search to develop and review the evidence base for safety and efficacy of non-covered surgical stents. Existing guidelines for use and developments were reviewed.

RESULTS

A single randomized control trial and 4 single-centre studies were included in the review with a total worldwide experience of 241 patients. The deployment was easy and did not add significantly to the primary operation. The mortality and new stroke ranged from 6.3-18.7%. Safe and complete deployment was accomplished in 92-100%. There was no device-related reintervention. There was a significant improvement in malperfusion in over 90% of the cases with varying degrees of remodelling (60-90%) of the downstream aorta.

CONCLUSIONS

Open noncovered stent grafts represent a major technical advancement as an adjunct procedure for acute dissection repairs, e.g. hemiarch repair. It has potential for wider use by non-aortic surgeons due to simplicity of technique. Limited safety and efficacy data confirm the device to be safe, feasible and reproducible with potential for wider adoption. However, long-term trial and registry data are required before recommendations for standard use outside of high-volume experienced aortic centres.

The Use of the Ascyrus Medical Dissection Stent in Acute Type A Aortic Dissection Repair Reduces Distal Anastomotic New Entry Tear

BACKGROUND

A distal anastomotic new entry tear (DANE) can occur at the time of surgical repair for acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD). This study aimed to compare the occurrence of DANE following a standard hemiarch repair with that following a hemiarch repair with an uncovered arch dissection stent.

METHODS

All patients who received a hemiarch repair or a hemiarch repair with an Ascyrus Medical Dissection Stent (AMDS) for ATAAD from 2017 to 2021 were included. Baseline and intra- and postoperative characteristics were collected. All available pre- and postoperative computed tomographic scans were analysed. The primary outcome measures were the incidence of DANE, positive aortic remodelling, mortality, and aortic reintervention rates at last follow-up.

RESULTS

A total of 114 patients underwent repair of Debakey I ATAAD during the study period with either an isolated hemiarch (n = 77) or a hemiarch with AMDS (n = 37). There was no significant difference in mortality (P = 0.768) or other in-hospital adverse events. During the follow-up period, DANE occurred in 43.3% (n = 26) of the isolated hemiarch group and in 11.8% (n = 4) of the hemiarch with AMDS group (P = 0.002). The incidence of false lumen thrombosis and obliteration favoured the AMDS group in the aortic arch (P = 0.029), the proximal descending thoracic aorta (P = 0.031), and level of pulmonary artery bifurcation (P = 0.044).

CONCLUSIONS

The incidence of DANE is significantly reduced with the addition of an AMDS at the time of hemiarch repair for ATAAD repair. Further follow-up is necessary to identify late aortic complications that may have been prevented by reducing the incidence of postoperative DANE.

Aortic arch redo surgery: early and mid-term outcomes in 120 patients

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this study was to analyse the indications, surgical extent and results of treatment, as well as determine the risk factors for adverse outcomes after redo arch surgery.

METHODS

Between January 1996 and December 2022, 120 patients underwent aortic arch reoperations after primary proximal aortic surgery. We retrospectively analysed perioperative data, as well as early and mid-term outcomes in these patients.

RESULTS

Indications for arch reintervention included new aortic aneurysm in 34 patients (28.3%), expanding post-dissection aneurysm in 36 (30.0%), aortic graft infection in 39 (32.5%) and new aortic dissection in 9 cases. Two patients underwent reoperation due to iatrogenic complications. Thirty-one patients (25.8%) had concomitant endocarditis. In-hospital and 30-day mortality rates were 11.7% and 15.0%, respectively. Stroke was observed in 11 (9.2%) and paraplegia in 1 patient. Prior surgery due to aneurysm [odds ratio 4.5; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.4-17.3] and critical preoperative state (odds ratio 5.9; 95% CI 1.5-23.7) were independent predictors of 30-day mortality. Overall 1- and 5-year survival was 65.8 ± 8.8% and 51.2 ± 10.6%, respectively. Diabetes mellitus (hazard ratio 2.4; 95% CI 1.0-5.1) and peripheral arterial disease (hazard ratio 4.7; 95% CI 1.1-14.3) were independent predictors of late death. The cumulative incidence of reoperations was 12.6% (95% CI 6.7-20.4%) at 5 years. Accounting for mortality as a competing event, connective tissue disorders (subdistribution hazard ratio 4.5; 95% CI 1.6-15.7) and interval between primary and redo surgery (subdistribution hazard ratio 1.04; 95% CI 1.02-1.06) were independent predictors of reoperations after redo arch surgery.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite being technically demanding, aortic arch reoperations are feasible and can be performed with acceptable results.

Cardiac Surgery 2021 Reviewed

PubMed displayed more than 35,000 hits for the search term "cardiac surgery AND 2021." We used the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analyses) approach and selected relevant publications for a results-oriented summary. As in recent years, we reviewed the fields of coronary and conventional valve surgery and their overlap with their interventional alternatives. COVID reduced cardiac surgical activity around the world. In the coronary field, the FAME 3 trial dominated publications by practically repeating SYNTAX, but with modern stents and fractional flow reserve (FFR)-guided percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs). PCI was again unable to achieve non-inferiority compared with coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) in patients with triple-vessel disease. Survival advantages of CABG over PCI could be linked to a reduction in myocardial infarctions and current terminology was criticized because the term "myocardial revascularization" is not precise and does not reflect the infarct-preventing collateralization effect of CABG. In structural heart disease, new guidelines were published, providing upgrades of interventional treatments of both aortic and mitral valve disease. While for aortic stenosis, transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) received a primary recommendation in older and high-risk patients; recommendations for transcatheter mitral edge-to-edge treatment were upgraded for patients considered inappropriate for surgery. For heart team discussions it is important to know that classic aortic valve replacement currently provides strong signals (from registry and randomized evidence) for a survival advantage over TAVI after 5 years. This article summarizes publications perceived as important by us. It can neither be complete nor free of individual interpretation, but provides up-to-date information for decision-making and patient information.