Summary Background Remote ischaemic preconditioning has been associated with reduced risk of myocardial injury after coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. We investigated the safety and ...efficacy of this procedure. Methods Eligible patients were those scheduled to undergo elective isolated first-time CABG surgery under cold crystalloid cardioplegia and cardiopulmonary bypass at the West-German Heart Centre, Essen, Germany, between April, 2008, and October, 2012. Patients were prospectively randomised to receive remote ischaemic preconditioning (three cycles of 5 min ischaemia and 5 min reperfusion in the left upper arm after induction of anaesthesia) or no ischaemic preconditioning (control). The primary endpoint was myocardial injury, as reflected by the geometric mean area under the curve (AUC) for perioperative concentrations of cardiac troponin I (cTnI) in serum in the first 72 h after CABG. Mortality was the main safety endpoint. Analysis was done in intention-to-treat and per-protocol populations. This trial is registered with ClinicalTrials.gov , number NCT01406678. Findings 329 patients were enrolled. Baseline characteristics and perioperative data did not differ between groups. cTnI AUC was 266 ng/mL over 72 h (95% CI 237–298) in the remote ischaemic preconditioning group and 321 ng/mL (287–360) in the control group. In the intention-to-treat population, the ratio of remote ischaemic preconditioning to control for cTnI AUC was 0·83 (95% CI 0·70–0·97, p=0·022). cTnI release remained lower in the per-protocol analysis (0·79, 0·66–0·94, p=0·001). All-cause mortality was assessed over 1·54 (SD 1·22) years and was lower with remote ischaemic preconditioning than without (ratio 0·27, 95% CI 0·08–0·98, p=0·046). Interpretation Remote ischaemic preconditioning provided perioperative myocardial protection and improved the prognosis of patients undergoing elective CABG surgery. Funding German Research Foundation.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
Frozen Elephant Trunk (FET) combines the advantages of open and endovascular surgery for the treatment of complex aortic arch pathologies extending into the descending aorta. At University Hospital ...Essen, operative skills were developed to make FET surgery safer including guidance and control of FET deployment into the descending aorta by angioscopy and facilitation of arch repair by moving the distal anastomosis to Zone 2 and more proximally. Selective whole body perfusion during the arch repair was used to improve organ protection under moderate hypothermia. Our results demonstrate acceptable mortality in this high risk patient population and reduction of postoperative morbidity in the last years. With regard to the rate of exclusion of aneurysms in the distal arch and the false lumen in acute aortic dissection, FET should be the treatment of choice in both. In chronic aortic dissection and extensive descending aortic aneurysms, FET represents a safe first stage procedure and provides an ideal docking place in the mid-descending aorta for a second endovascular or open thoracoabdominal aortic repair, if required.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Abstract
OBJECTIVES
Our goal was to evaluate the extent of stent-graft (SG) elastic recoil in the descending aorta after the frozen elephant trunk procedure in acute (AAD) and chronic (CAD) aortic ...dissection as well as the impact of SG movement on distal stent graft-induced new entry (d-SINE).
METHODS
We retrospectively analysed 149 (105 AAD, 44 CAD) of 259 aortic dissection patients after the frozen elephant trunk procedure between January 2005 and April 2019. Inclusion criteria were at least 1-year computed tomography angiography (CTA) aortic examinations during a follow-up time of 3.8 ± 2.7 years and absence of open or endovascular reintervention. Multiplanar reconstruction of CTA scans was used to define the SG vector position and movement in a virtual Cartesian coordinate system. The angle φ of vector movement and changes of aortic areas at the distal landing zone were analysed.
RESULTS
The distal SG position changed over time in the cranial (10.06 ± 11.12 mm), dorsal (8.45 ± 11.12 mm) and lateral (4.96 ± 9.89 mm) directions (P < 0.001). The total change of φ (4.08 ± 7.03°) was greater in AAD than in CAD (P = 0.026). d-SINE was more common in CAD (P < 0.001) and was associated with the size of the aortic area, aortic area enlargement and continuous SG unfolding (P < 0.001).
CONCLUSIONS
With the frozen elephant trunk technique, movement and change of SG orientation in the descending aorta were observed over time. Elastic recoil was greater in AAD than in CAD. The incidence of d-SINE was particularly dependent on the size of the aortic lumen and SG radial expansion and less on elastic recoil.
The evolution of endovascular aortic repair over the last 2 decades fundamentally changed the treatment of descending aortic disease 1.
Background Because of the extensive involvement of the aorta, surgical treatment of its chronic dissection continues to represent a surgical challenge. We conducted a study of a multicenter ...experience to describe a multicenter experience in the treatment of this complex pathology, using the frozen elephant trunk (FET) technique. Methods Between January 2005 and May 2010, 240 patients underwent treatment with the FET technique and had their clinical data collected in the International E-vita Open Registry. Ninety of the patients, who were the population in the present study, underwent operations for chronic dissection of the aorta (type A, 77%). The mean age of these 90 patients was 57 ± 12 years, and 72 (80%) of the patients were male. Sixty-two patients (69%) had undergone a previous aortic operation. All of the procedures in the study were performed with the aid of antegrade selective cerebral perfusion. Results Total replacement of the aortic arch was done in 84 patients (93%). Cardiopulmonary bypass, myocardial ischemia, cerebral perfusion, and visceral ischemia times were 243 ± 65, 145 ± 48, 86 ± 24, and 75 ± 22 minutes, respectively. In-hospital mortality was 12% (11 patients). One patient died from a stroke and 8 patients (9%) died from ischemic spinal cord injury. The false lumen (FL) in the patients' aortae was evaluated with computed tomography after operation and during follow up. The rates of complete thrombosis of the FL around the elephant trunk were 69% and 79% at the first and last postoperative examinations, respectively. The rates of 4-year survival and freedom from aortic reoperation were 78% ± 5% and 96% ± 3%, respectively. Conclusions The treatment of chronic aortic dissection (AD) with the FET technique is feasible, with respectable results. The rate of aortic reoperation with the use of this technique appears to be lower than that with a conventional approach to the repair of chronic AD. Ischemic spinal cord injury represents a concerning complication of the FET technique but seems to be unrelated to thrombosis of the FL.
The precise sizing of the stent graft in thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) affects aortic remodeling and hence, further outcome. Covering the proximal entry tear is essential for successful ...treatment of Type B aortic dissection. Intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) enables real-time aortic diameter assessment, and is especially useful when computed tomography (CT) image quality is poor. IVUS, however, is not routinely utilized due to cost inefficiency. We investigated the impact of IVUS-assisted stent graft sizing on aortic remodeling in TEVAR. In this single-center retrospective study we evaluated patients with Type B aortic dissection undergoing both CT and IVUS before TEVAR. We assessed the aortic diameter at the level of the left subclavian artery via both methods before stent implantation and analyzed due to which method the implanted stent graft was chosen, retrospectively. To determine the degrees of aortic remodeling involved, we evaluated true lumen and false lumen diameters, and total aortic remodeling in CT. We analyzed 45 patients with Type B aortic dissection undergoing TEVAR. The mean ages were 66.9±10.0 years fo0072 IVUS (n = 20) and 62.3±14.2 years for CT-assisted TEVAR (n = 25; p = 0.226). The follow-up time for both groups did not differ between the two groups (IVUS: 22.9±23.1 months, CT: 25.6±23.0 months; p = 0.700). While both methods were associated with advantages regarding aortic remodeling, IVUS-assisted sizing yielded a greater increase in true lumen (30.4±6.2 vs. 25.6±5.3; p = 0.008) and reductions in false lumen (14.4±8.5 vs. 23.9±9.3; p = 0.001) and total aortic diameter (35.5±6.0 vs. 39.9±8.1; p = 0.045). IVUS-guided stent graft sizing in Type B aortic dissection shows beneficial effects on aortic remodeling and might be of additional advantage in aortic diseases, especially when CT image quality is poor.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) in chronic aortic dissection remains controversial. We analysed whether a high intimal flap mobility (IFM) of the dissection membrane has an impact on ...aortic remodelling after TEVAR in chronic Type B aortic dissection. Patients undergoing TEVAR with intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) were analysed and IFM was calculated. High IFM was defined as maximum flap amplitude >3 mm. For determining aortic remodelling, the degree of true lumen (TL) expansion was analysed in the last available follow-up CT. Fifty-two patients (63.6 ± 15.4 years) with a mean follow-up of 26.6 ± 20.7 months were analysed. The mobile flap group (n = 29) showed higher absolute TL expansion at the distal stent-graft (5.9 ± 3.1 vs. 3.3 ± 5.4 mm; p = 0.036) and a higher increase in TL diameter (18 ± 10 vs. 9 ± 15%; p = 0.017) compared to the non-mobile group (n = 23). Basic TEVAR-related outcome characteristics were comparable, but the mobile intimal flap group showed a lower re-intervention rate (3 vs. 8pts.; p = 0.032) in chronic dissections. High IFM in chronic Type B aortic dissection is linked to improved aortic remodelling and is associated with a lower re-intervention rate over time. IVUS assessment of IFM in chronic Type B aortic dissection might be helpful in identifying patients with better remodelling after TEVAR.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Background The risk of clinically apparent, periprocedural stroke after thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) due to dislodgement and embolization of aortic debris from intravascular ...manipulation of guidewires, catheters, and large-bore delivery systems ranges between 2% and 6% and has been associated with increased postoperative mortality. The rate of clinically silent cerebral ischemia is yet unknown, but may be even higher. Methods Nineteen patients (13 male, 6 female) who underwent TEVAR were included into this descriptive study. Periprocedural apparent and silent cerebral ischemia was assessed by daily clinical neurologic assessment and serial cerebral diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (DW-MRI) at baseline and 5 days (median, interquartile range: 3.5) after the procedure. Results The TEVAR was successful in all patients without immediate clinically apparent neurologic deficits. Postinterventional cerebral DW-MRI detected a total of 29 new foci of restricted diffusion in 12 of 19 TEVAR patients (63%). Lesions were usually multiple (1 to 6 lesions per patient) and ranged in size between 15 mm3 and 300 mm3 ; 16 lesions were found in the left hemisphere, 13 lesions in the right hemisphere. Overstenting of the left subclavian artery was performed in 8 cases, but was not associated with lateralization of lesions. There were no additional apparent neurologic events during the in-hospital period. Conclusions Thoracic endovascular aortic repair resulted in a high incidence of new foci of restricted diffusion on cerebral DW-MRI in a pattern suggestive of periprocedural embolization. Although multiple lesions per patients were found, these lesions were not associated with apparent neurologic deficits during the in-hospital period. Further developments in TEVAR should be directed toward reducing the risk of periprocedural cerebral embolization.