Degenerative thoracic aortic aneurysm is associated with higher modified frailty index (mFI) and mortality compared to patients with dissecting thoracic aortic aneurysm, with or without thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR).

Objective To explore the experience and management of intraoperative care of patients with aneurysm of thoracic aorta and aortic dissecting aneurysm treated with endovascular aneurysm repair and blood vessel bypass (the hybrid operation). Methods Ten patients with aneurysm of thoracic aorta and aortic dissecting aneurysm were treated with the hybrid operation in catheter lab. During the operation, nurses and doctors cooperated connivantly. Following measures were carried out to ensure the smooth operation and prevent the occurrence of complications: life signs were monitored carefully and medicines and equipments were prepared fully. Results 10 patients with aneurysm of thoracic aorta and aortic dissecting aneurysm underwent the hybrid operation successfully without no complications. Conclusions It was safe and effective to carry out the hybrid operation for patients with aneurysm of thoracic aorta and aortic dissecting aneurysm by strict management and specialist nurses raining. Skilled collaboration and strict life signs monitoring was pivotal to ensure the success of the hybrid operation. Key words: Thoracic aorta aneurysm; Aortic dissecting aneurysm; Endovascular aneurysm repair; Hybrid operation; Intervention nursing management

Left Subclavian Artery Revascularization May Not Influence the Incidence of Spinal Cord Ischemia in Elective Thoracic Endovascular Aortic Aneurysm Repair

National trends and regional variation of open and endovascular repair of thoracic and thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysms in contemporary practice

Multiple reports could show a reduced risk for thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) compared with open treatment. The aim of this study was to evaluate our twelve-year TEVAR experience for thoracic aortic aneurysms and compare these results with open repair. All patients who had received either open or endovascular surgery for a degenerative aortic aneurysm of the descending thoracic aorta in our center were evaluated retrospectively. N = 53 TEVAR patients (1997-2008) were included and their course was compared with an open-surgery group of n = 24 patients (1992-2002). The percentage of symptomatic patients was 43% (TEVAR) and 42% (open surgery). Endovascular treatment resulted in a significantly reduced 30-day (5.7% versus 25% P = 0.02) and one-year mortality (19% versus 42% P = 0.05) in the entire cohort. Symptomatic patients benefited the most from TEVAR (30-day mortality: 9% versus 40%, P = 0.06; one-year mortality: 27% versus 70%, P = 0.049) whereas the survival of our asymptomatic patients was not significantly different (30-day mortality: 3% versus 14%, P = 0.22; one-year mortality: 13% versus 21%, P = 0.65). Lastly, Kaplan-Meier analysis showed a significantly improved survival after TEVAR (P = 0.05) and in particular for the symptomatic patients (P = 0.003). In conclusion, endovascular treatment for patients with degenerative thoracic aortic aneurysms has significant advantages over open surgery.

Secondary Interventions after Elective Endovascular Repair of Degenerative Thoracic Aortic Aneurysms: Results of the European Collaborators Registry (EUROSTAR)

Clinical presentation, outcomes, and threshold for repair by sex in degenerative saccular vs fusiform aneurysms in the descending thoracic aorta

Spinal Cord Protection with a Cerebrospinal Fluid Drain in a Patient Undergoing Thoracic Endovascular Aortic Repair

Degenerative thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA) patients are known to be at risk of life-threatening acute aortic events. Guidelines recommend preemptive surgery at diameters of greater than 55 mm, although many patients with small aneurysms show only mild growth rates and more than half of complications occur in aneurysms below this threshold. Thus, assessment of hemodynamics using 4-dimensional flow magnetic resonance has been of interest to obtain more insights in aneurysm development. Nonetheless, the role of aberrant flow patterns in TAA patients is not yet fully understood. A total of 25 TAA patients and 22 controls underwent time-resolved 3-dimensional phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging with 3-directional velocity encoding (ie, 4-dimensional flow magnetic resonance imaging). Hemodynamic parameters such as vorticity, helicity, and wall shear stress (WSS) were calculated from velocity data in 3 anatomical segments of the ascending aorta (root, proximal, and distal). Regional WSS distribution was assessed for the full cardiac cycle. Flow vorticity and helicity were significantly lower for TAA patients in all segments. The proximal ascending aorta showed a significant increase in peak WSS in the outer curvature in TAA patients, whereas WSS values at the inner curvature were significantly lower as compared with controls. Furthermore, positive WSS gradients from sinotubular junction to midascending aorta were most prominent in the outer curvature, whereas from midascending aorta to brachiocephalic trunk, the outer curvature showed negative WSS gradients in the TAA group. Controls solely showed a positive gradient at the inner curvature for both segments. Degenerative TAA patients show a decrease in flow vorticity and helicity, which is likely to cause perturbations in physiological flow patterns. The subsequent differing distribution of WSS might be a contributor to vessel wall remodeling and aneurysm formation.

The association between diabetes mellitus and its management with outcomes following endovascular repair for descending thoracic aortic aneurysm

Recently published long-term outcomes of the UK Endovascular Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair (EVAR) trial investigators and the Dutch Randomized Endovascular Aneurysm Repair group have continued to demonstrate the superiority of EVAR in the perioperative period, but they have failed to establish long-term sustainable durability compared to open repair because of increased graft-related complications and reinterventions.1,2 In 2005, thoracic endovascular aneurysm repair (TEVAR) was approved in the United States for the treatment of descending thoracic aortic aneurysms (DTAAs). This approval, based on the results of a phase II trial3 evaluating the GORE TAG endovascular prosthesis (W.L. Gore and Associates, Newark, Delaware), led to a nationwide explosion in the use of thoracic endovascular techniques for managing DTAAs.4 Physicians had already been performing EVAR for more than a decade. Whereas EVAR was initially used to repair abdominal aneurysms with a favorable anatomy, its use later expanded to include complex cases involving a short aneurysmal neck, a tortuous aorta, and (more recently) aneurysmal rupture. Although TEVAR has only a brief history, a similar trend is obvious: This approach is being used with reasonable success to treat dissections and even ruptured aneurysms5; in addition, various new debranching techniques are allowing TEVAR to be applied to portions of the aorta previously deemed unapproachable. Article see p 2718 Najibi and colleagues6 reported the results of the first study to compare TEVAR with open aortic repair. Their series comprised 18 patients, and the control group included a historic cohort of patients who had undergone open aortic repair during the previous 3 years. Short-term follow-up data showed that the endovascular group had significantly shorter operative times, shorter hospital and intensive-care–unit stays, and less operative blood loss. Subsequently, Bavaria and associates7 reported the results of a phase II multicenter trial that assessed GORE …

Compliance with long-term surveillance recommendations following endovascular aneurysm repair or type B aortic dissection

Differential expansion and outcomes of ascending and descending degenerative thoracic aortic aneurysms

Long-term outcomes of elective thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) for degenerative thoracic aortic aneurysms (TAA) are not well defined. A review of the literature on the follow-up outcomes of elective TEVAR for degenerative TAA resulted in 22 relevant articles. Two- and five-year freedom from aneurysm-related death varied between 93.0% and 100.0%, and 82.4% to 92.7%, respectively. Two-year and five-year all-cause survival ranged between 68.0% and 97.2% and 47.0% to 78.0%, respectively. Follow-up ranged between 17.3 and 66.0 months. Most common endograft-related complication was endoleak, with reported rate between 1.4% and 14.8% during six months up to five years of follow-up. Endovascular reinterventions were reported in 0.0-32.3%, secondary open surgery was needed in 0.0% to 4.7% during follow-up. Aneurysm-related survival rates after elective TEVAR for degenerative TAA are acceptable. However, reported incidences of endograft-related complications vary considerably in the literature, but the majority can be managed with conservative treatment or additional endovascular procedures.

Prevalence of thoracic aortic aneurysms and dilatations in patients with intracranial aneurysms

Thoracic endovascular aortic aneurysm repair (TEVAR) has become a mainstay of therapy for aneurysms and other disorders of the thoracic aorta. The purpose of this narrative review article is to summarize the current literature on the risk factors for and pathophysiology of spinal cord injury (SCI) following TEVAR, and to discuss various intraoperative monitoring and treatment strategies. The articles considered in this review were identified through PubMed using the following search terms: thoracic aortic aneurysm, TEVAR, paralysis+TEVAR, risk factors+TEVAR, spinal cord ischemia+TEVAR, neuromonitoring+thoracic aortic aneurysm, spinal drain, cerebrospinal fluid drainage, treatment of spinal cord ischemia. Spinal cord injury continues to be a challenging complication after TEVAR. Its incidence after TEVAR is not significantly reduced when compared with open thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm repair. Nevertheless, compared with open procedures, delayed paralysis/paresis is the predominant presentation of SCI after TEVAR. The pathophysiology of SCI is complex and not fully understood, though the evolving concept of the importance of the spinal cord's collateral blood supply network and its imbalance after TEVAR is emerging as a leading factor in the development of SCI. Cerebrospinal fluid drainage, optimal blood pressure management, and newer surgical techniques are important components of the most up-to-date strategies for spinal cord protection. Further experimental and clinical research is needed to aid in the discovery of novel neuroprotective strategies for the protection and treatment of SCI following TEVAR.