Dissection-related Complications Research Articles

Fifty-five cases of hepatic alveolar echinococcosis combined with lymph node metastasis: A retrospective study.

Lymph node metastasis is a specific type of metastasis in hepatic alveolar echinococcosis (AE). Currently, there is a scarcity of describing the clinical characteristics and lymph node metastasis rules of patients with hepatic AE combined with lymph node metastasis and its mechanism and management are still controversial. Radical hepatectomy combined with regional lymph node dissection is a better treatment. To analyse the clinical features of hepatic AE combined with lymph node metastasis to explore its treatment and efficacy. A total of 623 patients with hepatic AE admitted to the First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University from 1 January 2012 to 1 January 2022 were retrospectively analysed. Fifty-five patients with combined lymph node metastasis were analysed for their clinical data, diagnosis and treatment methods, follow-up efficacy, and characteristics of lymph node metastasis. Finally, we comparatively analysed the lymph node metastasis rates at different sites. Categorical variables are expressed as frequencies and percentages, and the analysis of difference was performed using the χ 2 test. The Bonferroni method was used for pairwise comparisons when statistical differences existed between multiple categorical variables. A lymph node metastasis rate of 8.8% (55/623) was reported in patients with hepatic AE, with a female predilection (69.1%) and a statistically significant sex difference (χ 2 = 8.018, P = 0.005). Of the 55 patients with lymph node metastasis, 72.7% had a parasite lesion, neighbouring organ invasion, and metastasis stage of P3N1M0 and above, of which 67.3%, 78.2%, and 34.5% of hepatic AE lesions invaded the bile ducts, blood vessels, and distant metastases, respectively. Detection rates of lymph node metastasis of 16.4%, 21.7%, and 34.2% were reported for a preoperative abdominal ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging, and computed tomography examinations. All patients were intraoperatively suspected with enlarged lymph nodes and underwent radical hepatectomy combined with regional lymph node dissection. After surgery, a routine pathological examination was conducted on the resected lymph nodes. A total of 106 positive lymph nodes were detected in six groups at various sites, including 51 single-group metastasis cases and four multi-group metastasis cases. When the metastasis rates at different sites were statistically analysed, we observed that the metastasis rate in the para-hepatoduodenal ligament lymph nodes was significantly higher than that of the other sites (χ 2 = 128.089, P = 0.000 < 0.05). No statistical difference was observed in the metastasis rate between the five other groups. Clavien-Dindo grade IIIa complication occurred in 14 cases, which improved after administering symptomatic treatment. Additionally, lymph node dissection-related complications were not observed. Recurrence after 2 years was observed in one patient. Lymph node metastasis is a rare form of metastasis in hepatic AE, which is more frequent in women. Para-hepatoduodenal ligament lymph nodes are commonly observed. Radical hepatectomy combined with regional lymph node dissection is a safe, effective, and feasible treatment for liver AE combined with lymph node metastasis.

Two-Stage Anatomic Myocutaneous Flap Dissection in Cranioplasty: Technical Nuances and Single-Surgeon Experience.

Temporalis muscle management remains one of the most challenging aspects of cranioplasty, which accounts for considerable rates of dissection-related complications. Since 2019, the senior author has developed and consistently used a methodical, two-stage anatomic dissection technique to separate the scalp and temporalis muscle from the underlying brain. This technique is believed to facilitate dissection and minimize the risk of brain injury, while optimizing cosmetic outcomes. All patients who underwent cranioplasty between January 2019 and February 2023 were identified from a prospectively maintained database. Charts were retrospectively reviewed. Demographic, clinical, and procedural data were extracted and analyzed. Twenty-nine patients, 20 men and 9 women with a median age of 37 years (range 17-72), were identified. Indications for craniectomy were traumatic brain injury in 18 (62.1%), hemorrhagic stroke in five (17.2%), ischemic stroke in four (13.8%), and aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage in two (6.9%). Median precranioplasty modified Rankin Scale and Glasgow Coma Scale scores were 5 (range in series: 0-5) and 14 (range in series: 3-15), respectively. The median time to cranioplasty was 131 days (32-1717). Cranioplasty was technically successful in all patients, with a median operative time of 106 minutes (62-182). There were no intraoperative complications. Postoperative complications occurred in three patients (10.3%): hemorrhagic brain contusion (n = 1), meningitis (n = 1), and seizure (n = 1). Of those, one patient (3.4%) died 2 weeks after surgery from suspected pulmonary embolism. After a median follow-up of 4 months (1-44), all 28 survivors have either remained clinically stable or exhibited neurological improvement. Cosmetic results were good or excellent in 27 (96.4%) and fair in one (3.6%). Two-stage anatomic dissection of the scalp and temporalis muscle during cranioplasty can maximize surgical efficiency and result in excellent outcomes. Cranioplasty should be considered a low-risk, low-complexity neurosurgical procedure. Safe and efficient management of the temporalis muscle is key.

Surgical outcomes of thoracic endovascular aortic repair for retrograde Stanford type a dissection.

The optimal indications and contraindications for thoracic endovascular aortic repair of retrograde Stanford type A acute aortic dissection (R-AAAD) are not well known. The goal of this study was to determine the outcomes of thoracic endovascular aortic repair for R-AAAD at our institution and to discuss optimal indications. The medical records of 359 patients admitted to our institution for R-AAAD between December 2016 and December 2022 were reviewed, and 83 patients were finally diagnosed with R-AAAD. We selected thoracic endovascular aortic repair as an alternative, considering the anatomy of aortic dissection and the risk to patients undergoing open surgery. Nineteen patients underwent thoracic endovascular aortic repair for R-AAAD. No in-hospital deaths or neurologic complications occurred. A type Ia endoleak was detected in 1 patient. All other primary entries were successfully closed. All dissection-related complications, such as cardiac tamponade, malperfusion distal to the primary entry and abdominal aortic rupture, were resolved. One patient required open conversion for intimal injury at the proximal edge of the stent graft; all other ascending false lumens were completely thrombosed and contracted at discharge. During the follow-up period, no aortic-related deaths or aortic events proximal to the stent graft occurred. The indications for thoracic endovascular aortic repair were expanded to low-risk and emergency cases at our institution. The early- and midterm outcomes of thoracic endovascular aortic repair for R-AAAD were acceptable. Further long-term follow-up is required.

SC206 - Are extended pelvic lymph node dissection-related complications still an issue in contemporary patients treated with robot-assisted radical prostatectomy? a prospective assessment using a standardized collection system

SC206 - Are extended pelvic lymph node dissection-related complications still an issue in contemporary patients treated with robot-assisted radical prostatectomy? a prospective assessment using a standardized collection system

A1160 - Are extended pelvic lymph node dissection-related complications still an issue in contemporary patients treated with robot-assisted radical prostatectomy? A prospective assessment using a standardized collection system

A1160 - Are extended pelvic lymph node dissection-related complications still an issue in contemporary patients treated with robot-assisted radical prostatectomy? A prospective assessment using a standardized collection system

A modified frozen elephant trunk technique for acute Stanford type A aortic dissection

BackgroundAcute Stanford type A aortic dissection is often fatal, with a high mortality rate and requiring emergency intervention. Salvage surgery aims to keep the patient alive by addressing severe aortic regurgitation, tamponade, primary tear, and organ malperfusion and, if possible, prevent the late dissection-related complications in the proximal and downstream aorta. Unfortunately, no optimal standard treatment or technique to treat this disease exists. Total arch replacement with frozen elephant trunk technique plays an important role in treating acute type A aortic dissection. We aim to describe a modified elephant trunk technique and report its short-term outcomes.MethodsFrom February 2018 to August 2019, 16 patients diagnosed with acute Stanford type A aortic dissection underwent surgery with the modified frozen elephant trunk technique at Xiamen Heart Center (male/female: 9/7; average age: 56.1 ± 7.6 years). All perioperative variables were recorded and analyzed. We measured the diameters of the ascending aorta, aortic arch, and descending aorta on the bifurcation of the pulmonary and abdominal aortas and compared the diameters at admission, before discharge, and 3 months after discharge.ResultsFifteen patients (93.8%) had hypertension. The primary tears were located in the lesser curvature of the aortic arch and ascending aorta in 5 (31.3%) and 9 patients (56.3%), respectively, and no entry was found in 2 patients (12.5%). The dissection extended to the iliac artery and distal descending aorta in 14 (87.6%) and 2 patients (12.5%), respectively. The duration of cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB), cross-clamping, and antegrade cerebral perfusion were 215.8 ± 40.5, 140.8 ± 32.3, and 55.1 ± 15.2 min, respectively. Aortic valve repair was performed in 15 patients (93.8%). Bentall procedure was performed in one patient (6.3%). Another patient received coronary artery repair (6.3%). The diameters at all levels were greater on discharge than those on admission, except the aortic arch. After 3 months, the true lumen diameter distal to the frozen elephant trunk increased, indicating false lumen thrombosis and/or aortic remodeling.ConclusionsThe modified frozen elephant trunk technique for acute Stanford type A aortic dissection is safe and feasible and could be used for organ malperfusion. Short-term outcomes are encouraging, but long-term outcomes require further investigation.

Imaging characteristics of acute type A aortic dissection and candidacy for repair with ascending aortic endografts

BackgroundAcute type A aortic dissection (ATAD) remains associated with substantial short-term mortality, and despite increasing rates of surgical repair, as many as 10% to 20% of patients do not undergo surgery because of comorbidities and dissection-related complications. For patients unable to undergo open repair, previous attempts at endovascular treatment of ATAD used devices originally designed for deployment in the descending thoracic aorta. Industry has begun to support early investigational devices meant specifically for placement within the ascending aorta. We evaluated relevant aortic parameters to examine which patients may be candidates for repair with an ascending aortic endograft. MethodsWe reviewed 100 consecutive patients in our institutional ATAD database with contrast-enhanced computed tomography imaging on an Aquarius iNtuition workstation (TeraRecon, San Mateo, Calif), using curved planar reformatting (vessel tracking) and orthogonal views for measurements. We compared relevant aortic measurements against proposed criteria for future ascending endografts, including various landing zone diameters and intimal tear distances from the distal coronary ostium. ResultsOf the 100 patients examined, 39% had proximal intimal tears located outside the tubular ascending aorta. In all, 30% were excluded on the basis of either the presence of a prosthetic aortic valve or significant aortic insufficiency, and 6% were excluded on the basis of the presence of patent coronary artery bypass grafts from the ascending aorta. Many patients had multiple exclusion criteria, and based on various proposed criteria, overall candidacy ranged from 2% to 23%. If a maximum landing zone diameter of 42 mm and intimal tears as little as 20 mm distal to the distalmost coronary were considered treatable, only 8% of patients would have been candidates compared with 20% candidacy if aortic diameters up to 46 mm and intimal tears as little as 10 mm distal to the distalmost coronary were considered treatable. The most frequent single cause for exclusion was inadequacy of the proximal landing zone. Iliofemoral vascular access was also assessed and deemed adequate in >90% of cases. ConclusionsA minority of patients suffering ATAD would currently qualify for ascending aortic endografting on the basis of anatomic criteria alone. Future device designs should take into account these common anatomic exclusion criteria so that more versatile devices may be developed and commercially available to treat a larger number of patients.

Thoracic endovascular aortic repair for retrograde type A aortic dissection

ObjectiveThe efficacy of thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) for retrograde type A aortic dissection (r-TAAD) with the entry tear in the descending aorta has not been clarified. MethodsThe medical records of 31 patients who underwent TEVAR for r-TAAD at three institutions between May 1997 and January 2016 were retrospectively reviewed. ResultsThe mean age of the patients (30 men and 1 woman) was 64 ± 11 years. The entry tear was located in the descending thoracic aorta in all patients. Seven patients (23%) had dissection-related complications. The false lumen of the ascending aorta was patent in 13 patients (42%) and thrombosed in 18 (58%). The maximum diameter of the ascending aorta was 45 ± 4 mm. TEVAR was performed in the acute phase in 24 patients (77%) and in the subacute phase in 7 (23%). Only one patient (3%) died of aortic rupture within 30 days after TEVAR. Early aorta-related adverse events were observed in eight patients (26%), of whom five underwent additional interventions. The mean follow-up period was 99 ± 69 months. There were no late aorta-related deaths, although five patients died of other causes during follow-up. Overall survival rates at 1 year, 5 years, and 10 years were 97%, 93%, and 80%, respectively. Late aorta-related adverse events were observed in seven patients (23%), of whom five underwent additional interventions. Aorta-related event-free survival rates at 1 year, 5 years, and 10 years were 58%, 58%, and 51%, respectively. ConclusionsTEVAR for r-TAAD seems promising in terms of survival. However, the incidence of postoperative aorta-related adverse events is not negligible, so careful selection of patients is important. In addition, close follow-up is mandatory after TEVAR to avoid catastrophic consequences.

Comparison of Outcomes in DeBakey Type AI Versus AII Aortic Dissection

The DeBakey classification divides type A acute aortic dissection (AAD) into type I and type II; the latter limited to the ascending aorta. We endeavored to examine differences in DeBakey groups in a contemporary registry. We divided 1,872 patients with noniatrogenic AAD from the International Registry of Acute Aortic Dissection into type I (n = 1691, 90.3%) and type II (n = 181, 9.7%). Patients with type II AAD were older. On presentation, patients with type I AAD reported more back and abdominal pain and were more likely to have pulse deficit. Intramural hematoma was more frequent in type II AAD. Most patients with both types were treated surgically. Lower rates of renal failure, coma, mesenteric and limb ischemia were noted in those with type II AAD. In-hospital death was less frequent (16.6% vs 22.5%) after type II AAD, a trend that did not reach significance. There was no difference in the incidence of new dissection, rapid aortic growth, late aortic intervention or survival at 5 years. In conclusion, AAD limited to the ascending aorta (DeBakey type II) appears to be associated with improved clinical outcomes compared with dissection that extend to the aortic arch or beyond. Although fewer dissection-related complications were noted in patients presenting with type II AAD, as was a trend toward reduced in-hospital mortality, 5-year survival and descending aortic sequelae are not reduced in this contemporary report from International Registry of Acute Aortic Dissection.

Endovascular management of acute aortic dissection

Acute dissection of the thoracic aorta is a potentially life-threatening condition which requires collaborative treatment from multiple specialties for optimal patient outcomes. Dissections involving the ascending aorta and aortic arch have traditionally been managed entirely by surgery, while dissections beyond the arch vessels have most commonly been relegated to medical management. This algorithm has been undergoing a paradigm shift over the past two decades due to improvements in stent graft technology, better understanding of the hemodynamic interactions of the true and false lumen and their influence on organ and limb perfusion, and improvements in medical management and long term surveillance for dissection-related complications. This manuscript includes a brief discussion of the pathogenesis and etiology of dissection, followed by an in-depth review of the medical and endovascular techniques utilized to treat patients afflicted by this condition.

Aortic arch involvement worsens the prognosis of type B aortic dissections

Medical management of acute aortic dissections limited to the descending thoracic aorta (AD-desc) is associated with acceptable outcomes. Uncertainty remains about whether acute type B aortic dissections involving the aortic arch (AD-arch) have an increased risk of retrograde extension into the ascending aorta or other dissection-related complications. This study compared outcomes of AD-arch with AD-desc managed medically. Consecutive patients admitted from 2005 to 2014 with acute aortic dissections not involving the ascending aorta were retrospectively analyzed. Primary end points included dissection-related death and operative intervention. The study included 99 patients (63% men; mean age, 60± 14years) with acute aortic dissections. Dissections were limited to the aorta distal to the left subclavian artery (AD-desc) in 79 patients (80%), and 20 (20%) had involvement of the left subclavian (n= 16), left common carotid (n= 1), or innominate (n= 3) arteries (AD-arch). Dissections ended proximal to the celiac artery in 30 patients (30%), between the celiac artery and aortic bifurcation in 36 (36%), and distal to the aortic bifurcation in 33 (33%). During medical management, further proximal extension into the arch occurred in two AD-arch patients and one AD-desc patient (P< .05), but proximal dissection into the ascending aorta occurred in only one AD-arch patient with Marfan disease. Compared with patients with AD-desc, those with AD-arch were younger (53± 12.5 vs 62± 16years; P< .01) and had more frequent early interventions (40% vs 19%; P= .047), cardiac complications (35% vs 11%; P< .01), and neurologic events (25% vs 6%; P< .01). Seven AD-arch patients (35%) and nine AD-desc patients (11%) died of dissection-related causes (P< .01). Among survivors, late interventions were performed in four of eight AD-arch patients (50%) and in six of 58 AD-desc patients (10%; P= .02). Medical treatment without intervention was successful in four AD-arch patients (20%) and in 52 AD-desc patients (66%; P< .001). Multivariate logistic regression retained arch involvement as the sole predictor of dissection-related death (odds ratio, 4.2; 95% confidence interval, 1.3-13.4) and failure of medical treatment (odds ratio, 7.7; 95% confidence interval, 2.5-29). The distal extent of dissection had no bearing on outcome. AD-arch dissections are associated with a higher risk of cardiac and neurologic events, need for early intervention, and dissection-related death than AD-desc dissections. Because further proximal dissections into the ascending aorta were rare in this study, medical management appears to be safe as the initial treatment of AD-arch dissections. However, surgeons should be aware of the increased risk of complications and the potential need for urgent interventions in these patients.

MRI-Based Determination of Convex or Concave Surgical Approach for Lateral Lumbar Interbody Fusion in Lumbar Degenerative Scoliosis

The lateral lumbar interbody fusion (LLIF) is increasingly employed to treat lumbar degenerative scoliosis (LDS). Concerns remain about the transpsoas dissection-related complications. However, there is little information documenting which side is more appropriate for safety, the concave or the convex side.

La disección aórtica tipo B: tratamiento endovascular

Acute type B aortic dissection is a life threatening disease process, which remains a clinical dilemma despite advances in technology, surgical technique and postoperative management. Medical management has been the standard of care for acute uncomplicated type B dissection. Surgical repair and endovascular intervention are reserved for those who present with, or subsequently develop, dissection-related complications. Complicated dissections occur in 25% of cases and may include organ malperfusion, aortic rupture, periaortic haematoma, and uncontrolled hypertension. In the past decade, thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) has gained widespread acceptance as the modality of choice for the treatment of complicated type B dissection. The best medical therapy remains the standard of care for uncomplicated dissection, however this strategy fails to prevent long-term aortic-related morbidity and mortality. Recent data suggest that early TEVAR lowers aortic-related events and improves long-term aortic specific survival by covering the entry tear, promoting false luz thrombosis, and inducing aortic wall remodeling.

Predicting Outcome of Aortic Dissection with Patent False Lumen by Computational Flow Analysis

Although Type B aortic dissection (AoD) has better in-hospital survival than Type A AoD, the short- and long term outcome for patients remains challenging, with 50–80% deaths at 5-years. Dissection-related complications include rapid aortic expansion, impending rupture, and malperfusion syndromes. We aimed to assess hemodynamic implications of patients with patent false lumen (FL) of dissected aorta. Computational fluid dynamic analyses were performed on patient-specific aortic geometries reconstructed from computed tomography scans of 25 patients with AoDs, who were admitted in our hospital from 2007 to 2013. We used the development of acute complications and chronic aneurysmal evolution as patient endpoints. Anatomical variables were correlated with hemodynamic variables, and regression was then performed to show independent determinants of FL flow. Velocity streamlines revealed helical, slower-moving flow in the FL of AoDs. Blood pressure and wall shear stress varied markedly between subjects, depending on AoD geometry. Lastly, linear regression shown that the height of entry tears was a significant predictor of blood flow through the patent FL. The greater the entry tear is, the greater the flow in the patent FL and thus the risk of dissection-related complications. Computational flow analysis may lead to more confident predictions of which patients will suffer adverse events and facilitate the clinical decision-making process related to the treatment of Type B AoDs.

The Sun procedure-a new paradigm of treatment in DeBakey type 1 acute aortic dissection?

The frozen elephant trunk (FET) technique, which combines open total arch replacement and endovascular stent-grafting of the proximal descending thoracic aorta (DTA), has emerged as a noteworthy hybrid option of treatment in patients with extensive disease of the thoracic aorta. Its main rationale in acute dissection patients is to minimize the occurrence of late adverse aortic events including aneurysmal degeneration of the distal false lumen, distal aortic rupture, distal malperfusion, distal aortic re-interventions, and aortic death by promoting DTA remodelling. While these valuable long-term outcomes remain to be confirmed, the safety of FET in the acute setting still remains controversial. In comparison to conventional hemiarch replacement, FET adds technical complexity and unavoidably requires prolonged periods of cardiopulmonary bypass (CBP), visceral and myocardial ischemia, and cerebral perfusion, all of which are expected to increase mortality and major post-operative morbidity (1). Furthermore, FET has been found to be associated with an increased risk of post-operative spinal cord injury, a catastrophic complication that has been reported very rarely after conventional arch surgery (1). The issue of the safety of FET in acute dissection has been addressed in the study by Wei-Guo Ma et al., from Professor Sun’s group, titled “Sun’s procedure of total arch replacement using a tetrafurcated graft with stented elephant trunk implantation: analysis of early outcome in 398 patients with acute type A aortic dissection” and published in this issue of Annals of Cardiothoracic Surgery (2). The authors examined inhospital outcomes in the largest series of patients with acute dissection who underwent FET surgery published to date, and used a logistic regression model to identify the independent predictive risk factors of early mortality. This study reported outstanding early outcomes, for which Professor Sun and his group should be greatly admired. Hospital mortality was 7.8%, and permanent neurologic dysfunction and spinal cord injury each occurred in only 2.5% of patients. Other serious postoperative complications such as renal failure, re-exploration for bleeding and left recurrent nerve injury were consistently infrequent, occurring in only 4.3%, 2.5%, and 1.0% of cases, respectively. As indicated by the multivariate logistic regression, survival was mostly affected by patients’ pre-operative characteristics and dissection-related complications, including cerebrovascular disease, acute heart failure, and spinal cord and visceral malperfusion. The negative prognostic weight of CPB time on survival was also confirmed in this study. The excellent results reported by the authors indicate that the Sun’s procedure is a safe approach in patients with acute dissection, and will likely pave the way for wider employment of FET. However, there are two important aspects to consider that lessen the general applicability of these results. Firstly, the study cohort was extremely young with a mean age of 46 and with only 12.9% of patients above the age of 60. This is in contrast with demographic data reported by western registries. Trimarchi et al. (3) from the International Registry of Acute Dissection (IRAD) recently showed that (I) patients aged more than 70 years represented 32.2% of the IRAD (type A dissection) cohort; (II) older patients were more likely to present with a higher risk profile; and (III) age greater than 70 was an independent predictor of mortality. Secondly, the extraordinary nature of the aforementioned results is certainly influenced by the extensive experience gained by Sun and his group from the approximately 1,000 FET procedures performed so far. Such (favorable) conditions are not commonly found or replicated elsewhere. Indeed, surgery of

Endoscopic resection for gastrointestinal neuroendocrine tumors

Gastrointestinal (GI) and neuroendocrine tumors (NETs) can be treated by mini-invasive endoscopic resection when localized in the superficial layers of the bowel wall and their size is <20 mm. Endoscopic diagnosis of NETs is usually incidental or suspected after clinical, laboratory or imaging findings. Endoscopic mucosal resection is the most commonly used technique for NET removal, endoscopic submucosal dissection is indicated in selected cases, while papillectomy is feasible for ampullary lesions. Histopathologic assessment of the resection margin (circumferential and deep) is important for staging. Incidence of endoscopic mucosal resection-/endoscopic submucosal dissection-related complications for removal of GI NETs are similar to those reported for other GI lesions. Endoscopic follow-up is based on histopathologic characteristics of the resected NETs and its site. NETs >20 mm in size, with penetration of the muscle layer and/or serosa are at high risk for metastases and surgical approach is recommended when feasible.

A longitudinal study of Type-B aortic dissection and endovascular repair scenarios: Computational analyses

Conservative medical treatment is commonly first recommended for patients with uncomplicated Type-B aortic dissection (AD). However, if dissection-related complications occur, endovascular repair or open surgery is performed. Here we establish computational models of AD based on radiological three-dimensional images of a patient at initial presentation and after 4-years of best medical treatment (BMT). Computational fluid dynamics analyses are performed to quantitatively investigate the hemodynamic features of AD. Entry and re-entries (functioning as entries and outlets) are identified in the initial and follow-up models, and obvious variations of the inter-luminal flow exchange are revealed. Computational studies indicate that the reduction of blood pressure in BMT patients lowers pressure and wall shear stress in the thoracic aorta in general, and flattens the pressure distribution on the outer wall of the dissection, potentially reducing the progressive enlargement of the false lumen. Finally, scenario studies of endovascular aortic repair are conducted. The results indicate that, for patients with multiple tears, stent-grafts occluding all re-entries would be required to effectively reduce inter-luminal blood communication and thus induce thrombosis in the false lumen. This implicates that computational flow analyses may identify entries and relevant re-entries between true and false lumen and potentially assist in stent-graft planning.

Endoscopic submucosal dissection for colorectal laterally spreading tumors.

Colorectal laterally spreading tumors are superficial tumors classified into two groups as granular (G-laterally spreading tumor) and non-granular (non-granular-laterally spreading tumor) types. In this study, we aimed to investigate the efficacy and feasibility of endoscopic submucosal dissection in the treatment of laterally spreading tumors. Forty-four laterally spreading tumors in 40 patients were treated with endoscopic submucosal dissection at a tertiary referral hospital. Patient data were collected retrospectively. In this study, we evaluated tumor size, macroscopic type, lesion location, histology, curative resection, and complications. Of the 44 laterally spreading tumors excised by endoscopic submucosal dissection, 29 (65.9%) were G-laterally spreading tumor and 15 (34.1%) were non-granular-laterally spreading tumor. Most of the non-granular-laterally spreading tumors were localized in the right colon, while most G-laterally spreading tumors were localized in the left colon (p<0.001). There was also no difference between G-laterally spreading tumors (6/29) and non-granular-laterally spreading tumors (2/15) with regard to exhibiting malignant features (p=0.69). Although median size (40 mm vs. 27.5 mm) and procedure time (115 minutes vs. 60 minutes) for G-laterally spreading tumors were bigger and longer respectively, procedure time per cm2 was not different (8.9 minutes vs. 8.2 minutes) between the two groups. Curative resection rates for laterally spreading tumors were quite high (95.5%), while en bloc resection rates were low (77.3%). The rates of endoscopic submucosal dissection-related complications such as perforation, major and minor bleeding were low (4.5%, 2.3%, 6.8%, respectively). Endoscopic submucosal dissection is an effective and safe therapeutic option with high curative rates for early-stage malignant and pre-malignant laterally spreading tumors not having an absolute indication for surgery, regardless of the lesion type and size.

Commentary on ‘ADSORB: A Study on the Efficacy of Endovascular Grafting in Uncomplicated Acute Dissection of the Descending Aorta’

behind the primary endpoint, it may seem that the trial is designed to favour stengrafting. Finally, a reflection is required regarding the dramatic change in sample size, based on data from false lumen thrombosis (which was published long after the initial ADSORB-trial design). Is a trial still required to show such a large difference in the rates of false lumen thrombosis in medical vs. stent graft groups (target effect size ¼ 0.58)? In other words, is there still equipoise to justify a randomized trial? Naturally, if more “conventional” endpoints had been chosen (such as long-term freedom from rupture, dissection-related complications, re-intervention or death) much larger numbers would be required, but more definitive and clinically relevant data would be obtained. The vascular community is eagerly looking for final answers on how to manage uncomplicated type B dissections, but it is still unclear if ADSORB will deliver these.

Safety and efficacy of central cannulation through ascending aorta for type A aortic dissection

The femoral and axillary arteries are common arterial cannulation sites for repair of type A dissection. However, these peripheral approaches involve certain problems. From January 2002 to August 2009, a total of 77 patients underwent emergency surgery for acute type A dissection. Central cannulation was applied in 26 patients and peripheral cannulation in 51. The arterial cannulation site was decided according to preoperative computed tomography findings, the patient's condition, and intraoperative epiaortic ultrasonography findings. Central cannulation was avoided in cases of cardiac tamponade with shock. A cannula was inserted under ultrasound guidance using the Seldinger technique. Preoperative patient comorbidities and dissection-related complications were equally distributed between the two groups. Central cannulation was successfully performed in all 26 cases without incident. Operation time, cardiopulmonary bypass time, mean intubation time and mean intensive care unit stay duration were significant shorter in the central group. One patient (4%) died in the central group compared with four patients (8%) in the peripheral group (P=0.45). Direct central cannulation was successful for repair of type A dissection in selected patients and produced equal or superior surgical data to peripheral cannulation, thus providing one option in the approach to this condition.