Objectives: The combined disease of the aortic arch and the proximal descending aorta remains a surgical challenge. With the 'frozen elephant technique', the ascending aorta, along with the aortic arch, is replaced conventionally and an endovascular stent graft is placed into the descending aorta in the antegrade manner through the open aortic arch, thereby potentially allowing for a 'single-stage' operation. The purpose of this study was to assess the feasibility of a novel four-branched hybrid graft (Vascutek, Scotland).
Methods: From April 2010 to August 2011, 34 patients (25 males, age 60 ± 14 years) were operated on [14 aneurysms, 20 dissections (18 acute)]. Ten of these patients had undergone previous cardiac operations. The collapsed endoprosthesis was deployed in the descending aorta through the opened aortic arch. A sewing collar between the graft segments simplified the 'distal' anastomosis. The four-branched graft segment allowed the replacement of the aortic arch and supra-aortic vessels individually. Concomitant procedures were performed if necessary.
Results: There were three deaths within the 30 postoperative days. All of them were of AADA patients. The mean cardiopulmonary bypass time was 254 ± 53 min, aortic cross clamp time was 148 ± 48 min and circulatory arrest time was 48 ± 22 min. Aortic valve-sparing root surgery was performed in 12 patients, Bentall procedure in four, CABG in three and mitral valve repair in two. In one patient, a secondary endovascular extension of the stent graft was necessary to reach the landing zone. In all others, postoperative CT-Scans confirmed the desired results.
Conclusions: The graft adds to the 'frozen elephant trunk' concept for treating the arch and proximal descending aorta. Early experience demonstrates an excellent 30-day survival. Combining the frozen elephant with a four-branched arch graft increases the armament of the surgeon in the treatment of complex and diverse aortic arch pathology.