Surgically induced aortic coarctation in a neonatal porcine model allows for longitudinal assessment of cardiovascular changes

Noncritical aortic coarctation (COA) typically presents beyond early childhood with hypertension. Correction of COA does not ensure a return to normal cardiovascular health, but the mechanisms are poorly understood. Therefore, we developed a porcine COA model to study the secondary cardiovascular changes. Eight male neonatal piglets (4 sham, 4 COA) underwent left posterolateral thoracotomy with descending aorta (DAO) mobilization. COA was created via a 1-cm longitudinal DAO incision with suture closure, plication, and placement and an 8-mm external band. All animals had cardiac catheterization at 6 (11-13 kg), 12 (26-31 kg), and 20 (67-70 kg) wk of age. Aortic luminal diameters were similar along the thoracic aorta, except for the COA region [6.4 mm COA vs. 17.3 mm sham at 20 wk (