Abstract 15941: Efficacy of Frozen Elephant Trunk for Acute Type A Aortic Dissection

Objectives: There are various treatment strategies for acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD). In our department, total arch replacement (TAR) using the Frozen Elephant Trunk (FET) is the standard technique for DeBakey type I, which has a patent false lumen, and we assessed the outcomes and postoperative complications. Methods: Of 71 consecutive patients who underwent surgical treatment for ATAAD at our department from October 2020 to May 2023, 42 patients were included, excluding 29 patients whose the descending aorta was thrombosed or not dissected. Results: Age 64±11 years, 30 male patients (71.4%). Preoperatively, cardiac tamponade was observed in 5 cases, malperfusion in 5 cases of head, 2 cases of coronary artery, 3 cases of celiac artery, 3 cases of superior mesenteric artery, 13 cases of renal artery, and 13 cases of lower limbs. The surgical procedures were ascending aortic replacement (AAR) in 6 cases (14.2%), partial arch replacement (PAR) in 2 cases (4.8%), TAR in 5 cases (11.9%), and TAR with FET in 29 cases (69.0%). The mean operation time was 304±70 minutes, the mean cardiopulmonary bypass time 168±45 minutes, the mean cardiac arrest time 100±26 minutes, the mean circulatory arrest time 42±8 minutes, and the mean minimum bladder temperature 26.1±1.4°C. There was no hospital death, and complications included new stroke in 2 patients (4.8%). The residual dissection was AAR5/6 (83.3%), PAR1/2 (50.0%), TAR5/5 (100%), and TAR with FET24/29 (82.8%), of which AAR5/5 (100%), PAR1/1 (100%), TAR2/5 (40.0%), and TAR with FET1/24 (4.2%) had residual dissection in the proximal descending aorta. There were 3 deaths (meningitis, cerebral hemorrhage, gastrointestinal hemorrhage) with a mean follow-up of 8.9±6.7 months. The only additional treatment was preemptive TEVAR in 1 case (2.4%) for residual dissection of proximal descending aorta of TAR with FET. There was no case of stent induced new entry. Conclusions: We consider the early results for ATAAD to be favorable. Furthermore, TAR with FET promotes good thrombosis and remodeling down to the proximal descending level, suggesting that FET may contribute to improved outcomes during follow-up period. Further clinical research on mid-term outcomes is needed.