A unique technique for thoracoabdominal aortic repair for 10 years: Normothermic iliac perfusion

Abstract

Background The modality of thoracoabdominal aortic repair (TAAR) is mainly based on left heart bypass (LHB) in western countries, while in our team, it is mainly based on a unique technique, normothermic iliac perfusion, and there is a lack of systematic reports and long-term results. To describe the operative technique and summarize the patient characteristics and outcomes of TAAR with normothermic iliac perfusion in our team in the last decade. Meanwhile, to explore the influence of different previous surgical history on prognosis. Methods 137 consecutive patients who received TAAR with normothermic iliac perfusionby single surgeon from 2012 to 2022 were retrospectively analyzed. Operative details were described and data were grouped according to previous surgical history. Early operative mortality and adverse events were summarized. Survival over time was estimated by the Kaplan–Meier curve. Results The average age of the cohort was 42.39 ± 11.76 years old, 70.07% were male. 63 (46%) patients had no previous surgery, 53 (39%) patients had total arch replacement with frozen elephant trunk (TAR_FET), and 21 (15%) patients had thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR). Operative mortality was 4.38%, the incidence of early paraplegia was 6.57%, and previous surgery had no significant effect on prognosis ( p = .294). Cumulative survival was 92.1% at 3 years and 90.8% at 5 years. Conclusions The normothermic iliac perfusionfor TAAR is feasible regardless of previous surgery, as long as there are no complicating factors. And the early outcomes are satisfactory and the long-term outcomes are reliable.