From July 1986 to July 1993, 22 consecutive patients with Type A Aortic Dissecation were surgically treated using total cardiovascular arrest with deep hypothermia (18ºC). Fifteen cases had acute dissecations and 7 were chronic cases. In 14 cases (64%), the ascending aorta was reconstructed using a straight Dacron graft. In 5 of these, the aortic valve was repaired. The aortic arch was reconstructed in 8 cases (36%) and in 3 of these, the arch branches were reimplanted. The average time of the cardiovascular arrest was 43 minutes and the hospital mortality was 18%. The most frequent complication was respiratory infection, 5 patients (22.7%) showed neurologic damage, 4 of them transient and reversible. In summary, the cardiovascular arrest with deep hypothermia technique for the treatment of Type A Aortic Dissection can be used with reasonable mortality and morbility allowing a safe cerebral protection, good exposure of the dissected aorta and prevents damage to the aortic wall by the cross clamping.
aorta; aorta; circulatory arrest; hypothermia, deep