Project description:BackgroundStanford type A aortic dissection (T(A)AD) is one of the most dangerous cardiovascular diseases and morbid obesity is associated with the prognosis of many cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of morbid obesity on in-hospital mortality, total hospital costs and discover the prevalence of morbid obesity among inpatients with T(A)AD.MethodsPatients with a primary diagnosis of T(A)AD were identified from the National Inpatient Sample database (NIS) from 2008 to 2017. These patients were categorized into non-obesity, obesity and morbid obesity. Multivariable regression models were utilized to assess the association between obesity/morbid obesity and in-hospital mortality, total cost and other clinical factors. The temporal trend in prevalence of obesity/morbid obesity in T(A)ADs and the trend of in-hospital mortality among different weight categories were also explored.ResultsFrom the NIS database 8489 T(A)AD inpatients were identified, of which 7230 (85.2%) patients were non-obese, 822 (9.7%) were obese and 437 (5.1%) were morbid obese. Morbid obesity was associated with increased risk of in-hospital mortality (odds ratio [OR] 1.39; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.03-1.86), 8% higher total cost compared with the non-obese patients. From 2008 to 2017, the rate of obesity and morbid obesity in patients with T(A)AD have significantly increased from 7.36 to 11.33% (P < 0.001) and from 1.95 to 7.37% (P < 0.001). Factors associated with morbid obesity in T(A)ADs included age, female, elective admission, hospital region, dyslipidemia, smoking, rheumatoid arthritis/collagen vascular diseases, chronic pulmonary disease, diabetes and hypertension.ConclusionsMorbid obesity are connected with worse clinical outcomes and more health resource utilization in T(A)AD patients. Appropriate medical resource orientation and weight management education for T(A)AD patients may be necessary.
Project description:ImportanceEarly data revealed a mortality rate of 1% to 2% per hour for type A acute aortic dissection (TAAAD) during the initial 48 hours. Despite advances in diagnostic testing and treatment, this mortality rate continues to be cited because of a lack of contemporary data characterizing early mortality and the effect of timely surgery.ObjectiveTo examine early mortality rates for patients with TAAAD in the contemporary era.Design, setting, and participantsThis cohort study examined data for patients with TAAAD in the International Registry of Acute Aortic Dissection between 1996 and 2018. Patients were grouped according to the mode of their intended treatment, surgical or medical.ExposureSurgical treatment.Main outcomes and measuresMortality was assessed in the initial 48 hours after hospital arrival using Kaplan-Meier curves. In-hospital complications were also evaluated.ResultsA total of 5611 patients with TAAAD were identified based on intended treatment: 5131 (91.4%) in the surgical group (3442 [67.1%] male; mean [SD] age, 60.4 [14.1] years) and 480 (8.6%) in the medical group (480 [52.5%] male; mean [SD] age, 70.9 [14.7] years). Reasons for medical management included advanced age (n = 141), comorbidities (n = 281), and patient preference (n = 81). Over the first 48 hours, the mortality for all patients in the study was 5.8%. Among patients who were medically managed, mortality was 0.5% per hour (23.7% at 48 hours). For those whose intended treatment was surgical, 48-hour mortality was 4.4%. In the surgical group, 51 patients (1%) died before the operation.Conclusions and relevanceIn this study, the overall mortality rate for TAAAD was 5.8% at 48 hours. For patients in the medical group, TAAAD had a mortality rate of 0.5% per hour (23.7% at 48 hours). However, among those in the surgical group, 48-hour mortality decreased to 4.4%.
Project description:BackgroundEosinophils are pro-inflammatory cells involved in thrombosis and have been proposed as a prognosis marker in acute ischemic stroke and ST-elevation myocardial Infarction. Here, we sought to clarify the prognostic value of eosinophil percentage (EOS%) in patients with acute type A aortic dissection (AAAD).MethodsWe examined 183 consecutive AAAD patients. Based on the optimum cut-off value of EOS% determined by X-tile software, patients were classified into the low EOS% (EOS% ≤ 0.1) and high EOS% groups (EOS% > 0.1). We performed multivariate regression analysis and Kaplan-Meier (KM) survival curves to assess the association between EOS% and mortality. Eosinophil accumulation in aortic dissection intraluminal thrombus was confirmed using hematoxylin-eosin (H&E) staining. An external cohort from Medical Information Mart for Intensive Care IV was performed to validate the results.ResultsRelative to surviving patients, those who died during hospitalization had significantly lower EOS% (p = 0.001) but significantly higher WBC (p = 0.002) and neutrophil (p = 0.001) counts. Multivariate regression analysis identified EOS% as an independent predictor of in-hospital and 1-year mortality. KM curves revealed that 1-year cumulative mortality was significantly higher in the low EOS% group, although it was mainly attributed to the higher 30-day mortality. H&E staining revealed massive infiltration of eosinophils in all 20 thrombus specimens. The external validation confirmed that relative to survivors, patients with in-hospital mortality (p = 0.010) had significantly lower EOS%. Moreover, multivariate regression analyses identified that decreased EOS% was independently significantly associated with in-hospital mortality.ConclusionsLow EOS% is significantly related to increased mortality rates in AAAD patients.
Project description:Triggering events for acute aortic dissections are incompletely understood. We sought to investigate whether there is an association between admission for acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD) to the University of Michigan Medical Center and the reported annual influenza activity by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services. From 1996-2019 we had 758 patients admitted for ATAAD with 3.1 admissions per month during November-March and 2.5 admissions per month during April-October (p = 0.01). Influenza reporting data by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services became available in 2009. ATAAD admissions for the period 2009-2019 (n = 455) were 4.8 cases/month during peak influenza months compared to 3.5 cases/month during non-peak influenza months (p = 0.001). ATAAD patients admitted during influenza season had increased in-hospital mortality (11.0% vs. 5.8%, p = 0.024) and increased 30-day mortality (9.7 vs. 5.4%, p = 0.048). The results point to higher admission rates for ATAAD during months with above average influenza rates. Future studies need to investigate whether influenza virus infection affects susceptibility for aortic dissection, and whether this risk can be attenuated with the annual influenza vaccine in this patient population.
Project description:ObjectivesNo reliable scores are available to predict mortality following surgery for type A acute aortic dissection (TAAAD). Recently, the German Registry of Acute Aortic Dissection Type A (GERAADA) score has been developed. We aim to compare how the GERAADA score performs in predicting operative mortality for TAAAD to the European System for Cardiac Operative Risk Evaluation (EuroSCORE) II.MethodsWe calculated the GERAADA score and EuroSCORE II in patients who underwent TAAAD repair at the Bristol Heart Institute. As there are no precise criteria to calculate the GERAADA score, we used 2 methods: a Clinical-GERAADA score, which evaluated malperfusion with clinical and radiological evidence, and a Radiological-GERAADA score, where malperfusion was assessed by computed tomography scan alone.Results207 consecutive patients had surgery for TAAAD, and the observed 30-day mortality was 15%. The Clinical-GERAADA score showed the strongest discriminative power with an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.80 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.71-0.89], while the Radiological-GERAADA score had an AUC of 0.77 (95% CI 0.67-0.87). EuroSCORE II showed acceptable discriminative power with an AUC of 0.77 (95% CI 0.67-0.87).ConclusionsClinical GERAADA score performed better than the other scores and it is specific and easy to use in the context of a TAAAD. Further validation of the new criteria for malperfusion is needed.
Project description:BackgroundThoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) with fenestrated surgeon-modified stent-grafts (f-SMSGs) is becoming an option for treating type B aortic dissection (TBAD) involving the aortic arch. This study aimed to evaluate the outcomes of this technique.MethodsA retrospective multicenter study was conducted, involving consecutive patients from three medical centers in China who underwent TEVAR with f-SMSG for TBAD. A new technique called "Lu's direction-turnover technique" was employed to align the fenestrations with supra-aortic vessels.ResultsFrom March 2016 to January 2020, 117 patients diagnosed with TBAD were deemed eligible for inclusion. The technical success rate was 94% (n=110). The estimated 30-day survival rate was 97.4% [95% confidence interval (CI): 94.5% to 100.0%], with freedom from re-intervention estimated at 95.7% (95% CI: 92.0% to 99.4%). The median follow-up period was 27 months (interquartile range, 19 to 35 months). The estimated survival rate at 27 months was 94.9% (95% CI: 90.8% to 98.9%) and the rate of freedom from re-intervention was 91.5% (95% CI: 86.3% to 96.6%). Cases of retrograde type A aortic dissection, stroke and endoleaks were documented. Five cases of retrograde type A aortic dissection were documented, with three occurring within 30 days and one during the follow-up. Four cases of stroke were recorded, with one occurring within 30 days and three during the follow-up. Furthermore, eleven cases of endoleaks were recorded, with one occurring within 30 days and ten during the follow-up.ConclusionsClinically acceptable technical success and prognosis were observed in a cohort with TEVAR with f-SMSG for the treatment of TBAD involving the aortic arch, which necessitated revascularization of the supra-aortic vessels. Further comparative studies are required to validate the benefits of this approach.
Project description:Acute aortic dissection (AAD) is among the most challenging cases for surgical treatment and requires procedural expertise for its safe conduct. Aortic surgery has undergone several changes over the last years, especially concerning cerebral protection. The brilliant results obtained with the aid of selective anterograde cerebral perfusion led to a progressive increase of circulatory arrest temperature, with the rise of safe time along with a reduction of the extracorporeal circulation time and hypothermia-related side effects. However, there is still no definitive consensus concerning the optimal range of temperature to be used during circulatory arrest. Objectives. This is a retrospective observational study, and we examined 16-year trends in the presentation, diagnosis, hospital outcome and treatment of A AAD type. In our Cardiac Surgery Unit in Policlinico Umberto I of Rome, our analysis focused on patients, who received ACP during aortic surgery and we analyzed the differences between two distinct groups based on the lowest temperature reached during CPB conduction: Lower Temperature Group (LT) (T < 24°C) versus Higher Temperature Group (HT) (T ≥ 24°C) arrest circulation temperature. Methods. Data from 241 patients enrolled between August 2002 and March 2018 were analyzed. Patients were divided according to the lowest temperature reached into 2 groups: Lower Temperature group (LT) (94 patients) and Higher Temperature Group (HT) (147 patients). Results. Our results showed a significant reduction of in-hospital mortality and in-hospital results in patients with higher CPB temperature. The global incidence of complications was statistically reduced in HT group: we found a statistical significant reduction of intestinal ischemia, and a similar trend also for other complications analyzed, such as infections. Since the two groups were similar for type of surgical procedures, we considered these differences depending on the lower temperature value reached, according to the current literature. Conclusions. We found a significantly higher mortality in patients with lower temperature during CPB and a global reduction of complications and in particular a significant reduction of intestinal ischemia in patients with higher temperature during CPB. We found a similar trend in other fields of investigations, so we can conclude that circulatory arrest performed at temperature ≥24°C nasopharyngeal temperature associated with ACP is a safe strategy for aortic surgery for AAD.
Project description:BackgroundThere are few long-term mortality prediction studies after acute aortic dissection (AAD) Type A and none were performed using new models such as neural networks (NN) or support vector machines (SVM) which may show a higher discriminatory potency than standard multivariable models.MethodsWe used 32 risk factors identified by Literature search and previously assessed in short-term outcome investigations. Models were trained (50%) and validated (50%) on 2 random samples from a consecutive 235-patient cohort. NN were run only on patients with complete data for all included variables (N = 211); SVM on the overall group. Discrimination was assessed by receiver operating characteristic area under the curve (AUC) and Gini's coefficients along with classification performance.ResultsThere were 84 deaths (36%) occurring at 564 +/- 48 days (95%CI from 470 to 658 days). Patients with complete variables had a slightly lower death rate (60 of 211, 28%). NN classified 44 of 60 (73%) dead patients and 147 of 151 (97%) long-term survivors using 5 covariates: immediate post-operative chronic renal failure, circulatory arrest time, the type of surgery on ascending aorta plus hemi-arch, extracorporeal circulation time and the presence of Marfan habitus. Global accuracies of training and validation NN were excellent with AUC respectively 0.871 and 0.870 but classification errors were high among patients who died. Training SVM, using a larger number of covariates, showed no false negative or false positive cases among 118 randomly selected patients (error = 0%, AUC 1.0) whereas validation SVM, among 117 patients, provided 5 false negative and 11 false positive cases (error = 22%, AUC 0.821, p < 0.01 versus NN results). An html file was produced to adopt and manipulate the selected parameters for practical predictive purposes.ConclusionsBoth NN and SVM accurately selected a few operative and immediate post-operative factors and the Marfan habitus as long-term mortality predictors in AAD Type A. Although these factors were not new per se, their combination may be used in practice to index death risk post-operatively with good accuracy.
Project description:We report a case of a type A aortic dissection with extension into the main pulmonary artery through a sinus of Valsalva fistula. Echocardiography and computed tomographic angiography of the chest were performed and bicuspid aortic valve, hemopericardium, and dilatation of the aortic root were found. A Stanford type A dissection was seen, extending to the distal transverse thoracic aorta, and there was a communication between the dissection at the left sinus of Valsalva and the main pulmonary artery, where a dissection flap was detected at computed tomographic angiography. This case report reviews the rare diagnosis of pulmonary artery dissection, multimodality imaging findings, and a brief review of etiology and management.