Urgent simultaneous revascularization of the carotid artery and ascending aortic replacement for type A acute aortic dissection with cerebral malperfusion

Abstract

We report a case of successful urgent surgical therapy for a Stanford type A acute aortic dissection with cerebral malperfusion. A woman with a sudden severe chest pain consulted the emergency department. Computed tomography results showed a Stanford type A acute aortic dissection. She had repeating left paralysis, so a cerebrovascular study was performed. It showed that the collateral left carotid and vertebral arteries perfused only the right cerebral hemisphere. Hence, it was thought that the left paralysis was caused by cerebral malperfusion due to the dissection. Simple aortic replacement endangered the right cerebral hemisphere, so we performed urgent revascularization of the right carotid artery, followed by an ascending aortic replacement procedure. © 2007 The Japanese Association for Thoracic Surgery.