Acute type A aortic dissection surgery impeded by substernal colon interposition

Abstract

A 54-year old female patient presented with acute aortic dissection, Stanford type A, and a past history of oesophageal resection with substernal colon interposition. Preoperative computer tomography confirmed the aortic dissection and revealed a colonic graft that was adherent to the sternum. We report the first successful surgical treatment of aortic dissection in this challenging patient.