[Abstract]The pathogenesis of aortic disease is not fully understood. Gut dysbiosis may play a role in the occurrence and development of aortic diseases. Several studies showed that the diversity of microbiota in abdominal aortic aneurysms significantly decreases and is correlated with the diameter of the aneurysm. Characteristic microbial communities associated with abdominal aortic aneurysm, such as Roseburia, Bifidobacterium, Ruminococcus, Akkermansia have been found in human and animal studies. The gut microbiota of patients with aortic dissection varies greatly. Characteristic microbial communities like Lachnospiraceae and Ruminococcus present a potential impact on the pathogenesis of aortic dissection. Bifidobacterium may be associated with Takayasu arteritis and thoracic aortic aneurysm. The gut microbiota affects the physiological functions of the host by synthesizing bioactive metabolites, which causes aortic diseases, mainly involving metabolites such as trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO), lipopolysaccharides (LPS), tryptophan, and short chain fatty acids. More and more evidence supports the causal relationship between gut microbiota dysbiosis and aortic disease. Clarifying abnormal changes in gut microbiota may provide clues for finding potential therapeutic targets.
ObjectiveTo summarize clinical outcomes of different end-to-end anastomotic methods for surgical treatment of acute Stanford type A aortic dissection (AD). MethodsBetween January 2012 and May 2013, 95 patients with acute Stanford type A AD received surgical treatment in Nanjing Hospital Affiliated to Nanjing Medical University. According to different end-to-end anastomotic methods, 72 patients were divided into 3 groups (23 patients undergoing Bentall procedure were excluded from this study). In group A, there were 23 patients including 18 males and 5 females with their age of 48.67±9.23 years, who received 'sandwich' anastomotic technique strengthening both the inner and outer layers of the aortic wall. In group B, there were 11 patients including 8 males and 3 females with their age of 48.00±9.17 years, who received pericardium strengthening only inner layer of the aortic wall. In group C, there were 38 patients including 29 males and 9 females with their age of 49.20±8.57 years, who received artificial graft that was anastomosed directly to the aortic wall without any reinforcement. Postoperative outcomes were compared among the 3 groups. ResultsEight patients (11.11%)died postoperatively including 1 patient in group A (1/23, 4.35%)and 7 patients in group C (7/38, 18.42%). One patient in group A died of persistent wound errhysis and later disseminated intravascular coagulation. Three patients in group C died of persistent anastomotic incision errhysis and circulatory failure. Four patients in group C died of postopera-tive severe tricuspid regurgitation, secondary severe low cardiac output syndrome and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome. Severe postoperative complications included renal failure in 5 patients, respiratory failure in 7 patients, severe cerebral infarction and paralysis in 1 patient, paresis in 3 patients, delayed recovery of consciousness in 2 patients, and ischemic necrosis of the lower limb in 1 patient. Postoperative thoracic drainage amount in group C was significantly larger than that of the other 2 groups, and there was no statistical difference in thoracic drainage amount between group A and group B. Sixty-four patients were followed up for 1 to 6 months, and there was no late death during follow-up. Among the 5 patients with postoperative renal failure, only 1 patient needed regular hemodialysis, and renal function of the other 4 patients returned to normal. One patient with cerebral infarction recovered partial limb function and was able to walk with crutches. All the 3 patients with paresis recovered their limb function. ConclusionsAnastomotic quality of end-to-end anastomosis is of crucial importance for surgical treatment of acute Stanford type A AD. Appropriate reinforcement methods can be chosen according to individual intraoperative findings. 'sandwich' anastomotic technique can significantly reduce incision errhysis, prevent acute myocardial infarction caused by aortic anastomotic tear, and decrease postoperative mortality. If coronary ostia are involved in AD, concomitant coronary artery bypass grafting is needed.
ObjectiveTo explore the risk factors for 24-hour death in acute type A aortic dissection (ATAAD) patients with conservative treatment.MethodsFrom January 2009 to January 2018, 243 ATAAD patients who received non-surgical intervention were admitted in Beijing Anzhen Hospital, including 167 males and 76 females with an average age of 53.0±12.0 years. The risk factors for 24-hour mortality were analyzed.ResultsThe total in-hospital mortality rate was 37.9% (93/243), and 13.6% (33/243) patients died within 24 hours of onset. We found that left ventricular end diastolic diameter [LVEDD, OR=0.45, 95%CI (0.25, 0.83), P<0.01] and aortic regurgitation [OR=7.26, 95%CI (1.67, 31.53), P<0.01] were independent risk factors for 24-hour death in patients with ATAAD.ConclusionIn this study, LVEDD and aortic regurgitation are identified as independent risk factors for 24-hour mortality in ATAAD patients. Therefore, patients with aortic regurgitation and small LVEDD should be treated with sugery as soon as possible.
With the development of radiologic intervention, the treatments of aortic dissection are getting more and more diversified. In recent years, Debakey Ⅲ and DebakeyⅠaortic dissection has been usually treated with endovascular graft exclusion, or combined surgical and endovascular treatment. It is therefore more important to evaluate the aorta and its complications after interventional treatments. Because multidetector-row computed tomography (MDCT) has advantages, such as short examination time, high spatial resolution, and simple operation, this modality has become a first choice of non-invasive methods for the follow-up of aortic diseases after the intervention. Now the MDCT presentations and their anatomic-pathologic features of aortic dissection after endovascular graft exclusion or combined surgical and endovascular treatment are reviewed in this article.
ObjectiveTo explore the early clinical outcomes of patients with acute type A aortic dissection and intramural hematoma.MethodsThe clinical data of 61 patients with acute type A aortic dissection or intramural hematoma in our hospital from January 23, 2020 to March 10, 2020 were retrospectively analyzed, including 43 males and 18 females, aged 22-81 (52.1±13.0) years. The patient's time of visit, clinical characteristics and early survival were analyzed. Kaplan-Mier survival curve and log-rank test were used for the survival analysis.ResultsThere were 48 (78.7%) patients diagnosed with acute type A aortic dissection and 13 (21.3%) patients with intramural hematoma; 34 patients received operation and 11 were emergent. The 30-day mortality was 2.9% among the patients receiving operation. There were 48 patients alive and 13 patients dead during the study period. The cumulative survival rates for all the patients on postoperative 1 day, 3 days and 7 days were 93.4%, 86.4% and 77.5%, respectively. The cumulative survival rates for the patients with dissection on postoperative 1 day, 3 days and 7 days were 95.7%, 88.7% and 79.4%, respectively. The cumulative survival rates for the patients with hematoma on postoperative 1 day, 3 days and 7 days were 92.3%, 84.6% and 84.6%, respectively. The difference of survival rates between the two groups was not statistically significant (P>0.05). The cumulative survival rate of all the patients on postoperative 14 days was 74.5%. No statistically significant difference in survival rate on postoperative 14 days was found between patients with intramural hematoma and patients with aortic dissection (P>0.05). The proportions of the patients with unstable hemodynamics were found statistically significant between the survival patients and the dead patients (P<0.05).ConclusionPatients with acute aortic dissection and intramural hematoma who survive to the hospital still have the risk of death under active drug therapy, and rupture of the dissection is the leading cause of death in these patients, especially for those with hemodynamic unstability.
Objective To evaluate the significance of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) as a predictor of in-hospital mortality in patients with acute aortic dissection(AAD). Methods We conducted a retrospective analysis of the clinical data of 445 AAD patients who were admitted to the Second Xiangya Hospital of Central South University and the Changsha Central Hospital from January 2014 to December 2017 within a time interval of ≤14 days from the onset of symptoms to hospital admission, including 353 males and 92 females with the age of 45-61 years. LDH levels were measured on admission and the endpoint was the all-cause mortality during hospitalization. Results During hospitalization, 86 patients died and 359 patients survived. Increased level of LDH was found in non-survivors compared with that in the survived [269.50 (220.57, 362.58) U/L vs. 238.00 (191.25, 289.15) U/L, P<0.001]. A nonlinear relationship between LDH levels and in-hospital mortality was observed. Using multivariable logistic analysis, we found that LDH was an independent predictor of in-hospital mortality in the patients with AAD [OR=1.002, 95% CI (1.001 to 1.014), P=0.006]. Furthermore, using receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, we observed that the best threshold of LDH level was 280.70 U/L, and the area under the curve was 0.624 (95% CI 0.556 to 0.689). Conclusion LDH level on admission is an independent predictor of in-hospital mortality in patients with AAD.
Acute aortic dissection is featured as sudden onset and high mortality. Regardless early optimal surgical intervention and strict medical therapy, incidence of late complications is still high. Thus, specific imaging techniques and precise measurement of biomarkers to predict complications are needed. In the present study, we reviewed related papers to compare traditional imaging techniques (computed tomography, echocardiography) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the diagnosis of chronic aortic dissection. In addition, we discussed how to further evaluate aortic dissection by MRI.
Objective To discusses the feasibilities of the hybrid surgical treatment of Stanford type B aortic dissection. Methods From August 2011 to August 2015 a total of 14 cases of complex Stanford type B aortic dissection patients had been completed hybrid surgery. Among them 11 cases of men and 3 cases of women, aged 22 to 62, an average of 44±7.2 years old. Twelve cases with dissecting aneurysm involving the aortic arch and its three vascular branch. There were 2 cases of patients after TEVER, occurred new dissection or pseudoaneurysms, and had hybrid surgery by traditional thoracotomy; 3 cases involving carotid artery were received neck-neck hybrid surgery, and 7 cases involving left subclavian artery were received neck-lock hybrid surgery. Two cases of dissecting aneurysm involving the iliac artery to thrombosis that result in lower limb ischemia, then femoral to femoral artery hybrid surgery were performed. Results All the patients were successfully completed the operation of covered stent implantation and hybrid surgery. Intraoperative angiography showed that the position of the stent was accurate, the interlayer isolation was successful, there was no obvious leakage and displacement of the stent, the true lumen blood flow of the aortic dissection was returned to normal, and bypass blood and target blood vessels were unobstructed. Fourteen patients were followed-up for a period of 3 to 36 months, with an average of (24.0±8.2) months. In 1 month after operation, pleural effusion occurred in 1 case, there was 1 case of cerebral stroke in two days after surgery, incision hematoma occurred in 1 case in 10 days after surgery, and the other patients had no postoperative death and severe complications. All 14 patients were followed-up and returned to normal life. Conclusion The hybrid operations can increase the success rate of TEVAR in complex Stanford type B aortic dissection patients, and early and mid-term results are satisfactory.
Objective To measure the rate of changes of the cardiac troponin T (cTnT) and serum urea nitrogen (N), serum creatinine (Cr), estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of acute type A aortic dissection (AAAD) patients before and after surgery, and to explore the prognostic significance of the rate of changes. Methods We retrospectively analyzed 77 AAAD patients' clinical data between August 2015 and March 2016 from the department of the cardiothoracic surgery in Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital. There were 57 males and 20 females with an average age of 51.1±13.1 years. The test results of cTnT, N, Cr, eGFR were recorded. Patients were divided into three groups based on the duration of ventilation: less than 48 hours, 48 hours to 7 days, longer than 7 days, and divided into two groups based on whether postoperative dialysis was performed: dialysis group and non-dialysis group. Results In the groups with different duration of ventilation, the rate of cTnT change differed significantly. The rate of Cr and eGFR change in the group with the duration of ventilation longer than 7 days showed significantly different compared to other two groups. We found that the rate of Cr and eGFR change were statistically significant between the dialysis group and the non-dialysis group. In the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC), the optimal cut-off value of the Cr growth rate for predicting postoperative dialysis therapy was 58.1%, and the optimal cut-off value of the eGFR decline rate was 45.5%. Conclusion The rate of changes in cTnT, N, Cr and eGFR can be used as a reliable mean to evaluate respiratory and renal function for AAAD patients in the early stage, which will facilitate an early assessment of the prognosis of AAAD patients.
Aortic dissection is one of the most devastating cardiovascular diseases. One of the most important pathological features of aortic dissection is local inflammatory response, including the infiltration of inflammatory cells, extracellular matrix degradation, and smooth muscle cell phenotype switch. Macrophages which are the core of the inflammatory response play an extremely pivotal role in the progression of inflammation and tissue remodeling. Macrophages can be artificially divided into M1 and M2 types, of which the M1-type promotes inflammation while the M2-type is associated with the regression of inflammation and tissue healing. Mastering the switch of phenotypic transformation of macrophages may be of great help in inhibiting the inflammation of aortic tissue and facilitating tissue healing, as well as the treatment of aortic dissection. In this paper, we focus on the polarization of macrophages and discuss the role of macrophages in aortic dissection, the polarization pathway and the effect of related polarizing agents on the treatment of aortic dissection.