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Approximately 40-50% of patients undergoing thoracic endovascular aortic repair require left subclavian artery coverage for adequate proximal landing zone. Many of these patients undergo left subclavian artery revascularisation. However, outcomes data for left subclavian artery revascularisation in the context of thoracic endovascular aortic repair remain limited. In this study, 70 left subclavian artery revascularisation procedures, performed on thoracic endovascular aortic repair patients at a tertiary hospital, were retrospectively reviewed. Particular emphasis was placed on revascularisation-related outcomes during staging interval between revascularisation and thoracic endovascular aortic repair. Forty-six (66%) carotid-subclavian bypass, 17 (24%) carotid-carotid-subclavian bypass and 7 (10%) aorto-inominate-carotid-subclavian bypass procedures were performed. There were no strokes or mortalities following left subclavian artery revascularisation procedures alone. Three (10%) minor complications occurred including a seroma, a haematoma and a temporary neuropraxia. Separation of complications following left subclavian artery revascularisation from those of the associated thoracic endovascular aortic repair can be difficult. Early outcomes data from patients who underwent left subclavian artery revascularisation in isolation indicate that the procedure is safe with low complication rates.

We propose a systematic review that compares outcomes after intentional coverage of the left subclavian artery during thoracic endovascular repair with and without prior surgical revascularization. According to Preferred Items for Reporting of Systemic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, PubMed and Embase searches identified studies reporting patients with left subclavian artery coverage during thoracic endovascular repair and their subsequent outcomes. Analyzing a varied patient cohort, there are nonstatistically significant trends that favor left subclavian artery revascularization in preventing stroke (odds ratio 0.76, 95% confidence interval: 0.49 to 1.18) and spinal cord ischemia (odds ratio 0.73, 95% confidence interval: 0.38 to 1.38); that was significant in reducing arm-related ischemia (p = 0.02). Further investigations should try to define subgroups of patients who might benefit from revascularization or who would derive no benefit., (Copyright © 2016 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Different methods have been used to assess remodeling of the thoracic aorta after endovascular treatment of Stanford type B aortic dissections. Changes in morphology may be described using diameter, area, or volume. The aim of this study was to determine if aortic diameter measurements could be used to approximate aortic area in order to refine reporting standards., Methods: The study population encompassed 100 patients enrolled in the VIRTUE registry (designed to assess thoracic endografting with the Valiant Stent Graft System [Medtronic, Minneapolis, MN] for the treatment of type B aortic dissections). Diameter and area measurements of the true lumen, false lumen, and whole aorta were made using three-dimensional computed tomographic (3D CT) workstations, at different anatomic locations. Measurements included preoperative, postoperative, and follow-up scans. The Pearson test was used to determine general correlation between diameter and volume at each location. Scatter plots were drawn and linear regression models were used to draw a line of best fit. Comparison of these with nonlinear models was performed., Results: Aortic true and false lumen diameter and area showed good correlation (p < 0.001) in the majority of anatomic locations. This relationship was present preoperatively and during follow-up (p < 0.001). The linear regression models fit well with high R(2) values. At very large aortic sizes nonlinear models were a slightly better fit, but this was not significant., Conclusions: Aortic diameter measurements correlate with luminal areas in patients with type B aortic dissection. This implies area increases proportionately with diameter over time. Therefore, diameter measurements using multiplanar reconstructions based on a central luminal line appear to be adequate when assessing aortic remodeling after endovascular treatment of aortic dissection., (Copyright © 2015 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: Thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) of various pathologies has been associated with peri-interventional neurologic complication rates of up to 15%. The objective of this study was to determine the influence of the management of the left subclavian artery (LSA) on neurologic complications and to define subgroups that might benefit from LSA revascularization., Methods: The Medtronic Thoracic Endovascular Registry (MOTHER; Medtronic, Santa Rosa, Calif), consists of data from five sponsored trials and one institutional series incorporating 1010 patients undergoing TEVAR from 2002 to 2010. Perioperative stroke and spinal cord injury (SCI) rates were described according to the management of the LSA and presenting pathology. Multivariate analysis was performed to determine factors associated with perioperative neurologic complications., Results: Of 1002 patients included in the analysis, stroke occurred in 48 (4.8%), and SCI developed in 42 (4.2%) ≤ 30 days of surgery. The stroke rate was 2.2% in patients with no coverage of the LSA vs 9.1% with coverage alone and 5.1% in patients who underwent LSA revascularization before coverage (P < .001). This relationship was strongest in the aneurysm group. Coverage of the LSA without revascularization was independently associated with stroke (odds ratio [OR], 3.5; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.7-7.1), specifically in the posterior territory (OR, 11.7; 95% CI, 2.5-54.6), as was previous cerebrovascular accident (OR, 7.1; 95% CI, 2.2-23.1; P = .001), whereas a covered LSA was not associated with an increased risk of SCI., Conclusions: Coverage of the LSA without revascularization is an important modifiable risk factor for stroke in patients undergoing TEVAR for a thoracic aortic aneurysm. Prior revascularization appears to protect against posterior circulation territory stroke., (Copyright © 2014 Society for Vascular Surgery. All rights reserved.)