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Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 2007;31:998-1003. doi:10.1016/j.ejcts.2007.01.069
Copyright © 2007, European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

Spinal cord ischemia after elective endovascular stent-graft repair of the thoracic aorta

Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, South 1 West 16, Chuo-ku, Sapporo 060-8543, Japan

Received 2 September 2006; received in revised form 23 January 2007; accepted 29 January 2007.

^_* Corresponding author. Tel.: +81 11 611 2111x3312; fax: +81 11 613 7318. (Email: nobuyosh{at}sapmed.ac.jp).

Background: We reviewed our experience to investigate the determinants of paraplegia/paraparesis after endovascular stent-graft repair of the thoracic aorta, to assess the influence of the artery of Adamkiewicz (ARM) detected by preoperative magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) and to identify patients at risk. Methods: Over a 5-year period (March 2001–June 2006), 149 patients underwent elective endovascular stent-graft repair of the descending thoracic aorta. Patient demographics and perioperative factors relating to the endovascular procedure were evaluated by using univariate statistical analyses. To assess the influence of the ARM in the thoracolumbar region, patients in whom ARM was detected by preoperative MRA were divided into two groups: patients who had occlusion of the intercostal artery for ARM due to stent-graft (group A, n = 33) and patients who had patency of the intercostal artery for ARM following stent-graft (group B, n = 38). Results: Five (3.6%) of the 144 patients had paraparesis/paraplegia. Two of these five patients had previously undergone operation for total arch replacement with elephant trunk and one had surgery for descending aortic repair. Univariate analyses identified only prior aortic surgery as a significant risk factor (p = 0.04). Paraparesis/paraplegia rates were 10% (three patients) in group A and 0% in group B (p = 0.09). Conclusion: Prior thoracic aortic replacement was found to be a significant predictor of spinal cord ischemia, and therefore vigilance is needed regarding occlusion of the intercostal artery for ARM detected prior to stent-graft repair.

Key Words: Paraplegia • Spinal cord ischemia • The artery of Adamkiewicz (ARM) • Thoracic aortic aneurysm

This article has been cited by other articles:

				E. Y. Woo and J. P. Carpenter Commentary on "Mid-term Results of a Multicenter Study of Thoracic Endovascular Aneurysm Repair Versus Open Repair" Perspectives in Vascular Surgery and Endovascular Therapy, June 1, 2007; 19(2): 131 - 133. [PDF]