Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40710773›Full record

ReviewJournal of cardiovascular development and disease2025

Floating Thrombus on the Ascending Aorta and/or Aortic Arch, to Operate or Not to Operate: Two Case Reports and a Literature Review.

Estelle Demoulin, Jalal Jolou, Raoul Schorer, Bernhard Walder, Carl Glessgen, Christoph Huber, Mustafa Cikirikcioglu

Abstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Journal of cardiovascular development and disease, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Surgical management of a free-floating thrombus in the ascending aorta presenting with recurrent systemic embolism: a case report.The Egyptian heart journal : (EHJ) : official bulletin of the Egyptian Society of Cardiology · 2026
    Article
  3. Article
  4. Review
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Estelle DemoulinDivision of Cardiovascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, University Hospital Geneva, Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, CH-1205 Genève, Switzerland.
Jalal JolouDivision of Cardiovascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, University Hospital Geneva, Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, CH-1205 Genève, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0001-5325-677X
Raoul SchorerDivision of Peri-Interventional Care, Department of Anaesthesiology-Intensive Care and Pharmacology, University Hospital Geneva, Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, CH-1205 Genève, Switzerland.
Bernhard WalderDivision of Peri-Interventional Care, Department of Anaesthesiology-Intensive Care and Pharmacology, University Hospital Geneva, Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, CH-1205 Genève, Switzerland.
Carl GlessgenDivision of Radiology, Department of Diagnostic, University Hospital Geneva, Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, CH-1205 Genève, Switzerland.ORCID 0000-0002-9836-7139
Christoph HuberDivision of Cardiovascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, University Hospital Geneva, Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, CH-1205 Genève, Switzerland.
Mustafa CikirikciogluDivision of Cardiovascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, University Hospital Geneva, Rue Gabrielle-Perret-Gentil 4, CH-1205 Genève, Switzerland.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND

aimFloating aortic thrombi are rare but potentially life-threatening entities, associated with a high risk of systemic embolization and subsequent complications such as ischemic stroke or mesenteric infarction. Therapeutic strategies range from urgent surgical intervention to conservative medical management with anticoagulation, depending on the patient's clinical status and thrombus morphology. This report presents two cases of floating aortic thrombi managed with distinct approaches, surgical and medical, underscoring the importance of individualized treatment guided by embolic risk and comorbidities. PATIENTS AND

methodsThe first case involves a 59-year-old male presenting with abdominal pain and emesis. Imaging confirmed mesenteric ischemia, necessitating emergent laparotomy and extensive jejunal resection. Postoperative imaging identified a mobile thrombus at the ascending aorta-aortic arch junction, with evidence of cerebral embolism. The patient underwent urgent surgical thrombectomy, ascending aortic resection, and hemiarch replacement. The second case describes an 88-year-old male who presented with bilateral upper limb paresthesia. Neuroimaging revealed acute supra- and infratentorial ischemic lesions suggestive of embolic stroke. A floating thrombus was identified in the ascending aorta, with an additional thrombus in the descending thoracic aorta. Given the patient's advanced age, comorbid conditions, and thrombus stability, a conservative approach with systemic anticoagulation and close radiologic surveillance was chosen.

conclusionsThese cases illustrate the need for tailored management of floating aortic thrombi. While surgical resection remains indicated in unstable or high-risk embolic cases, anticoagulation may suffice for stable lesions in patients with elevated surgical risk. Further studies are needed to establish standardized therapeutic guidelines.

Indexed as

aortic embolismaortic thrombusendovascular managementfloating aortic thrombussurgical thrombectomysystemic embolism

Identifiers

PMID40710773
PMCPMC12295192

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.