Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41088301›Full record

ArticleGeneral thoracic and cardiovascular surgery cases2025

Unanticipated stenosis of the distal edge of frozen elephant trunk caused by retrograde perfusion: A case report.

Taiki Niki, Jiro Esaki

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Article in General thoracic and cardiovascular surgery cases, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

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1citing papers in PubMed
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3 · Its place in the literature

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1 citing paper in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

2 authors.

Taiki NikiDepartment of Cardiovascular Surgery, Kobe City Medical Center General Hospital 2-1-1, Minatojimanakamachi, Chuoku, Kobe City, Hyogo, 650-0047, Japan. taikitwotree2481@gmail.com.ORCID http://orcid.org/0009-0002-0734-7333
Jiro EsakiDepartment of Cardiovascular Surgery, Kobe City Medical Center General Hospital 2-1-1, Minatojimanakamachi, Chuoku, Kobe City, Hyogo, 650-0047, Japan.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundTotal arch replacement with frozen elephant trunk (FET) has been reported to be associated with favorable aortic remodeling when used for aortic dissection. However, several complications associated with FET have been reported, including distal stent graft-induced new entry (dSINE), which potentially results in aortic rupture and late mortality. Frozenix Partial ET (Japan Lifeline Inc., Tokyo, Japan) is a unique FET device that has a non-stent zone at the distal 2 cm end to decrease the radial force to lower the incidence of dSINE. Owing to its novelty, there are few preceding literatures regarding its efficacy and complications. In this report, we present a case of an unanticipated complication arising from the use of Frozenix Partial ET subsequent to the initiation of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). CASE PRESENTATION: A 54-year-old male diagnosed with Stanford type A acute aortic dissection underwent emergency total aortic arch replacement, frozen elephant trunk with Frozenix partial ET (Japan Lifeline Inc., Tokyo, Japan), the Bentall procedure, and coronary artery bypass grafting. The patient developed cardiogenic shock, requiring extracorporeal membrane oxygenation with left common femoral artery and vein cannulation on postoperative day 1. Despite adequate ECMO flow, high doses of catecholamines were required to maintain blood pressure measured at the right radial artery. Transesophageal echocardiography revealed stenosis of the distal part of the FET presumably due to retrograde perfusion from the femoral artery. The addition of left axillary artery cannulation improved systemic circulation, reducing the dose of catecholamine.

conclusionAlthough designed to reduce the risk of dSINE, Frozenix Partial ET may induce unforeseen complications. Particularly, its non-stent distal part can become stenotic under conditions of retrograde perfusion. Surgeons should carefully choose where to cannulate in patients with this device requiring redo surgery or ECMO support.

Indexed as

Acute aortic dissectionExtracorporeal membrane oxygenationFrozenix Partial ET

Identifiers

PMID41088301
PMCPMC12522714

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