For the 1st time in India, an elderly gentleman underwent a successful surgery for correction of multiple anomalies of Aorta (Acute Type-A Dissection, Leakage in Aortic Valve and A Tear in the Distal end of the Aorta), in a single stage operation, at The Aortic Aneurysm Centre, SIMS Hospital, Chennai.

 Type-A dissection in the ascending aorta itself is a lethal condition posing challenge to Cardiac Surgeons. When it happens suddenly, majority of the patients do not survive, unless surgical treatment is done in first 48 hours. Additionally treating the leaking aortic valve and the tear in the lower part of the descending aorta was a huge challenge in this case. Currently in most of the centres, only the ascending aorta is rectified for such cases, leaving the other problems to be tackled after 1 or 2 years. But, the surgeons at SIMS corrected all the 3 different parts of the aorta in a single operation that lasted for about 6 hours

A 65 year old gentleman (name withheld) from Coimbatore was admitted to SIMS Hospital with complaints of severe chest pain radiating to the back and abdomen. The pain was very intense over the past one day before the patient came to SIMS for consultation. Upon detailed investigations, he was diagnosed with Acute type A Aortic Dissection along with a leaking aortic valve and a tear in the lower end of the descending aorta. It was a life-threatening condition for the patient that required an emergency surgery. The patient then rushed-in for  surgery within half an hour, which is mandatory in such a condition.

Speaking on the complexity of aortic disorders, Dr. V. V. Bashi - Director, Institute of Cardiac & Aortic Disorders (ICAD) at SIMS said, “It is quite challenging to detect aortic conditions preemptively, and detecting 3 conditions in one case would be difficult unless right diagnostic approach is taken. Another challenge for us was to carry-out all the surgical corrections in a single session, that too on an emergency basis.”

The patient underwent successful total corrective replacement of the entire diseased aorta with the repair of the aortic valve as a single stage operation and had an uneventful recovery. He is doing well and assuming normal life.