Myanmarese Operated Using Frozen Elephant Trunk Method

Chennai: Doctors at Madras Medical Mission (MMM) successfully operated on a 55-year-old from Myanmar, who suffered from a large and extensive aortic aneurysm, by placing an endovascular stent employing the Frozen Elephant Trunk method.

A hospital press release said that the team headed by Vijit Cherian, Director - Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery & Heart Failure, went for the complex technique as it ensured that most of the replacement of the aorta could be achieved in a short time and also reduced the necessity for subsequent additional operations.

The operation took about eight hours with the assistance of the heart lung machine. The procedure involved the patient’s body being cooled to a temperature of around 18-20 degrees centigrade and stopping blood circulation to the entire body except the brain for a period of 30 minutes, the press release said, adding that there were few advanced centres in the country with the requisite experience in the use of this stent-graft hybrid.