The first commercial use of the Valiant Navion stent graft system for endovascular repair of a descending thoracic aortic aneurysm

Objectives Thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) is the standard of care for descending thoracic aortic aneurysms (DTAA), and newer generation stent grafts have significant design improvements compared to earlier generation devices. Methods We report the first commercial use of the Medtronic Valiant Navion stent graft for treatment of an 85-year-old woman with a 5.8 cm DTAA and a highly tortuous thoracic aorta. Results A percutaneous TEVAR was performed using a two-piece combination of the Valiant Navion FreeFlo and CoveredSeal stent graft configurations for zones 2–5 coverage. The devices were successfully delievered through highly tortuous anatomy and deployed, excluding the entire length of the aneurysm with precise landing, excellent apposition and no evidence of endoleak. The patient tolerated the procedure well and has had no stent graft-related complications through one-year follow-up. Conclusions Design enhancements such as a lower profile delivery system, better conformability, and a shorter tapered tip are some of the improvements to this third-generation TEVAR device. Coupled with the multiple configuration options available, this gives physicians a better tool to treat thoracic aortic pathologies in patients with challenging anatomy. The early results are encouraging, and evaluation of long-term outcomes will continue.

Kissing Intravascular Balloon Lithoplasty and Endovascular Aortic Repair as a Treatment of Severe Distal Aorto-Iliac Occlusive Disease to Ensure a Safe Conduit to Facilitate Thoracic Endovascular Aort

Background: We describe a novel case of treating severe distal aorto-illiac occlusive disease and endovascular aortic repair with kissing endoluminal lithoplasty balloons. This ensured a safe conduit to facilitate thoracic endovascular aortic repair. Case Presentation: A patient with multiple comorbidities including coronary artery disease and peripheral artery disease (Rutherford 4 symptoms bilaterally) presented to the emergency room with chest pain and dyspnea on exertion. The patient was found to have a 3.5 cm descending thoracic aortic aneurysm, multiple penetrating aortic ulcers (PAU’s) within the descending thoracic aorta which was felt to be the cause of her chest pain along with heavily calcified occlusive aorto-iliac disease. The patient was deemed high surgical risk for open repair and the patient’s severe calcific distal aortic stenosis and bilateral severe ostial iliac stenosis was deemed a barrier for endovascular repair. Therefore, the patient was successfully treated with kissing balloon lithoplasty for lesion preparation of the heavy calcification and placement of an endovascular stent graft (EVAR) in the distal aorta, which ensured a safe conduit for thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) procedure. Conclusion: As patients become more and more complex it is important to explore endovascular treatment options especially when surgical risk is high. Balloon lithoplasty and graft placement of calcified aorto-iliac bifurcation is a safe approach to develop a clear conduit for TEVAR.

Complications and Management of the Thoracic Endovascular Aortic Repair

Endovascular treatment in thoracic aortic diseases has increased in use exponentially since Dake and colleagues first described the use of a home-made transluminal endovascular graft on 13 patients with descending thoracic aortic aneurysm at Stanford University in the early 1990s. Thoracic endovascular aneurysm repair (TEVAR) was initially developed for therapy in patients deemed unfit for open surgery. Innovations in endograft engineering design and popularization of endovascular techniques have transformed TEVAR to the predominant treatment choice in elective thoracic aortic repair. The number of TEVARs performed in the United States increased by 600% from 1998 to 2007, while the total number of thoracic aortic repairs increased by 60%. As larger multicenter trials and meta-analysis studies in the 2000s demonstrate the significant decrease in perioperative morbidity and mortality of TEVAR over open repair, TEVAR became incorporated into standard guidelines. The 2010 American consensus guidelines recommend TEVAR to be “strongly considered” when feasible for patients with degenerative or traumatic aneurysms of the descending thoracic aorta exceeding 5.5 cm, saccular aneurysms, or postoperative pseudoaneurysms. Nowadays, TEVAR is the predominant treatment for degenerative and traumatic descending thoracic aortic aneurysm repair. Although TEVAR has been shown to have decreased early morbidity and mortality compared with open surgical repair, endovascular manipulation of a diseased aorta with endovascular devices continues to have significant risks. Despite continued advancement in endovascular technique and devices since the first prospective trial examined the complications associated with TEVAR, common complications, two decades later, still include stroke, spinal cord ischemia, device failure, unintentional great vessel coverage, access site complications, and renal injury. In this article, we review common TEVAR complications with some corresponding radiographic imaging and their management.