EXPERIMENTS OUTLINING THE LIMITATIONS OF OPERATIONS ON THE ABDOMINAL AORTA

1. Injuries of the abdominal aorta in dogs may be corrected with subsequent perfect restoration of the continuity of the vessel. 2. The complete occlusion of the aorta for a period of 30 minutes is not necessarily followed by serious consequences. 3. In cases in which a portion of the aorta must be resected, an arterial segment taken from another animal can be safely utilized as a transplant. 4. While the reestablishment of the continuity of the severed aorta by the circular suture is possible, the approximation of the severed ends during the suture entails such injury that thrombosis frequently occurs. Therefore, when the aorta is completely severed, the introduction of a transplanted segment is indicated. 5. An arterial tube of increased caliber made of smaller vessels such as the carotid lends itself readily as a transplant to the severed aorta, with a reasonable assurance of reestablishing the continuity of this vessel. 6. Defects in the aorta can be readily corrected by the use of fascial transplants with a minimum danger of thrombosis.