Type A aortic dissection with cold agglutinin disease

Cold agglutinin disease is an uncommon condition characterized by hemagglutination and microvascular thrombosis of red blood cells at low temperatures during cardiopulmonary bypass. We report the rare case of an ambulatory 74-year-old woman with a relatively high thermal amplitude for antibody activation. We performed aortic arch repair for type A aortic dissection using moderately hypothermic cardiopulmonary bypass and warm blood cardioplegia in a retrograde manner. This case report provides evidence that these are safe and suitable techniques for selected aortic arch repair patients with cold agglutinin disease.