Temporary extracorporeal bypass modalities during aortic surgery

The key to aortic surgery is protection of the brain, heart, spinal cord, and viscera. For operations involving the aortic arch, the focus is on cerebral protection, while for pathology involving the descending thoracic aorta, the focus is on spinal protection. Optimal cerebral and spinal protection requires an extensive knowledge of the operative steps and an understanding of the cardiopulmonary bypass modalities that are possible. A bloodless field is required when operating on the aorta. As a result, periods of ischemia to the central nervous system and end-organ viscera are often unavoidable. The main techniques to mitigate ischemia include hypothermia and selective perfusion of the ischemic organ in question. This chapter will first briefly review bypass modalities and then describe how they can be used for various aortic scenarios.