[Complete occlusion of the aortic arch in an adult (author's transl)]

This paper reports the case of a 55-year-old patient with complete obstruction of the aorta between the left common carotid artery and the left subclavian artery. The arterial blood supply to the lower half of the body is provided by extensive collateral networks in the region of the right hemithorax, the neck and the base of the brain. Only 10 similar cases appear to have been described in the literature; our patient seems to be the oldest so far.