Six-month preclinical results of novel vascular anastomosis device intended to facilitate open aortic and arch vessel reconstruction.

The surgical repair of type A aortic dissection often involves prosthetic proximal aortic and arch reconstruction. Hypothermic circulatory arrest is typically used in these complex surgeries given the required prolonged ischaemia and the associated morbidity and mortality. A novel vascular anastomoses device (Device) has been developed to rapidly connect a native vessel to a polyester graft. This study describes deployment of the Device in the ovine model (n = 3; 6 carotid arteries). Anastamoses were created rapidly, and brain ischaemia time was limited to 6 min in all but one vessel. All vessels remained fully patent with normal blood flow and thrombus-free transitions through 6 months. Results thus suggest that this Device has the potential to reduce anastomosis time versus conventional suturing techniques and thereby reduce hypothermic circulatory arrest time.