[German Registry for Acute Aortic Dissection Type A (GERAADA): initial results].

BACKGROUND: The working group "Aortic Surgery and Interventional Vascular Surgery" of the German Society for Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery (GSTCVS) set up the German registry for acute aortic dissection type A (GERAADA) in July 2006. This web-based database was developed to record data of patients who had undergone surgery for aortic dissection type A (AADA). The aim of GERAADA is to learn from analyzing the data of AADA patients how to improve the perioperative management and surgical treatment of patients with AADA and to identify possible parameters affecting patient risk and outcome.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: Between July 2006 and June 2009 (2010), 1558 (2137) patients with AADA were enrolled in the multi-center, prospective GERAADA database by 50 cardiac surgery centers in German-speaking countries in Europe. Data on patients' preoperative and intraoperative status, postoperative complications, midterm results and circumstances of death were recorded. Data were analyzed to identify risk factors influencing the outcome of these patients. The Institute of Medical Biostatistics, Epidemiology and Informatics (IMBEI) in Mainz performed the statistical analyses.

RESULTS: Analyses from GERAADA reveal a thirty-day mortality of 17% in 2137 AADA patients. Only short interventions in aortic arch surgery are safe during hypothermic circulatory arrest even without selective cerebral perfusion. If circulatory arrest times of over 30 min. are anticipated, antegrade cerebral perfusion is strongly recommended during the entire arch intervention using cardiopulmonary bypass. Surgical strategy in terms of isolated ascending aortic replacement versus ascending aortic replacement combined with aortic arch repair had no statistical relevant influence on 30-day mortality. AADA surgical results in elderly patients are more encouraging than those treated without surgery. Surgery is even feasible in octogenarians with a 35% mortality rate.

CONCLUSION: The aim of this registry is to optimize AADA patients' medical care, thereby reducing their morbidity and mortality. AADA treatment should always involve open surgery. Initial analyses from GERAADA provide clinically relevant insights concerning patients with AADA, and may enable therapeutic recommendations for improving perioperative and surgical management. Our latest study detected significant influencing risk factors for the outcome of AADA patients and may contribute to a consensus in setting guidelines for standard medical treatment.

PERSPECTIVE: A European Registry of Aortic Diseases ("EuRADa") is being established this year under the leadership of the "Vascular Domain" of the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS). This database will collect parameters on all aortic diseases, dissection types A and B, aneurysms, perforating ulcer (PAU), intramural wall hematoma (IMH), traumatic aortic ruptures, and all potential treatment strategies (medical treatment, open surgical and endovascular).