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The team of Sechenov University heart surgeons have successfully performed a complex abdominal transplantation from one patient to another – an ultra-rare surgery in Russia.
A 66-year old patient had had an abdominal aortic aneurism open repair a few years ago when a cylinder-like tube called a graft had been sewn to his aorta. The patient later experienced graft infection which caused inflammation in patient’s left hip provoking chronic pain and mobility problems. According to the specialists from the Sechenov University, the substitution of an old graft with a silver-coated one could not guarantee that a subsequent vascular infection would not occur again (usually occurs in 1-2% of the patients). In order to save the patient, the team of Sechenov University heart surgeons have decided to perform a homograft transplantation using a cadaver donor.
Homograft cardiac valves are the substitute of choice in aortic valve endocarditis, patients with counter-indications for anticoagulation, reconstruction of the outflow tract of the right ventricle, and an optional indication for patient of over 60 years of age. However, whereas the use of homografts in thoracic endovascular aortic repair is already widely practiced, the abdominal aorta transplantation is a breakthrough surgery in Russia.
Currently the scientists from the Sechenov University are working on a new and unique model of homograft which will soon be tested and, if successful, introduced into clinical practice.