ABSTRACT
Patients with chronic type B aortic dissection usually require surgical repair due to aortic dissection-related complications, whereas those with uncomplicated type B acute aortic dissection can usually be managed with medical therapy. Disseminated intravascular coagulopathy (DIC), as well as aortic enlargement, visceral or limb ischemia and recurrent dissection, has been reported as one of the rare complications of type B aortic dissection which require surgical treatment in the chronic phase. DIC is a severe complication which can result in catastrophic events such as gastrointestinal and cerebral bleeding. The management of DIC as a complication of chronic aortic dissection is still controversial, as medical treatment involving anticoagulants and the supplementation of coagulation factors via a transfusion of fresh frozen plasma is not completely reliable. Surgical treatment to close a false lumen can be corrective, but carries the risk of excessive bleeding due to DIC. We report a patient with chronic type B dissection with a patent false lumen complicated by overt DIC. This patient had frequent occurrences of purpura on the upper and lower extremities. Contrast computed tomography in the late phase showed stagnation of contrast medium in the thoracic false lumen, which strongly idicated this false lumen to be the origin of the DIC. We gave the patient a continuous drip infusion of heparin (12,000 U/day) for 1 week before the operation, after which we performed total aortic replacement in order to thrombose the false lumen. His coagulation profile, including platelet count, prothrombin time, international normalized ratio and clinical symptoms improved immediately after the operation. Computed tomography (CT) performed 3 months after the operation showed complete thrombosis and obstruction of the false lumen in the thoracic aorta. The patient is currently well and has resumed routine activities. The continuous infusion of heparin for 1 week was highly effective to improve the coagulopathy in the present case. This case underscores the importance of conducting follow-up to evaluate coagulation-fibrinolysis system function and to measure the aortic diameter by CT in patients with chronic type B aortic dissection with a patent false lumen. Comparison of the early and late phases of contrast-enhanced CT was extremely useful to determine the cause of coagulopathy in this case. Furthermore, the coagulopathy was successfully treated by total aortic arch replacement to close the entry of the false lumen.
ABSTRACT
We studied intraoperative changes of transurethral resection of the prostate in blood coagulation-fibrinolysis system by thromboelastography (TEG) in 31 patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia. As TEG parameters reaction time (R), clot formation time (K), maximum amplitude (MA), coagulation time (R+K), clot lysis index after 60 minutes (Ly60) were measured. The coagulability was evaluated by R and R+K, the absolute strength of clot by MA, and fibrinolysis by Ly60. Coagulation time (R+K) was shortened in patients with decreased platelet count under 30,000 u/L (p<0.05), irrigating fluid volume over 20,000 ml (p<0.05) and had a tendency of shortening in patient with resection time over 50minutes (p=0.078). MA had a tendency of increasing but significant contributing factor was not detected. The mean value of Ly60 was increased significantly but the change was in normal range. Irrigating fluid volume (r=-0.407, p<0.05) and resection time (r=-0.456, p<0.05) showed negative correlation significantly with the change of R + K. There was no significant correlation between resected prostatic weight and TEG parameters. We concluded that coagulability is increased during TURP suggesting a possible role in postoperative clot retention, but the risk of fibrinolysis is not increased in patients with normal coagulation-fibrinolysis system.