Intraoperative electrophysiologic monitoring in aortic surgery

摘要

INTRAOPERATIVE MONITORING (IOM) has been used to reduce cerebral and spinal cord injuries during the repair of thoracoabdominal aorta aneurysms (TAAAs). The risks of cerebral injury when the ascending aorta is repaired and of paraplegia when the descending thoracic aorta is involved have prompted the application of numerous techniques to measure blood flow, assess the balance of blood flow and metabolism, and warn of ischemia in order to prompt corrective measures. The neurologic risk varies with the portion and length of the aorta that is diseased. The highest risk occurs with Crawford types I and II because both include part of the ascending and the entire descending thoracic aorta.