Evaluation of end-organ protection in newborns and infants after surgery of aortic arch hypoplasia: A prospective randomized study

Introduction Surgical repair of aortic arch hypoplasia in children requires a “dry” surgical field with reliable end-organ protection. Perfusion strategies commonly involve deep hypothermic circulatory arrest (DHCA) and variations of the continuous perfusion techniques, such as selective antegrade cerebral perfusion (SACP) and full-flow perfusion with double aortic cannulation (DAC). We aimed to evaluate the end-organ protection in the surgery of aortic arch hypoplasia in newborns and infants using DHCA and DAC. Materials and methods 66 newborns and infants with aortic arch hypoplasia and biventricular anatomy were enrolled in this prospective study. Patients were randomly assigned into two groups according to the perfusion strategy – DHCA ( n = 33); and DAC ( n = 33). Primary endpoint: acute kidney injury (AKI), graded according to the KDIGO score. Secondary endpoints: neurological sequelae (pre- and postoperative MRI), in-hospital mortality. Results The lowest temperature was 32 (28; 34)°С in the DAC group and 23 (20; 25)°С in the DHCA group. The patients with DAC had lower incidence of AKI (6 patients (18.2%) versus 19 patients (57.6%); p = .017). In the multivariate analysis, the inotropic index at 48 h was identified as a risk factor, increasing the risk of AKI by 4%. The DHCA group was associated with a 3.8-fold increase in the risk of AKI. There was no difference in hospital mortality between the DAC and DHCA groups (1 patient (3%) versus 3 patients (9.1%); p = .61). Neurological sequelae by MRI scan were observed in 18 patients (54.5%) in the DHCA group compared to 5 patients (15.15%) in the DAC group ( p = .026). The only risk factor identified in the multivariate analysis for neurological lesions on MRI scan was the DHCA group, which increased the risk by 8.8 times. Conclusions Surgical reconstruction of the aortic arch hypoplasia using the method of full-body perfusion reduces the incidence of neurological lesions and renal complications requiring renal replacement therapy compared with the deep hypothermic circulatory arrest in neonates and infants.