CCTA: Cardiothoracic Surgery Applications

Virtual 3-Dimensional Computed Tomographic Surgical Planning for Severe Aortic Coarctation/Aneurysm in the Setting of Bicuspid Aortic Valve

“…Cardiovascular computed tomographic angiography (CCTA) provides a 3-dimensional (3D) individualized ''virtual patient avatar'' useful for diagnosis, decision-making, and virtual visualization of surgical approaches. 1 We present images from a 62-year-old male with bicuspid aortic valve with multiple associated aortic anomalies who underwent CCTA for virtual surgical planning. 2 The CCTA demonstrated a bicuspid aortic valve, aortic root aneurysm (4.6 Â 5.1 cm), severe coarctation of the aorta with a minimal residual connection measuring 4 mm, narrow necked (6 mm), saccular aneurysm of an intercostal artery (3.0 Â 2.7 cm) arising off the descending aorta distal to the coarctation, and the position and extent of enlarged intercostal collateral vessels (Figures 1-3).…”