Purpose
To describe an unpublished experimental model of descending thoracic aortic
aneurysm in pigs.
Methods
Ten Landrace female pigs aged 10 to 12 weeks old and with initial weights
from 17 to 25 kg were anesthetized and their descending thoracic aortas
exposed by fifth intercostal space left thoracotomy. The thoracic aorta was
isolated. A 2-cm wide × 2-cm long patch of ready-made bovine pericardium was
sewn onto the left anterolateral side of the aorta. After three weeks’
follow-up, a control aortography was taken, and the animals were euthanized.
The segment of thoracic aorta containing the aneurysm and the adherent
tissues were explanted en bloc. The specimens were stained for histological
examination.
Results
One hundred percent of the animals survived the procedure, and after
sacrifice a patent aneurysm was observed in all of them. There were no
defects on the suture lines. Weight gain during follow-up was normal. All
specimens exhibited intense adventitial reaction with myofibroblasts. There
were no complications related to the thoracotomy.
Conclusions
The descending thoracic aortic aneurysms induced experimentally appear to be
stable, were of easy execution, with null mortality and no influence on the
animals’ normal development. Furthermore, they have similar characteristics
to those observed in human degenerative aneurysms.