INTRODUCTION
Postoperative thoracic aortic
graft infection (TAGI) is a serious and potentially fatal complication.
There is no definitive treatment protocol for TAGI. The classical
approach is to replace the infected graft by a biological graft such as
homograft or xenograft.1 However, surgical management
is challenging, and graft replacement after TAGI has a high mortality
rate .2,3 Moreover, difficulties in finding
appropriate biograft, high cost, and degeneration of the biografts are
known disadvantages of this approach. On the other hand, the morbidity
and mortality of a second operation will be high especially when the
co-morbid factors of such patients are considered. Treatment of TAGI
without replacement of the graft is an approach that has been discussed
in recent years and a limited number of cases have been
reported.2,3,4,6-8 In this report, we present
successful treatment of a case with mediastinitis and aortic graft
infection after Stanford type A aortic dissection surgery who was
treated with vacuum-assisted closure (VAC) therapy followed by omental
flap coverage without graft replacement.