INTRODUCTION
Paraplegia due to spinal cord injury (SCI) is a devastating complication
of surgery of the thoracic aorta. In patients requiring aortic arch
replacement, the frozen elephant trunk (FET) is becoming the preferred
method to treat complex aortic pathologies in a single stage. However,
the incidence of paraplegia following FET, either in patients with acute
aortic dissection or chronic aneurysms is still a major
concern1,2. Although lumbar cerebrospinal fluid
drainage (CSFD) is one of the most frequently used techniques for
prevention of paraplegia its role in spinal cord protection is difficult
to ascertain from available studies. One of the major issues concerning
CSFD relates to when it should be employed and whether alone or combined
with other strategies3.
The present case demonstrates the effectiveness of immediate use of CSFD
in reversing paraplegia after a FET for a chronic aortic aneurysm.