• Michael P Robich, Robert Hagberg, Marc L Schermerhorn, Frank B Pomposelli, Michael C Nilson, Michelle L Gendron, Frank W Sellke, and Roberto Rodriguez.
• Department of Surgery, Division of Cardiac Surgery, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
• Ann. Thorac. Surg. 2012 Apr 1;93(4):1223-7.

BackgroundNitinol is an alloy that serves as the base for numerous medical devices, including the GORE TAG Thoracic Endoprosthesis (W.L. Gore & Associates, Flagstaff, AZ) thoracic aortic graft device. Given the increasing use of therapeutic hypothermia used during the placement these devices and in post-cardiac arrest situations, we sought to understand the impact of hypothermia on this device.MethodsFive 34-mm TAG devices were deployed in a temperature-controlled chamber at 20°C, 25°C, 30°C, 35°, and 37°C (25 total devices). A halographic measurement device was used to measure radial expansive force and normalized to the force at 37°C. Three 34-mm TAG devices were similarly deployed in a temperature-controlled water bath at each of the above temperatures. A laser micrometer was utilized to measure deployed diameter.ResultsA statistically significant decrease in expansive force at 20°C, 25°C, and 30°C of 65%, 46%, and 6%, respectively, was noted. A statistically significant decrease in radial diameter at 20°C and 25°C of 17% and 11%, respectively, was noted. Although a 9% difference was noted at 30°C, it was not significant.ConclusionsThe nitinol-based TAG device shows marked decreases in radial expansive force and deployed diameter at temperatures at or below 30°C. Surgeons should be aware of the potential implications of placing nitinol-based endoprostheses in hypothermic conditions. In addition, all health care providers should be aware of the changes that occur in nitinol-based endoprostheses during therapeutic hypothermia.Copyright © 2012 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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