Samsung Medical Center, Performed the World\'s Most Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Surgery for Marfan Syndrome Patients

Marfan syndrome (MFS) is a genetic disorder of the body’s connective tissue that affects the cardiovascular system. It causes fatal complications such as ruptured blood vessels and aneurysms caused by weakened blood vessels including the aorta. In the case of abdominal aortic aneurysm caused by Marfan syndrome, unlike general abdominal aortic aneurysm, it is a disorder caused by structural problems of blood vessels. Therefore, surgery is considered as the only treatment method.

A research team led by Professor Park, Yang Jin, from the Division of Vascular Surgery at Samsung Medical Center, announced the results of abdominal aortic aneurysm surgery performed on patients with Marfan syndrome.

The team compared 426 general patients to 28 patients with Marfan syndrome who underwent abdominal aortic aneurysm surgery between September 2003 and June 2020. In both groups, reoperation was not required due to anastomotic rupture or bleeding, and the 30-day postoperative mortality rate was very low: 0% for Marfan syndrome patients and 0.9% for general patients. Furthermore, the 10-year survival rate of patients with Marfan syndrome was 95.2%, which was significantly higher than 72% of general patients with an average age of 70 years or older, proving once again that living a life similar to that of a normal person is possible if they recover well after surgery.

Through the announcement of the surgical outcomes, Samsung Medical Center was reaffirmed as the hospital that conducted the most surgeries for abdominal aortic aneurysms in patients with Marfan syndrome. This was based on excellent surgical techniques accumulated through systematic patient management, timely surgery before serious complication (i.e., rupture) occurs, and open surgery experience for patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm.

This research study was published in the Journal of Vascular Surgery (IF 4.268/2020).