Impact of collagen-coated and gelatine-impregnated woven Dacron branched grafts on the early postoperative period.

To investigate the impact of two different sealed Dacron vascular branched prostheses on the early postoperative period, 30 patients whose aortic arch was replaced by either a collagen-coated (n=18) or a gelatine-impregnated (n=12) branched prosthesis were retrospectively studied. The patients who received a collagen-coated branched prosthesis required longer chest drainage (11.9+/-5.2 vs. 7.9+/-4.6 days, p<0.05). On the other hand, higher white cell count on 7th postoperative day (9,406+/-3,485 vs. 11,810+/-4,378/microL, p<0.05) was observed in the patients with a gelatine-impregnated branched prosthesis. Biocompatibility of the prostheses could affect the early postoperative course, therefore these specific impacts should be considered to manage the patients with these prostheses.