Tirone David operation for aortic aneurysm (heart surgery aortic root replacement procedure)

A valve-preserving aortic root reconstruction (Tirone David operation) is performed when a widening of the aortic base (root) causes the valve to leak because the valve pockets can no longer meet in the middle.

This procedure offers the possibility of preserving or reconstructing the natural (native) aortic valve. During the procedure, the enlarged root is sutured into a vascular prosthesis, allowing the valve to close tightly by tightening the base.

Surgical access for the Tirone David operation

Surgery on the ascending aorta (close to the heart) or on the aortic arch is performed by splitting the sternum.

The advantage of preserving the aortic valve is that patients can avoid long-term treatment with blood thinners (anticoagulation therapy) and the risk of prosthesis degeneration with the need for renewed surgery after several years is reduced.

David operation

The "David operation" was named after the inventor of the procedure, the Brazilian heart surgeon Tirone Esperidiao David (1944). He is still a professor at the University of Toronto in Canada.