VASCULAR SURGERY << BACK Aortic Surgery, Open Repair The aorta is the large artery that originates in the left ventricle of the heart. There are a number of disorders of the aorta that may require surgery. Open repair is often used to treat aortic disorders. Typically open repair takes between four and eight hours, and requires general anesthesia. For problems involving the ascending part of the aorta, the surgeon begins with an incision down the center of the chest and splits the breastbone. If the surgery is done to treat diseases of the descending thoracic aorta, the incision is made on the left side of the chest. If the problem is limited to the abdominal aorta, the incision is made in the abdomen. Using a heart-lung machine to stop the heart, the surgeon "cools" the heart (called hypothermic circulatory arrest) if the surgery includes blood vessels that lead to the head and upper body. Once the aorta is visible, the surgeon clamps above and below the diseased area and removes the damaged part, replacing it with a fabric graft. When the graft is in place, the surgeon removes the clamps, takes the patient off the heart-lung machine, and allows normal circulation to resume. After surgery, the patient is moved to ICU for close monitoring of heart functions. After a day or two, the patient is moved to a regular hospital room. The average hospital stay is between five and seven days. A follow-up visit is required within one month of surgery. Although recovery time varies, average patients take between three and six months before they can resume normal activity after open repair surgery.