Systemic hypothermia with bilateral antegrade selective cerebral perfusion (ASCP) is the preferred cerebral protective strategy for type A aortic dissection surgery. The optimal ASCP flow rate remains uncertain and the target flow cannot always be reached due to pressure limitations. The aim of this study was to assess the correlation between ASCP flow and regional cerebral oxygen saturation (rSO2).

A retrospective analysis was performed on 140 patients with acute type A aortic dissection who underwent surgery with moderate hypothermic circulatory arrest and bilateral ASCP between 2015 and 2021. Pearson correlation analysis was performed between ASCP flow and rSO2.

The median circulatory arrest duration was 46.5 (IQR:37.0-61.0) minutes. There was no significant correlation between ASCP flow and rSO2 for both the right (r = -.02, p = .851), and the left hemisphere (r = – .04, p = .618). The rSO2 values for ten patients who received > 10 mL/kg/min flow did not differ significantly from 130 patients who received 10 mL/kg/min or less for both the left hemisphere (p = .135), and the right hemisphere (p = .318). The ASCP flow was 5.1 (IQR:5.0- 6.5) mL/kg/min in five patients with, and 7.2 (IQR:5.8-8.3) mL/kg/min in 135 patients without a watershed infarction (p = .098).

There was no correlation between ASCP flow rate and rSO2 in patients with acute type A aortic dissection. Furthermore, ASCP flow below 10 mL/kg/min was not associated with a reduction in rSO2. Definitive associations between ASCP flow and neurological outcome after type A aortic dissection surgery need further investigation.