Between 1984 and 1988, 15 patients with type A aortic dissection were treated by direct suturing of the intimal tear and extensive sticking of the dissected aortic layers with surgical (gelatin-resorcin-formaldehyde) glue without prosthetic graft replacement. Aortic incompetence was present in 10 patients, a situation that required valvular replacement in five and valvular repair in five. In 10 patients, the dissection extended to the transverse aortic arch, requiring profound hypothermia and circulatory arrest. All patients survived the operation. Follow-up ranged from 6 to 44 months. All patients were monitored by Doppler echocardiographic studies. In addition, 10 underwent angiography; six, a computed tomographic scan; and five, magnetic resonance imaging. In all patients but two, the ascending aorta and transverse arch had a normal appearance. In three patients, a limited dissection persisted that did not require reoperation. Dissection of the descending aorta was present in 10 patients. One patient required a valvular replacement 18 months after surgery, and one underwent heart transplantation for an associated cardiomyopathy 14 months after surgery. These preliminary results indicate that surgical glue can be used safely and efficiently in type A aortic dissection as an alternative to aortic replacement.