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Background Endovascular techniques have revolutionised the therapy of abdominal and thoracoabdominal aortic disease. For infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm, the endovascular aortic repair has become a standard for elective and emergent cases. In complex abdominal or thoracoabdominal aortic pathologies, involving reno-visceral vessels, there are technical challenges for open and endovascular surgery. Due to high mortality and morbidity of open surgery of complex aortic lesions, especially in emergent cases, endovascular techniques have developed as well. Results Endovascular treatment options for complex aortic pathologies are fenestrated and branched stent grafts and the chimney graft technique. In elective cases, fenestrated and branched stent grafts are ordered as "custom-made" devices but planning, production and delivery takes up to approximately 12 weeks. For urgent cases, there recently only exists one 4-vessel branched "off-the-shelf" stent graft, that fits only about 60% of patients' anatomy in complex abdominal or thoracoabdominal aneurysm cases. As an alternative for these patients, "surgeon-modified" stent grafts are a treatment option. Here, a commercially available stent graft is modified with the needed fenestrations and branches for the visceral vessel prior to the operation. Compared to off-the-shelf stent grafts, the surgeon-modified stent grafts have similar results for mortality and morbidity. Conclusion As long as off-the-shelf devices for a larger variety of abdominal and thoracoabdominal anatomy are available, surgeon-modified stent grafts are a good treatment alternative for urgent complex abdominal and thoracoabdominal aortic pathologies in high-risk patients., Competing Interests: Interessenkonflikt: NT: Proctor Cook Medical; TK: Intellectual Property Cook Medical., (Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.)