Pararenal Aortic Thrombus in Patients Undergoing Aortic Aneurysm Repair With Chimney Technique.

INTRODUCTION: Chimney technique (chimney graft in abdominal aortic aneurysm repair [ChEVAR]) can be used to treat patients with pararenal aortic aneurysm unfit for open surgery and not suitable for custom-made fenestrated endograft. Since almost 1 in 5 patients undergo a reintervention within 3 years, features associated with higher risk of complications need to be investigated to tailor the follow-up schedule to each patient. The aim of our study was to assess the impact of mural thrombus in the pararenal aorta on perioperative and follow-up complications after ChEVAR. METHODS: All consecutive patients undergoing ChEVAR at our center from 2015 to 2022 were included in this retrospective study. Collected variables included number of target vessels, stent graft size, presence, and severity of mural thrombus in pararenal aorta, which was reported with a scoring system from 0 to 10 based on thrombus type, thickness area, and circumferenceAnalyzed outcomes included perioperative and follow-up complications. RESULTS: Thirty-one patients underwent ChEVAR during the study period. In 4 patients the indication for ChEVAR was type 1A endoleak after a previous endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR). The number of target vessels was 1 in 17 patients (55%), 2 in 12 (39%), 3 in 1 (3%), and 4 in 1 (%). The mean mural thrombus score was 5.9. Complications were the following: type 1A endoleak in 4 cases (13%), chimney stent complications in 7 cases (23%) (including partial or total thrombosis, intrastent stenosis, displacement), renal function worsening during follow-up in 8 cases (26%). Overall survival was 90% at 2 years. Patients with severe mural thrombus showed lower freedom from ChEVAR-related complications (28% vs 59% at 2 years, p=0.023). CONCLUSIONS: The presence of severe pararenal aortic mural thrombus was associated with lower freedom from ChEVAR-related complications in patients undergoing ChEVAR for pararenal aortic aneurysm repair. Further research with a larger number of patients is required to confirm these results. CLINICAL IMPACT: The analysis of severity of mural thrombus in pararenal aorta, which was reported with a scoring system from 0 to 10 based on thrombus type, thickness area and circumference, can be useful and can be represent an important predictor element for complications in patient submitted to Chimney tecnique; in fact the presence of severe pararenal aortic mural thrombus was associated with lower freedom from ChEVAR-related complications in patients undergoing ChEVAR for pararenal aortic aneurysm repair. Then, in patient with pararenal aortic aneurysm, a preoperative evaluation could be focused on severity of mural thrombus to minimize the complications in ChEVAR tecnique or to change the surgical strategy.

Popliteal-to-Distal Extreme Bypass in Endovascular Era.

BACKGROUND: Chronic limb-threatening ischemia (CLTI) is characterized by rest pain and tissue loss, with an annual mortality rate of 20% and amputation rate of 40%, if not treated. Open bypass surgery is recommended in CLTI, depending on the availability of good quality venous material, outflow artery patency, and surgical expertise. The aim of the study is to analyze primary patency, limb salvage, and survival rate in patients undergoing popliteal-to-distal bypass. METHODS: All consecutive patients who underwent popliteal-to-distal bypass surgery between January 2016 and December 2021 were enrolled in the study. Primary outcomes were primary patency, limb salvage, and overall survival. Secondary outcomes included amputation-free survival and secondary patency. RESULTS: Forty-nine patients were included during the study. Technical success was achieved in 100% of cases. Target outflow artery was in 27% (n. 13) of cases the anterior tibial artery, in 27% (n. 13) the dorsalis pedis, in 2% (n. 1) the peroneal artery, in 30% (n. 15) the retromalleolar tibial artery, in 10% (n. 5) the medial plantar artery, and in 4% (n. 2) the tarsal artery. Two-year primary patency was 85% ± 5. Secondary patency rates were 86% ± 3 at 2 years. The overall survival was 81% ± 6 at 2 years, the amputation-free survival was 70% ± 9, and the limb salvage rate was 81% ± 6. CONCLUSIONS: Popliteal-to-distal bypass requires high technical expertise to be performed. When a good autologous vein and adequate outflow artery are present, they can be feasible with good patency rates and overall survival.

Carotid to subclavian bypass and Amplatzer vascular plug subclavian endovascular occlusion before thoracic open or endovascular repair.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of endovascular occlusion of the prevertebral subclavian artery (SA) using an Amplatzer vascular plug after prophylactic revascularization with carotid-subclavian bypass (CSB) in the setting of endovascular thoracic stent grafting or open arch repair with frozen elephant trunk. METHODS: All patients who underwent SA plug embolization (SAPE) and CSB from September 2009 to December 2018 were enrolled in a registered study (SAPE study: clinicaltrials.govNCT03620006). The primary end point was technical success, defined as complete occlusion of the origin of the SA, and how it was influenced by SA anatomy. The secondary end points were access vessel complications, cerebrovascular events, and CSB patency. RESULTS: The 101 SAPE procedures were performed using a type I (35 patients) or a type II (66 patients) Amplatzer vascular plug. A percutaneous ipsilateral upper extremity access was used in 66% of patients and a radial artery access was used in 50% of procedures. The 30-day primary technical success rate was 95% (five patients received an additional plug during the index); five type IC endoleaks were observed and successfully treated either with surgical ligation (in open arch repair procedures) or secondary embolization procedure (thoracic endovascular aneurysm repair group). Three access vessel complications (3%) were recorded with percutaneous brachial approach. At a median follow-up time of 11 months (range, 2-19 months), no new-onset type IC endoleak was observed, and the CSB patency rate was 97%. CONCLUSIONS: SAPE after CSB is feasible and safe, and has low incidence of type IC endoleaks. Further device developments are needed to better adapt to the subclavian anatomy.

Preliminary Results of Debranch-First Technique in Frozen Elephant Trunk Procedures.

BACKGROUND: To evaluate the outcomes of frozen elephant trunk (FET) procedures performed with a customized graft that allows debranch-first technique with continuous antegrade cerebral perfusion and early distal aortic and myocardial reperfusion. METHODS: Between 2016 and 2018 34 patients (30 men; median age, 59.7 years) were enrolled in an ambispective single-center study called FET Optimization (clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03600077). The patients underwent FET procedure using a novel modified E-Vita graft (JOTEC GmbH, Hechingen, Germany) plus graft with 2 dedicated reperfusion branches with debranch-first technique. Mortality and morbidity were primary endpoints. Secondary endpoints were overall duration of cardiopulmonary bypass, debranching, limb ischemia, cardiac ischemia, cerebral perfusion, and amount of aortic coverage. RESULTS: No deaths at 30 days were recorded, and the major adverse event (grade ≥ 2) rate was 33% (11 patients) including 1 (3%) nondisabling stroke and 1 (2.9%) permanent spinal cord ischemic event. Proximal FET collar anastomosis were in zone 0 (68%) or zone 1 (32%). Median cardiopulmonary bypass duration was 165 minutes (range, 144-185), distal aortic ischemic time 38 minutes (range, 32-45), and cardiac ischemic time 74 minutes (range, 62-94). The time of distal aortic ischemia was shorter in nonobese patients (27 vs 49 minutes, P = .043) and in zone 0 (23 cases) vs zone 1 (11 cases) anastomosis (34 vs 42 minutes, P = .043). CONCLUSIONS: The FET procedure with debranch-first technique is safe and feasible and resulted in low mortality and morbidity rates. Further investigation is needed to compare it with standard techniques.