Raised BMI is associated with fewer Type I endoleaks in patients treated with the Gore Excluder device: data from the Global Registry for Endovascular Aortic Treatment (GREAT).

BACKGROUND: Obesity is increasing in prevalence globally and within the cohort of vascular surgical patients, leading to poorer outcomes. There are few data on endoleak as a complication of AAA surgery in obese patients. The aim of this study was to use large scale registry data from the Global Registry for Endovascular Aortic Treatment (GREAT) to interrogate any relationship between obesity and endoleak following endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) using a Gore Excluder device (W. L. Gore & Associates, Newark, DE, USA), in order to guide treatment recommendations in the future. METHODS: A retrospective review of the GREAT Registry was carried out and patients who were recorded as having a postoperative endoleak requiring intervention were included. Patient demographics including Body Mass Index (BMI), aneurysm parameters and on- or off-instructions for use (IFU) were recorded. Ruptured AAA were excluded. RESULTS: Data were obtained for 3326 patients with an operation date between August 25, 2010 and September 22, 2019. Obese patients were significantly less likely to have a Type 1 endoleak (Fisher's Exact P value=0.006), and the association was maintained in a multiple logistic regression model which controlled for age, gender, neck angulation and off IFU device use (OR=0.33, P=0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Among AAA patients treated with a Gore Excluder device (W. L. Gore & Associates), a higher BMI category was associated with a lower risk of Type 1 endoleak requiring reintervention. Further work needs to be carried out to assess our findings in other patient cohorts.