Faculty Bibliography

OBJECTIVE: Endovascular interventions for critical limb ischemia are associated with inferior limb salvage (LS) rates in most randomized trials and large series. This study examined the long-term outcomes of selective use of endovascular-first (endo-first) and open-first strategies in 302 patients from March 2007 to December 2010. METHODS: Endo-first was selected if (1) the patient had short (5-cm to 7-cm occlusions or stenoses in crural vessels); (2) the disease in the superficial femoral artery was limited to TransAtlantic Inter-Society Consensus II A, B, or C; and (3) no impending limb loss. Endo-first was performed in 187 (62%), open-first in 105 (35%), and 10 (3%) had hybrid procedures. RESULTS: The endo-first group was older, with more diabetes and tissue loss. Bypass was used more to infrapopliteal targets (70% vs 50%, P = .031). The 5-year mortality was similar (open, 48%; endo, 42%; P = .107). Secondary procedures (endo or open) were more common after open-first (open, 71 of 105 [68%] vs endo, 102 of 187 [55%]; P = .029). Compared with open-first, the 5-year LS rate for endo-first was 85% vs 83% (P = .586), and amputation-free survival (AFS) was 45% vs 50% (P = .785). Predictors of death were age >75 years (hazard ratio [HR], 3.3; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.7-6.6; P = .0007), end-stage renal disease (ESRD) (HR, 3.4; 95% CI, 2.1-5.6; P < .0001), and prior stroke (HR, 1.6; 95% CI, 1.03-2.3; P = .036). Predictors of limb loss were ESRD (HR, 2.5; 95% CI, 1.2-5.4; P = .015) and below-the-knee intervention (P = .041). Predictors of worse AFS were older age (HR, 2.03; 95% CI, 1.13-3.7; P = .018), ESRD (HR, 3.2; 95% CI, 2.1-5.11; P < .0001), prior stroke (P = .0054), and gangrene (P = .024). CONCLUSIONS: At 5 years, endo-first and open-first revascularization strategies had equivalent LS rates and AFS in patients with critical limb ischemia when properly selected. A patient-centered approach with close surveillance improves long-term outcomes for both open and endo approaches.

BACKGROUND: A 61-year-old man with a previous endovascular repair and stage 5 chronic kidney disease presented with a symptomatic 4.5-cm left internal iliac artery aneurysm. The decision was made to proceed with endovascular repair. METHODS: The preoperative magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) scan was linked to on-table rotational imaging using the Artis zeego Fusion program (Siemens AG, Forchheim, Germany). Using the fused image as a road map, we undertook coil embolization of the left internal iliac artery, and a tapered stent graft was extended from the previous graft into the external iliac artery. RESULTS: Completion angiography revealed exclusion of the aneurysm sac. Three milliliters of contrast were used throughout the procedure. A follow-up magnetic resonance angiography scan at 1 month and duplex ultrasonography at 1 year revealed continued exclusion of the aneurysm sac. The patient's renal function remained unchanged. CONCLUSIONS: This case shows that in a patient with severe chronic kidney disease, fusion of preoperative imaging with intraoperative rotational imaging is feasible and can limit significantly the amount of contrast used during a complex endovascular procedure.

BACKGROUND: The incidence of concomitant carotid artery stenosis and unruptured intracranial aneurysms (UIAs) has been reported at between 0.5% and 5%. In these patients, treatment strategies must balance the risk of ischemic stroke with the risk of aneurysmal rupture. Several studies have addressed the natural course of UIAs in the setting of carotid revascularization; however, the final recommendations are not uniform. The purpose of this study was to review our institutional experience with concomitant UIAs and carotid artery stenosis. METHODS: We performed a retrospective review of all patients with carotid artery stenosis who underwent carotid artery endarterectomy (CEA) or carotid artery stenting (CAS) at our institution between 2003 and 2010. Only patients with preoperative imaging demonstrating intracranial circulation were included. Charts were reviewed for patients' demographic and clinical data, duration of follow-up, and aneurysm size and location. Patients were stratified into 2 groups: carotid artery stenosis with unruptured intracranial aneurysm (CS/UIA) and carotid artery stenosis without intracranial aneurysm (CS). RESULTS: Three hundred five patients met the inclusion criteria and had a total of 316 carotid procedures (CAS or CEA) performed. Eleven patients were found to have UIAs (3.61%) prior to carotid revascularization. Male and female prevalence was 2.59% and 5.26% (P = 0.22), respectively. Patients' demographics did not differ significantly between the 2 groups. The average aneurysm size was 3.25 +/- 2.13 mm, and the most common location was the cavernous segment of the internal carotid artery. No patient in the study had aneurysm rupture, and the mean follow-up time was 26.5 months for the CS/UIA group. CONCLUSIONS: Concomitant carotid artery stenosis and UIAs is a rare entity. Carotid revascularization does not appear to increase the risk of rupture for small aneurysms (<10 mm) in the midterm. Although not statistically significant, there was a higher incidence of aneurysms found in females in our patient population.

OxLDL/beta2GPI complexes have been implicated in the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis and associated with disease severity and adverse outcomes. We investigate the significance of anti-oxLDL/beta2GPI antibodies and oxLDL/beta2GPI complexes in patients with arterial and idiopathic venous disease. A cohort of 61 arterial disease patients, 32 idiopathic venous disease patients, and 53 healthy controls was studied. Because statins influence oxLDL/beta2GPI, these complexes were analyzed on subjects not taking statins. Arterial and venous groups expressed higher levels of IgG anti-oxLDL/beta2GPI antibodies than controls without any other significant clinical association. OxLDL/beta2GPI complexes were significantly elevated in arterial (0.69 U/mL, P = 0.004) and venous disease (0.54 U/mL, P = 0.025) than controls (0.39 U/mL). Among arterial diseases, oxLDL/beta2GPI was 0.85 U/mL for carotid artery disease, 0.72 U/mL for peripheral artery disease, and 0.52 U/mL for abdominal aortic aneurysm. There was a significant association with male gender, age, hypertension, and history of thrombosis. Subjects with oxLDL/beta2GPI above the median (0.25 U/mL) were more likely to have arterial (OR 4.5, P = 0.004) or venous disease (OR 4.1, P = 0.008). Multivariate regression indicated that males (P = 0.021), high cholesterol (P = 0.011), and carotid disease (P = 0.023) were significant predictors of oxLDL/beta2GPI. The coexistence of oxLDL/beta2GPI in arterial and venous disease may suggest a common oxidative mechanism that independently predicts carotid artery disease.

BACKGROUND: Cannulation of the radial artery is frequently performed for invasive hemodynamic monitoring. Complications arising from indwelling catheters have been described in small case series; however, their surgical management is not well described. Understanding the presentation and management of such complications is imperative to offer optimal treatment, particularly because the radial artery is increasingly accessed for percutaneous coronary interventions. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective review to identify patients who underwent surgical intervention for complications arising from indwelling radial artery catheters from 1997 to 2011. RESULTS: We identified 30 patients who developed complications requiring surgical intervention. These complications were categorized into ischemic and nonischemic, with 15 patients identified in each cohort. All patients presenting with clinical hand or digital ischemia underwent thrombectomy and revascularization. Complications in the nonischemic group included three patients with deep abscesses with concomitant arterial thrombosis, two with deep abscesses alone, and 10 with pseudoaneurysms. Treatment strategy in this group varied with the presenting pathology. Among the entire case series, three patients required reintervention after the initial surgery, all in individuals initially presenting with ischemia who developed recurrent thrombosis of the radial artery. There were no digital or hand amputations in this series. However, the overall in-hospital mortality in these patients was 37%, reflecting the severity of illness in this patient cohort. Three patients who were positive for heparin-induced thrombocytopenia antibody had 100% mortality compared with those who were negative (P = .04, Fisher exact test). In-hospital mortality was higher in patients presenting with initial ischemia than in those with nonischemic complications (53% vs 20%; P = .06). Among 10 patients who presented with pseudoaneurysms, five (50%) were septic at presentation with positive blood cultures, and six (60%) had positive operating room cultures. Staphylococcus aureus was identified as the causative organism in all of these patients. CONCLUSIONS: Complications of radial artery cannulation requiring surgical intervention can represent infectious and ischemic sequelae and have the potential to result in major morbidity, including digital or hand amputation and sepsis, or death. Although surgical treatment is successful and often required in these patients to treat severe hand ischemia, hemorrhage, or vascular infection, these complications tend to occur in critically ill hospitalized patients with an extremely high mortality. This must be taken into consideration when planning surgical intervention in this patient cohort. Finally, radial arterial cannulation sites should not be overlooked when searching for occult septic sources in critically ill patients.

BACKGROUND: Endoleak and sac growth remain unpredictable occurrences after EVAR, necessitating regular surveillance imaging, including CT angiography. This study was designed to identify preoperative CT variables that predict AAA remodeling and sac behavior post-EVAR. METHODS: Pre- and postoperative CT scans from 136 abdominal aortic aneurysms treated with EVAR were analyzed using M2S (West Lebanon, NH) software for size measurements. Preoperative total sac volume and proportion of thrombus and calcium in the sac were assessed. Sac change was defined as a 3-mm difference in diameter and a 10-mm(3) difference in volume when compared with preoperative measurements. Univariate analysis was performed for age, gender, AAA size, relative thrombus/calcium volume, device type, presence of endoleak, and the effects on sac size. RESULTS: Gender, device type, age, AAA size, and percent calcium were not predictive of sac change post-EVAR. Increased proportion of thrombus on pre-EVAR resulted in a greater likelihood of sac shrinkage (P = 0.002). Patients with aneurysms that grew on postoperative CT scan had less sac thrombus on pre-EVAR (mean 27.5%) than patients without evidence of endoleak (mean 41.9%, P < 0.0001). Only 2 of 30 patients with >50% pre-EVAR thrombus developed endoleak. A >50% thrombus burden resulted in endoleak in significantly fewer patients (6.7%) compared with those who had <50% thrombus (43.1%). CONCLUSIONS: The proportion of thrombus on preoperative CT may predict sac behavior after EVAR and development of an endoleak. Greater than 50% thrombus appears to predict absence of endoleak after EVAR. Aneurysms with large thrombus burden are less likely to grow and may require less vigilant postoperative surveillance than comparable AAA with relatively little thrombus.

BACKGROUND: The precise relationship between risk factor burden and prevalence of peripheral artery disease (PAD) in different vascular territories (PAD, carotid artery stenosis [CAS], and abdominal aortic aneurysms [AAAs]) is unclear. METHODS: We investigated the association of modifiable risk factors (hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, smoking, diabetes, and sedentary lifestyle) with any and type-specific peripheral vascular disease (PVD) among 3.3 million patients in the U.S., aged 40 to 99, who underwent screening bilateral ankle brachial indices, carotid duplex ultrasound, and abdominal aortic ultrasound in the Life Line Screening program between 2004 and 2008. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was used to estimate the odds of disease in different risk factor categories. Population-attributable risk was calculated to estimate the proportion of disease that could be potentially ascribed to modifiable risk factors. RESULTS: Among 3,319,993 participants, prevalence of any PVD was 7.51% (95% confidence interval [CI], 7.50%-7.53%). PAD was present in 3.56% (95% CI, 3.54%-3.58%), CAS in 3.94% (95% CI, 3.92%-3.96%), and AAAs in 0.88% (95% CI, 0.86%-0.89%). The multivariate-adjusted prevalence with the presence of 0, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 modifiable risk factors was 2.76, 4.63, 7.12, 10.73, 16.00, and 22.08 (P < .0001 for trend) for any PVD; 1.18, 2.09, 3.28, 5.14, 8.32, and 12.43 (P < .0001 for trend) for PAD; 1.41, 2.36, 3.72, 5.73, 8.48, and 11.58 (P < .0001 for trend) for CAS; and 0.31, 0.54, 0.85, 1.28, 1.82, and 2.39 (P < .0001 for trend) for AAAs, respectively. These associations were similar for men and women. For every additional modifiable risk factor that was present, the multivariate-adjusted odds of having vascular disease increased significantly (any PVD [odds ratio (OR), 1.58; 95% CI, 1.58-1.59]; PAD [OR, 1.62; 95% CI, 1.62-1.63]; CAS [OR, 1.57; 95% CI, 1.56-1.57]; and AAA [OR, 1.51; 95% CI, 1.50-1.53]). CONCLUSION: This very large contemporary database demonstrates that risk factor burden is associated with an increased prevalence of PVD, and there is a graded association between the number of risk factors present and the prevalence of PAD, CAS, and AAAs.