Within the article ¿results from a multicenter registry of heparin-bonded expanded polytetrafluoroethylene graft for above-the-knee femoropopliteal bypass¿, published by gabriele piffaretti et al, within the journal of vascular surgery, the article indicates the following: the aim of the study was to retrospectively analyze early and follow-up results of above-the-knee femoropopliteal bypasses (akb) performed with a bioactive heparin-bonded expanded polytetrafluoroethylene (hb-eptfe) graft (gore propaten) in patients with peripheral arterial obstructive disease in a multicentric retrospective registry.During a 14-year period ending in march 2016, an hb-eptfe graft was used in 1401 interventions performed for peripheral arterial obstructive disease.A post hoc analysis of the database was performed to identify 364 (25.9%) patients who underwent akb.Early (intraoperative and <30 days) results were analyzed in terms of death, thrombosis, amputations, reinterventions, and the occurrence of major local and systemic complications.Follow-up results were analyzed by life-table analysis in terms of primary and secondary graft patency, assisted primary patency, limb preservation, and amputation-free survival.Early thromboses occurred in six (1.6%) patients; all these patients had primary akb for critical limb ischemia.Urgent reintervention was performed in all cases, consisting of surgical thrombectomy in five patients (with concomitant endovascular procedures at popliteal and tibial level in two patients) and below-the-knee composite autologous saphenous vein-hb-eptfe bypass in one patient.In this last case, recurrent thrombosis occurred, leading to irreversible ischemia and major amputation; in the other five cases, the reintervention was successful.
|