• Chris Klonaris, Athanasios Katsargyris, Ioanna Vasileiou, Fotios Markatis, Christos D Liapis, and Elias Bastounis.
• First Department of Surgery, Vascular Division, "LAIKON" Hospital, Athens University Medical School, Athens, Greece.
• J. Vasc. Surg. 2009 Apr 1; 49 (4): 938-45.

BackgroundRupture of infected anastomotic femoral artery pseudoaneurysms (AFAPs) represents a limb and life-threatening condition requiring emergency intervention. This study aimed to evaluate the feasibility, safety, and efficacy of a hybrid repair for ruptured infected AFAPs consisted of percutaneous stent-graft deployment and second-stage surgical debridement.MethodsBetween October 2004 and January 2008, 6 patients (3 female, mean age 65.8 +/- 11.4 years) with ruptured infected AFAPs were treated with emergent percutaneous stent-graft implantation and secondary surgical debridement. Three patients had undergone a femoro-popliteal and 1 a femoro-tibial bypass for peripheral arterial disease, while 2 patients had a femoral arteriovenous graft (AVG) for hemodialysis access due to chronic renal failure. Four pseudoaneurysms were located at the common femoral artery (CFA) and 2 involved the superficial femoral artery (SFA). Mean pseudoaneurysm diameter was 6.8 +/- 0.9 mm (range, 5.4-7.8 mm). The mean interval between the initial operation and presentation to our department was 26.7 +/- 14.5 months (range, 7-50 months). All patients suffered from severe comorbidities and were judged unfit for major surgery under general anesthesia.ResultsAll patients were successfully managed by urgent percutaneous deployment of covered stents at the site of the arterial deficit. Extensive surgical debridement along with pseudoaneurysm excision was accomplished successfully in all 6 patients 1-3 days after stent-graft placement under local anesthesia, without the need for extended vessel exposure for proximal and distal control. No death occurred within 30 days after stent-graft implantation. During follow-up, (mean 14.1 +/- 8.2 months, range, 6 to 25 months) all stent-grafts remained patent without endoleak, while no signs of recurrent local or systemic infection were noticed. Two patients died at 8 and 10 months after the procedure due to heart failure complications and acute myocardial infarction, respectively.ConclusionEmergency stent-graft deployment, followed by secondary surgical debridement and long-term antimicrobial therapy is a viable alternative for ruptured infected AFAPs. Especially for patients unfit for major surgery, it may be the most favorable treatment option.

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