Journal of vascular surgery
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Comparative Study
The Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Statistically Corrected Operative Risk Evaluation (AAA SCORE) for predicting mortality after open and endovascular interventions.
Accurate adjustment of surgical outcome data for risk is vital in an era of surgeon-level reporting. Current risk prediction models for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair are suboptimal. We aimed to develop a reliable risk model for in-hospital mortality after intervention for AAA, using rigorous contemporary statistical techniques to handle missing data. ⋯ We have developed accurate models to assess risk of in-hospital mortality after AAA repair. These models were carefully developed with rigorous statistical methodology and significantly outperform existing methods for both elective cases and overall AAA mortality. These models will be invaluable for both preoperative patient counseling and accurate risk adjustment of published outcome data.
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Multicenter Study Observational Study
Statin therapy after infrainguinal bypass surgery for critical limb ischemia is associated with improved 5-year survival.
Although statin therapy has been linked to fewer short-term complications after infrainguinal bypass, its effect on long-term survival remains unclear. We therefore examined associations between statin use and long-term mortality, graft occlusion, and amputation after infrainguinal bypass. ⋯ Statin therapy is associated with a 5-year survival benefit after infrainguinal bypass in patients with CLI. However, 1-year limb-related outcomes were not influenced by statin use in our large observational cohort of patients undergoing revascularization in New England.
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Observational Study
Follow-up compliance after endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm repair in Medicare beneficiaries.
Lifelong imaging follow-up is essential to the safe and appropriate management of patients who undergo endovascular abdominal aortic aneurysm repair (EVAR). We sought to evaluate the rate of compliance with imaging follow-up after EVAR and to identify factors associated with being lost to imaging follow-up. ⋯ Annual imaging follow-up compliance after EVAR in the United States is significantly below recommended levels. Quality improvement efforts to encourage improved compliance with imaging follow-up, especially in older patients with multiple comorbidities and in those who underwent EVAR urgently or for rupture, are necessary.
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The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Inpatient Quality Indicator (IQI) #11, abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair mortality rate, is a measure of hospital quality that is publically reported but has not been externally validated. Because the IQI #11 overall mortality rate includes both intact and ruptured aneurysms and open and endovascular repair, we hypothesized that IQI #11 overall mortality rate does not provide accurate assessment of mortality risk after AAA repair and that AAA mortality cannot be accurately assessed by a single quality measure. ⋯ IQI #11 overall mortality rate fails to provide accurate assessment of inpatient mortality risk after AAA repair. Thus, it is inappropriate to use IQI #11 overall mortality rate for quality reporting. The accuracy of separate quality measures that assess mortality risk after repair of ruptured and intact AAAs, stratified by the use of open or endovascular repair, should be examined.