Predelivery uterine arteries embolization in patients with placental implant anomalies: a cost-effective procedure

Intrauterine Tamponade Balloon for Management of Severe Postpartum Haemorrhage: Does Early Insertion Change the Outcome? A Retrospective Study on Blood Loss

The French College of Gynecologists and Obstetricians (CNGOF) recommends the use of intrauterine tamponade balloon (IUTB) in postpartum haemorrhage for bleeding that is refractory after sulprostone before either surgery or interventional radiology. However, the elapsed time between uterotonic drug injection and the insertion of intrauterine tamponade balloon was not reliably assessed.

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the role of the timing of IUTB insertion and to assess the correlation between the time of insertion and outcome.

METHODS

A retrospective study in two tertiary care centres, including patients transferred for severe PPH management.

RESULTS

A total of 81 patients were included: 52 patients with IUTB inserted before 15 min (group 1) and 29 patients with IUTB inserted after 15 min (group 2). The mean volume of blood loss in the group of patients with IUTB inserted before 15 min was significantly lower than in group of patients with IUTB set after 15 min.

CONCLUSION

An IUTB could be inserted simultaneously with a uterotonic agent, within 15 min and not after 15 min as suggested by local guidelines, but further prospective studies are required to confirm this.

Postpartum Hemorrhages: Prevention

The strict correlation between abnormal invasive placentation and postpartum hemorrhage suggests that a widespread antenatal diagnosis of placental anomalies would improve the management of these challenging patients; acting preventive solutions at the moment of delivery reduces blood loss and avoid hysterectomies. The role of endovascular procedures in this field has been encouraged by multiple studies reporting prophylactic uterine arteries embolization and iliac/aortic balloon catheters positioning. This paper aims to review the main imaging diagnostic findings of placental implant anomalies and summarize the principal preventive endovascular strategies proposed in literature.

Interventional radiology in gynecology and obstetric practice: Safety issues

Interventional radiology is continuing to reshape current practice in many specialties of clinical care and the fields of gynecology and obstetrics are no exception. Imaging skills, clinical knowledge as well as vascular and non-vascular interventional technical ability, are essential to practice interventional radiology effectively. Patient safety is of paramount importance in interventional radiology as in all branches of medicine. Potential failures occur throughout successful procedures and are attributed to a spectrum of errors, including equipment unavailability, planning errors, and communication errors. These are mainly preventable by improved preprocedural planning and teamwork. Of all the targeted and effective actions that can be undertaken to reduce adverse events, the use of safety checklists might have a prominent role. The advantage of a safety checklist for interventional radiology is that it guarantees that human error in terms of forgetting key steps in patient preparation, intraprocedural care, and postoperative care are not forgotten.

Effects of Preoperative Embolization on Juvenile Nasopharyngeal Angiofibroma Surgical Outcomes: A Study of the Kids' Inpatient Database

Objectives The aim of the study is to evaluate the effect of preoperative vascular embolization (PVE) on juvenile nasopharyngeal angiofibroma (JNA) surgical outcomes using a national pediatric hospitalization database.

Methods The health care cost and utilization project Kids' Inpatient Database was queried for all cases of operative management of JNA between the years of 1997 and 2016. Cases were stratified based on whether the patient received PVE. A multiple linear regression was used to predict the effect of PVE on hospital length of stay (LOS) and total cost while controlling for patient demographic factors and comorbidities. The odds ratio (OR) of receiving a perioperative blood transfusion was computed using a binary logistic regression for PVE patients.

Results A total of 473 patients who underwent JNA surgical resection in this time period were identified. The use of PVE has increased from 0% in 1997 to 66% of all cases by 2016. PVE was found to decrease LOS by 1 day (p = 0.036) and decrease the odds of needing a perioperative blood transfusion (OR = 0.511, p = 0.041). Patients receiving PVE were charged an additional $35,600 (p < 0.001), but recent data in 2016 indicate that hospital costs for PVE are decreasing.

Conclusion PVE of JNA is becoming increasingly prevalent. Embolization results in decreased hospital LOS and lower odds of needing blood transfusions. While embolization increases the cost of management, this trend should be re-evaluated as this procedure is becoming more widespread.

Advanced Interventional Procedures after Intrauterine Tamponade Balloon Insertion in a Tertiary Care Center

OBJECTIVE

To evaluate the rate of success and practicability of the intrauterine tamponade balloon (ITB) for managing PPH as a fertility-sparing tool. Methods: a five-year retrospective monocentric study in a tertiary care center including patients transferred for severe PPH. Results: In 231 patients, the success rate of ITB (n = 57), embolization (n = 58), and medical management (n = 114) was 84.21%, 74.13%, and 76.32%, respectively. Cesarean section during labor did not influence the risk of advanced interventional procedures (AIPs) for patients with ITB (odds ratio [OR] = 1.08) but did so in patients who were under expectant management in the intensive care (OR = 5.29). In the AIP subgroup of the ITB group, hemostasis was significantly deteriorated. Prothrombin time <50% (OR = 11.5), fibrinogen <2 g/L (OR = 6.88), and >4 red blood cells units (RBCs) transfused (OR = 17.2) were associated with a significantly higher risk of failure. Blood loss in the AIP patients in the embolization group was significantly higher. Patients requiring >4 units of RBCs were 22.9 times more likely to have an AIP (p = .0001). Conclusion: Compared with uterine embolization and medical management, ITB use in a tertiary care center was associated with lower risk of undergoing AIP, but further prospective study is required to confirm this.

Predelivery uterine arteries embolization in patients affected by placental implant anomalies

PURPOSE

The aim of this study is to report on a single center experience of managing patients affected by placenta previa major and/or accretism by embolizing uterine arteries immediately before the cesarean delivery to reduce blood loss and secondary the rate of hysterectomies.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Sixty-nine patients have been prospectively enrolled. Inclusion criteria were radiological diagnosis of placenta anomalies and risk factors for peri/postpartum hemorrhage. The delivery was electively scheduled between the 35th week and the 36th week of pregnancy. The embolization procedure was performed in the gynecological operating room with a mobile C-arm by injecting calibrated microparticles 500-700 μm. A contrast-enhanced MRI was acquired in a subgroup of 10 patients 6 months after the delivery to evaluate the uterine wall status.

RESULTS

Hysterectomy had been performed in 43.5%; 52.2% did not require blood transfusions; 1.2 blood units per patient had been meanly transfused. The mean fluoroscopy beam-on time was 195 s per patient. The mean uterine dose was 26.75 mGy. No pH anomalies were measured from the umbilical cord blood; the Apgar score at 5 min was ≥8. The analysis of the neuro-developmental milestones showed normal cognitive development in all children at 6 months. The uterine wall enhancement evaluated with contrast-enhanced MRI 6 months after the embolization procedure showed preserved myometrial perfusion without area of necrosis.

CONCLUSIONS

In this series of patients, the predelivery uterine arteries' embolization was a safe and effective procedure; this may represent a technical alternative that interventional radiologists can consider when facing this challenging scenario.