Management of subclavian and innominate artery injuries

Fragmentation injury to the innominate artery in a three-year-old child

The management of vascular trauma in pediatric patients presents numerous challenges, especially in an austere environment. We present the case of a 3-year-old girl who sustained multiple fragmentation injuries to the right chest and right upper extremity as a result of combat activity in Iraq. This resulted in an occult pseudoaneurysm of the innominate artery identified during exploration of her right chest for a persistent air leak from the right side of the chest. Computed tomography angiography delineated the injury, which was surgically repaired. This report demonstrates the type of challenging cases encountered in a combat zone and illustrates the need for a national database of such injuries in pediatric patients to better inform surgical decision making.

Physical examination plus chest radiography in penetrating periclavicular trauma: the appropriate trigger for angiography

BACKGROUND

To determine the role of physical examination, chest radiography, and angiography in the management of periclavicular penetrating trauma.

METHODS

A retrospective review of the last 100 patients who suffered periclavicular penetrating trauma was performed. Patients with hard signs of vascular injury went either directly to the operating room or first to the angiography suite depending on their hemodynamic stability. All others underwent angiography and subsequent intervention if needed. The results were examined to determine the role of arteriography in the absence of hard signs of vascular injury.

RESULTS

Of the 100 patients in the study, there were 81 without hard signs of vascular injury. All underwent angiography, with 11 "occult" injuries discovered. Each of these patients exhibited some physical examination or chest radiographic finding that may have predicted the presence of vascular injury. Using clinical criteria, physical examination was found to have a sensitivity of 82%, a specificity of 91%, a positive predictive value of 60%, and a negative predictive value of 96%. When coupled with the chest radiographic findings, these numbers were 100%, 80%, 44%, and 100%, respectively. Using these criteria would have eliminated the need for angiography in 56 (69%) patients and would not have missed any injuries.

CONCLUSIONS

In patients with periclavicular penetrating trauma, a normal physical examination and chest radiographic excludes vascular injury. Proximity alone does not warrant angiography, although the test may be useful for therapeutic interventions or to plan operative approaches. A prospective study is essential to validate these findings.

Subclavian artery disruption resulting from endovascular intervention: treatment options

Endovascular intervention is a commonly accepted form of treatment in patients with subclavian artery stenosis. Complications will undoubtedly occur as the utility of catheter-based intervention continues to rise. We report two cases of subclavian artery disruption as a result of endovascular intervention. One patient had contrast extravasation after the deployment of a balloon-expandable stent in a stenotic subclavian artery, and the arterial injury was successfully treated with balloon tamponade. A second patient had a large subclavian pseudoaneurysm 4 months after a balloon-expandable stent placement. Successful repair was achieved in this patient by means of arterial reconstruction with a prosthetic bypass graft. These cases illustrate different therapeutic methods of treating subclavian artery rupture due to endovascular intervention.

The Role of Angiography in Periclavicular Penetrating Trauma

Our objective was to evaluate whether physical examination in conjunction with chest X-ray can accurately diagnose the presence of significant vascular injury in penetrating periclavicular trauma. Results from a management protocol for penetrating periclavicular trauma were reviewed for the period January 1992 through December 1996 at an urban Level I trauma center. All patients requiring angiography for periclavicular penetrating trauma with trajectory of the injury falling between the lateral border of the manubrium and the anterior axillary line were entered into the management protocol. All patients underwent anterior-posterior chest radiography on arrival to the trauma center and 6 hours after admission. Tube thoracostomy was placed if clinically indicated on presentation or for X-ray findings. Clinical assessment was performed on all patients, with emphasis placed on the presence of “hard” signs for vascular injury. In addition to accepted hard signs for vascular injury, significant chest tube output (>1000 cc) and chest X-ray findings consistent with significant hemorrhage were also considered hard signs for vascular injury. Assuming hemodynamic stability, all patients with suspected subclavian/axillary arterial injury based on wound trajectory or clinical findings consistent with vascular injury underwent angiography. Forty-six patients were entered into the protocol with 30 left-sided injuries and 16 right sided injuries. The majority of injuries were secondary to gunshot wounds (31), with 14 stab wounds and 1 shotgun injury. Emergency room chest X-ray results revealed 32 negative chest X-rays, 7 pneumothoraces, 2 hemopneumothoraces, 2 hemothoraces, and 3 chest tubes placed before initial chest X-ray. A total of 7 injuries were diagnosed, with 1 missed injury, resulting in a sensitivity of 86 per cent for clinical assessment. The missed injury was a pseudoaneurysm of an axillary artery secondary to a self-inflicted shotgun wound. One mortality occurred in this series, which was a death in the operating room secondary to blood loss from an axillary artery injury. We conclude that clinical assessment can adequately diagnose the presence of surgically significant vascular injury in periclavicular penetrating injuries with trajectories lateral to the manubrium.

Stab wounds of the innominate artery

BACKGROUND

Innominate artery stab wounds are rarely encountered, and the optimal management of this injury is different from that of blunt innominate injury in that permanent bypass shunting should not be necessary.

METHODS

The records of 19 patients with stab wounds of the innominate artery who were treated by our department from January 1982 to June 1995 were reviewed.

RESULTS

Eighteen patients (95%) sustained zone 1 neck stabs, with a similar proportion having only a single stab wound. Seventeen (89%) of the 18 patients having chest roentgenograms had mediastinal widening. Thirteen patients (68%) were hemodynamically stable at admission; the remainder were unstable (26%) or moribund (5%). Fourteen patients (74%) underwent angiography, with no false-negative studies for arterial injury. Associated injuries to thoracic viscera occurred in 4 patients (21%). All injuries were repaired with either direct suture (18 of 19) or prosthetic interposition grafting (1 of 19). One patient required cardiopulmonary bypass to repair complex injuries. The overall mortality rate was 5% (1 of 19), and complications occurred in 2 patients (11%).

CONCLUSIONS

Innominate artery stab wounds can be managed successfully without permanent bypass shunting and with a low mortality rate.

Chronic innominate artery dissection after blunt thoracic trauma: case report

Blunt innominate chest trauma is relatively rare, with only 70 cases being reported in the surgical literature since 1960. This report describes a 20-year-old male who sustained a blunt chest injury that resulted in an innominate artery dissection. The patient's clinical course and management are discussed, as well as a review of the surgical literature.

Approaches to trauma involving the major vessels of the thorax

Thoracic great vessel injury accounts for a significant amount of the acute mortality rate from trauma. Early recognition permits early repair, usually best accomplished by the simplest yet most effective technique. Use of prosthetic material is encouraged. Cardiopulmonary bypass, hypothermia, and shunts are rarely required.

Vascular trauma

Civilian vascular trauma is not uncommon. Prompt treatment with modern vascular surgical techniques produces good results.

Traumatic disruption of the brachiocephalic artery

We report the case of a patient presenting with blunt chest and head injuries. Initial emergency department evaluation revealed a pulmonary contusion and suspected closed head injuries. Computed tomographic scan of the head was unremarkable. An angiogram performed to further investigate the nature of his head injuries revealed a disruption of the brachiocephalic artery. The lesion was surgically repaired in the operating room and the patient was moved to the intensive care unit, where he remained comatose and died from complications of his head and chest injuries on the seventh post-operative day. The pathophysiology and clinical manifestations of injuries to the brachiocephalic artery are discussed.