Das moderne befund- und patientenadaptierte Management von peripheren Pseudoaneurysmen nach arteriellem Zugang

Importance of pseudoaneurysms after TAVI - a retrospective analysis of 2063 patients

Background: Bifemoral arterial access is common in patients undergoing transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI), with a primary treatment access (TAVI access) and a secondary non-TAVI access. Pseudoaneurysm (PSA) is an important complication of femoral arterial puncture. Major vascular complications after TAVI are well described, but little is known about PSA. Patients and methods: A total of 2063 patients underwent transfemoral TAVI between January 2014 and January 2020. Vascular ultrasound of the common femoral artery was assessed before and after TAVI. We compared patient characteristics, periprocedural risk scores, procedural characteristics, and access site bleeding events according to Valve Academic Research Consortium 3 (VARC-3) criteria, length of stay (LOS), and all-cause mortality at one year between patients with (46) and without (2017) PSA. Results: The incidence of PSA after TAVI was 2.2% (46/2063). All PSA were successfully treated with ultrasound-guided manual compression (UGMC) or thrombin injection (UGTI) without complications. Patients with PSA had lower platelet counts (210×1000/μl vs. 234×1000/μl; p<0.05), more heart failure symptoms on admission (91% vs. 25%; p<0.05), were more often treated with (N)OACs for atrial fibrillation (AF; 54% vs. 38%; p <0.05), and were less often treated with aspirin (35% vs. 51%; p<0.03). Multivariate analysis identified secondary access site (odds ratio [OR] 8.11; p<0.001) and (N)OAC therapy (OR 1.31; p = 0.037) as risk factors for PSA development. PSA is associated with VARC-3 type 1-3 access site bleeding and longer LOS (15.2 ± 11.3 d vs. 11.6 ± 8.9 d; p<0.01), but this did not affect one year mortality (17% vs. 14%; p = 0.53). Conclusions: Pseudoaneurysms are an important complication after TAVI and are associated with access site bleeding and prolonged hospital stay. (N)OAC therapy and secondary access are important risk factors. Pseudoaneurysms can be safely and effectively treated with thrombin injection and do not affect one-year mortality.

The Role of Anticoagulants and Platelet Aggregation Inhibitors in the Treatment of Pseudoaneurysms and Risk of Venous Thrombosis

Pseudoaneurysms (PSA) are one of the most common complications after arterial punctures. This retrospective study examined whether platelet aggregation inhibitors (APT) or anticoagulants (AC) lower the success rates of PSA treatment. A total of 468 patients with PSA were retrospectively analyzed between 2010 and 2018, and 238 were included in the study. Despite co-medication with APT or AC, thrombin injection (TI) was superior to compression bandage (CB) therapy in treating PSA (TIwAC 79 vs CBwAC 51%; P = .004 and TIwAPT 93 vs CBwAPT 54%; P = .001). There was no decrease in PSA-associated thrombosis in patients requiring anticoagulation after TI. The success rates of the TI and CB groups were compared in patients with and without AC therapy, and the latter was significantly lower. A reduced success rate was not observed in CB therapy patients requiring APT. In contrast, better results were seen in the TI group. Regarding PSA treatment, TI therapy is significantly superior to CB, including in patients requiring concomitant AC or APT therapy. PSA-associated thrombosis also occurs in patients requiring anticoagulation, and sonography should be performed. Concomitant medication use with APT does not significantly influence PSA therapy success or prevention of PSA-associated thrombosis.

High incidence of deep vein thrombosis during the treatment of pseudoaneurysms - a retrospective nonrandomized study

Background: Pseudoaneurysms (PSAs) are concerning complications after arterial invasive interventions. Therapeutic options include manual ultrasound-assisted compression, pressure dressings, surgical intervention and thrombin injection. Compression of neighboring veins is obvious. However, the incidence of deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in patients with PSA has not previously been investigated. Patients and methods: In this retrospective, nonrandomized study 238 patients with PSA were analyzed from 2013 to 2018. In 149 patients, all of the parameters were complete for participating. PSAs were treated according to the local standard therapy with either ultrasound-guided compression followed by compression bandage or thrombin injection. Treatment success was evaluated 24 hours later, and the venous system was examined for the presence of DVT. Results: Peripheral DVT was found in 25.4% patients after ultrasound-assisted compression and subsequent pressure bandages, but only 6.4% of patients had DVT after thrombin injection (p = 0.013). Lower leg veins, particularly veins of the crural muscles, were primarily affected. Significantly more PSAs were successfully treated without the occurrence of DVT in the thrombin injection group compared to the compression group (93.6 vs. 69.0%; p = 0.001). Conclusions: Our study revealed that the use of thrombin injections resulted in a significantly lower rate of postinterventional DVT and a higher total number of successfully treated PSAs compared to compression therapy.