Review of transposed basilic vein access for hemodialysis

One-staged brachial-basilic vein transposition versus arm straight arteriovenous graft for hemodialysis

ObjectivesAfter forearm and arm cephalic veins are no longer available as options, the choices of arm vascular access between one-staged brachial-basilic vein transposition (BBAVF) and arm straight arteriovenous graft (AS-AVG) for hemodialysis are controversial. This study aims to compare outcomes between groups.MethodsAll one-staged BBAVF and AS-AVG from August 2014 to December 2019 were reviewed. In cases of suitable basilic vein of 3 mm or more present from cubital crease to axilla, one-staged BBAVF was preferred. AS-AVG was performed for patients who need timely functioning access or have no suitable basilic vein.ResultsTwenty-eight one-staged BBAVF and 74 AS-AVG were included. Baseline characteristics were not significantly different, except AS-AVG had less previous ipsilateral access (9% vs 39%; p < .001). Postoperative complications were not different. With six loss follow-ups (3 in BBAVF and 3 in AS-AVG), 24 (96%) and 64 (90%) matured after one-staged BBAVF and AS-AVG, respectively (p = .676). BBAVF took about 30 days (95% CI: 10, 51) longer time to first successful cannulation. Primary patency was significantly better for one-staged BBAVF (hazard ratio (HR) of 3.0 (95%CI: 1.2, 7.7)), whereas secondary patency was not different. The total access failure (i.e. failure to mature combined with any thrombosis or intervention to maintain patency) significantly favored BBAVF (HR 2.7 (95%CI: 1.1, 6.6)).ConclusionsProvided a suitable arm basilic vein is available, one-staged BBAVF is preferred over AS-AVG when forearm AVF, forearm AVG, and arm cephalic veins are out. However, it requires a longer time to start cannulating than AS-AVG.

Maximizing use of available vascular capital for autologous arteriovenous fistula creation and maintenance: Single center results

INTRODUCTION

Nicaragua is a Central American country with a high prevalence of patients with chronic kidney disease, particularly among young men. This is largely attributable to Mesoamerican nephropathy, a form of interstitial nephritis that predominantly affects young agricultural workers. While the majority of patients have access to chronic dialysis programs, a very small number have an option of receiving a renal transplant. Consequently, they must spend years on hemodialysis (HD), where the vascular access issue is of vital importance for their survival. Given that prosthetic arteriovenous grafts (AVG) are expensive devices with a lower cost-benefit ratio, limited availability within the health system and are unaffordable for the majority of patients, it is crucial to perform autogenic arteriovenous fistula (AVF) whenever possible.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

This paper presents a 4-year period review (2020-2023) of a single-center vascular access program that optimizes vasculature utilization of each patient for creation of AFV and describes the surgical revision techniques used to prolong the patency of vascular accesses.

RESULTS

The autogenic vascular access program has resulted in more than 80% of prevalent patients undergoing HD at our center being hemodialyzed through an autogenic AVF by the end of 2023.

CONCLUSIONS

It can be concluded that it is possible to significantly increase the proportion of autogenic vascular accesses in each center by optimizing the patient's own vasculature. This approach has the potential to reduce morbidity and costs, particularly in low-income countries.

Basilic vein tunnel transposition versus elevation transposition for brachiobasilic arteriovenous fistula creation: A systematic review and meta-analysis

This study aimed to compare basilic vein tunnel transposition (BVTT) to basilic vein elevation transposition (BVET) technique for superficialization of a basilic arteriovenous fistula. This is a systematic review and meta-analysis comparing outcomes between BVTT and BVET for brachiobasilic arteriovenous fistula (AVF) creation. Primary endpoints were primary patency at several time intervals during follow-up and postoperative local complications, whereas secondary endpoints included primary assisted patency and secondary patency. A random effects model meta-analysis was conducted, and the I2 statistic was used to assess heterogeneity. Nine eligible studies were identified, including 543 patients (247 in the BVTT group and 296 in the BVET group). BVTT group was associated with inferior primary patency rate at 6 months compared to BVET group (three studies; OR: 0.43; 95% CI: 0.22-0.83; I2 = 0%; p = 0.012). However, primary patency rates were similar between the two study groups at 12 months (six studies; OR: 0.64; 95% CI: 0.33-1.22; I2 = 40.7%; p = 0.176), and at 24 months (six studies; OR: 0.86; 95% CI: 0.32-2.29; I2 = 74.9%; p = 0.764). No significant differences in terms of primary assisted patency, secondary patency, and postoperative complications were detected between the groups. More specifically, wound infection (BVTT: n = 9/150; BVET: n = 6/186; OR: 1.39; 95% CI: 0.48-4.06; I2 = 0%; p = 0.542) and healing of the scar, particularly regarding arm edema (BVTT: n = 18/100; BVET: n = 27/165; OR: 1.11; 95% CI: 0.57-2.18; I2 = 0%; p = 0.755) and hematoma formation (BVTT: n = 14/173; BVET: n = 42/209; OR: 0.40; 95% CI: 0.13-1.19; I2 = 49%; p = 0.101), did not differ significantly between the two study groups. BVET achieved superior primary patency at 6 months compared to BVTT, but this benefit seems to be lost during longer follow-up intervals. Therefore, both surgical techniques provide similar long-term outcomes.

Staged autogenous to prosthetic hemodialysis access creation strategy to maximize forearm options

OBJECTIVE

When an adequate cephalic vein is not available for fistula construction, surgeons often turn to basilic vein or prosthetic constructions. Single-stage forearm prosthetic hemodialysis accesses are associated with poor durability, and upper arm non-autogenous access options are often limited by axillary outflow failure, which inevitably drives transition to the contralateral arm or lower extremity. We hypothesized that initial creation of a modest flow proximal forearm arterial-venous anastomosis to dilate ("develop") inflow and outflow vessels, followed by a planned second-stage procedure to create a cannulation zone with a prosthetic graft in the forearm, would result in reliable and durable hemodialysis access in patients with limited options.

METHODS

We performed an institutional cohort study from 2017 to 2021 using a prospectively maintained database supplemented with adjudicated chart review. Patients without traditional autogenous hemodialysis access options in the forearm underwent an initial non-wrist arterial-venous anastomosis creation in the forearm as a first stage, followed by a second-stage interposition graft sewn to the existing inflow and venous outflow segments to create a useable cannulation zone in the forearm while leveraging vascular development. Outcomes included time from second-stage access creation to loss of primary and secondary patency, frequency of subsequent interventions, and perioperative complications.

RESULTS

The cohort included 23 patients; first-stage radial artery-based (74%) configurations were more common than brachial artery-based (26%). Mean age was 63 years (standard deviation, 14 years), and 65% were female. Median follow-up was 340 days (interquartile range [IQR], 169-701 days). Median time to cannulation from second-stage procedure was 28 days (IQR, 18-53 days). Primary, primary assisted, and secondary patency at 1 year was 16.7% (95% confidence interval [CI], 5.3%-45.8%), 34.6% (95% CI, 15.2%-66.2%), and 95.7% (95% CI, 81.3%-99.7%), respectively. Subsequent interventions occurred at a rate of 3.02 (IQR, 1.0-4.97) per person-year, with endovascular thrombectomy with or without angioplasty/stenting (70.9%) being the most common. There were no cases of steal syndrome. Infection occurred in two cases and were managed with antibiotics alone.

CONCLUSIONS

For patients without adequate distal autogenous access options, staged prosthetic graft placement in the forearm offers few short-term complications and excellent durability with active surveillance while strategically preserving the upper arm for future constructions.

Median Nerve and Ulnar Nerve Entrapment with Cubital Tunnel Syndrome in a Hemodialysis Patient Following Creation of an Arteriovenous Fistula

Neurological and vascular complications associated with creation of arteriovenous access need to be recognized promptly to deliver appropriate interventions for relief of symptoms and avoid loss of function of the involved extremity. We present here a 55-year-old female with end-stage renal disease on hemodialysis secondary to diabetic nephropathy who had a surgical creation of first stage of the brachial artery-basilic vein fistula in the left arm. She subsequently developed pain and weakness of the left arm which was diagnosed as median and ulnar nerve entrapment. She was treated with surgical nerve release and neurolysis and her symptoms improved.

Elevation transposition method for superficialization of the basilic vein achieves better patency rate than tunnel transposition

OBJECTIVE

To compare the tunnel transposition and elevation transposition methods used for superficialization of the basilic vein in terms of complication and patency rates.

METHODS

This retrospective study included patients who underwent two-stage basilic vein transposition between August 2016 and December 2019. Patients were categorized into brachial-basilic fistula tunnel transposition (n=32) and elevation transposition (n=21) groups using medical records. Primary patency was defined as a conduit that remains patent without any re-intervention to maintain patency. Primary assisted patency was defined as a conduit that has undergone intervention to maintain patency but has never been thrombosed.

RESULTS

The distribution of baseline characteristics was similar between the two groups. Coronary artery disease was the only variable that was significantly different between the tunnel transposition and elevation transposition groups (31.1% vs. 4.8%, p=.035). The tunnel transposition group had a greater amount of blood loss (p<.001) and a longer period of hospitalization (p=.002) than the elevation transposition group. The rates of suture repair to stop bleeding from the conduit was significantly different between the tunnel transposition and elevation transposition groups (31.8% vs. 4.8%, p=.035), whereas those of other complications were not significantly different. The elevation transposition group had a significantly higher primary patency rate than the tunneled transposition group (p=.033); however, primary assisted patency was achieved in all patients (100%) in both groups.

CONCLUSION

Elevation transposition might be a more reliable method than tunnel transposition for superficialization of a basilic venous fistula.

Transposition of brachiobasilic arteriovenous fistulas: One-stage or two-stage technique and factors affecting the early maturation

The brachiobasilic transposition (BBT) arteriovenous fistula (AVF) is a valuable option especially for dialysis patients with previously failed vascular access. We aim to report factors affecting the maturation of BBT-AVF created with either one-stage or two-stage technique. BBT-AVF procedures between January 2015 and May 2019 by a dedicated vascular access team were investigated retrospectively. A total of 122 patients (63 males, 59 females), with 6 to 12 weeks of follow-up after the BBT-AVF procedure were included in the study. Patients of one-stage and two-stage techniques were compared for maturation rates. Patients with successful and failed maturation were compared for baseline characteristics and anatomic factors. Of 122 BBT-AVF procedures, 54 were created with the one-stage and 68 were created with the two-stage technique. The mean age of the patients was 58.2 ± 13.8, the mean brachial artery and basilic vein diameters were 3.91 ± 1.02 mm, and 3.39 ± 1.16 mm. Of 122 included patients, 88 (72.1%) had mature AVFs at follow-up. The AVF maturation rates were similar between the one- and two-stage groups (70.4% vs 73.5%; P = .699). Lower age (62.8 ± 12.5 vs 56.5 ± 13.9; P = .023) and greater brachial artery diameter (3.09 ± 0.84 mm vs 4.23 ± 1.76 mm; P < .048) were the only factors affecting the AVF maturation in univariate analysis. Gender, extremity side, diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and targeted vein diameter were not found to affect the AVF maturation (P = .301, P = .084, P = .134, P = .858, P = .127). Target artery diameter (P = .049) was the only significant factor affecting BBT-AVF maturation in multivariate analysis. One-stage and two-stage BBT-AVFs are similar in terms of maturation rates. Targeted artery diameter was the only factor important in BBT-AVF maturation in our study group. The two-stage technique can be preferred considering smaller incision size and lower complication rate in patients with suitable anatomy.

A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Trials Comparing Two-Stage with One-Stage Brachio-Basilic Vein Fistulas

Purpose

There is currently debate if brachio-basilic vein fistula (BBVF) should be performed as a one-stage or two-stage procedure. The aim of the present study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis on BBVF staging.

Materials and Methods

On February 25, 2016, a search for randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) on BBVF procedures was performed in MEDLINE and Scopus databases. Meta-analyses were performed with fixed-effect or random-effects models as appropriate with risk ratios (RRs). The primary efficacy and safety outcome measures were BBVF maturation and development of complications, respectively. Specific types of complications, including loss of functional secondary patency and long-term complications were all secondary outcome measures.

Results

We identified three RCTs reporting on 126 patients. Maturation failure of two-stage BBVFs (3/47, 6.4%) was less frequent than one-stage BBVFs (16/79, 20.3%; RR, 0.27; P=0.02). Complication rates of two-stage and one-stage BBVFs were similar (RR, 0.80; P=0.54), but on sensitivity analysis these were less likely to occur with two-stage BBVFs (37% vs. 69% for one-stage BBVFs; RR, 0.57; P=0.03). Two-stage BBVFs were less likely to lose their functional secondary patency (21.3% vs. 31.6% for one-stage BBVFs; RR, 0.61; P=0.11). This non-significant trend became significant (RR, 0.36; P=0.02) on sensitivity analysis. There was no difference in specific complication rates of the two study groups.

Conclusion

Among candidates for BBVF fistula, there is evidence to suggest that two-stage BBVFs achieve higher maturation rates compared to one-stage BBVFs. The evidence for difference in long-term secondary patency is less robust, calling for further research.

Upper arm basilic vein elevation as a solution for forearm ulnar-basilic arteriovenous fistulae with cannulation problems

BACKGROUND

Ulnar-basilic arteriovenous fistula is an alternative option when a radiocephalic arteriovenous fistula is not feasible. We review our technique of basilic vein transposition in the upper arm for difficult to puncture forearm ulnar-basilic non-transposed arteriovenous fistulae.

TECHNICAL NOTE

Three patients were referred for forearm ulnar-basilic arteriovenous fistulae with difficult cannulation where the forearm basilic vein was left in situ (non-transposed). Surgeon performed ultrasound examination confirmed a patent arteriovenous fistula with adequate diameter and flow, draining to the basilic vein in the forearm and into the upper arm. Recurrent new and resolving hematomas were present surrounding the forearm basilic vein resulting from difficult cannulation issues and problems maintaining needle position due the posterior-medial ulnar-basilic arteriovenous fistula position and mobility of the non-transposed forearm basilic vein. A basilic vein transposition elevation procedure was performed in the upper arm starting at the level of the elbow to a few centimeters below the axilla. Branches of the dilated basilic vein were ligated, the median cutaneous nerve was preserved, and the vein was elevated from its native position to a superficial and anterior location. Although difficult, dialysis access had been continued in the forearm during a brief period and none required catheter placement. Reliable dialysis access was successfully initiated using the newly transposed basilic vein in the upper arm 3-4 weeks after the procedure, maintaining arterial inflow based on the original ulnar-basilic arteriovenous fistula anastomosis at the wrist. None of the patients required further interventions with follow-up of 8, 15, and 22 months.

Transposed Brachial-Basilic Arteriovenous Fistula for Vascular Access in Japan

As more than 320,000 patients are currently receiving hemodialysis treatment in Japan, the creation and maintenance of hemodialysis access is a major concern. The national guidelines recommend autogenous arteriovenous hemodialysis, and the brachial-basilic arteriovenous fistula has been the focus of attention, because the need for secondary, tertiary, or even more vascular access is growing. Although favorable results have been reported in terms of patency and access-related complication, this fistula involves various unsolved or controversial issues, with limitations including complex procedures, which might contribute to the lower prevalence at this point in Japan. This review addresses those issues and discusses the role of fistula in Japan.

Ultrasound-guided costoclavicular approach infraclavicular brachial plexus block for vascular access surgery

INTRODUCTION

We report the use of a newly described regional technique, ultrasound-guided costoclavicular approach infraclavicular brachial plexus block for surgical anesthesia in two high-risk patients undergoing 2nd stage transposition of basilic vein fistula.

METHODS

Both patients had features of difficult airway, American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) physical status class III and central venous occlusive disease. The common approach, i.e., ultrasound-guided supraclavicular brachial plexus block was technically difficult with inherent risk of vascular puncture due to dilated venous collaterals at the supraclavicular area possibly compromising block quality. The risk of general anesthesia (GA) was significant as patients were morbidly obese with possible risk of obstructive sleep apnea postoperatively. As an alternative, we performed the ultrasound-guided costoclavicular approach infraclavicular brachial plexus block with 20 mL local anesthetic (LA) ropivacaine 0.5% delivered at the identified costoclavicular space using in-plane needling technique. Another 10 mL of LA was infiltrated along the subcutaneous fascia of the proximal medial aspect of arm.

RESULTS

Both surgeries of >2 hours' duration were successful, without the need of further local infiltration at surgical site or conversion to GA.

CONCLUSIONS

Ultrasound-guided costoclavicular approach can be an alternative way of providing effective analgesia and safe anesthesia for vascular access surgery of the upper limb.