Are There Long-Term Consequences of Iliac Artery Trauma during Endograft Implantation? Results of Serial Duplex Ultrasound Follow-up

Abstract

Purpose The implantation of abdominal aortic endografts requires the insertion of large devices that have the potential to traumatize the iliac arteries, particularly on the ipsilateral side, where the main body of the endograft is introduced. The consequences of this potential trauma are unknown, but the possibility for significant injury remains. For this reason, a prospective measurement of iliac intimal medial thickness by serial duplex ultrasound was undertaken to determine the effect of endograft placement on iliac arteries. Methods A total of 117 patients had duplex evaluation of their iliac arteries after aortic endograft placement at an average follow-up of 18.8 months (range, 0 to 71 months). Ancure devices were used in 89, AneuRx in 11, Endologix in 12, Vanguard in 1, and unknown devices in 4. All endografts were scanned using Philips/ ATL HDI 5000 or ATL 3000 ultrasound machines with 7–4 MHz transducers and a standard protocol, with additional iliac artery measurements performed for the specifics of this study. Of these 117 patients, bilateral intimal medial thickness (IMT) was measured with a clearly determined ipsilateral (larger diameter sheath) implantation side defined in 66 patients. In these patients the ratio of ipsilateral (main introducer) IMT to contralateral (smaller diameter sheath) IMT was determined. Results Of the 66 patients with complete data available for review, the mean ipsilateral to contralateral IMT ratio was 1.41 (range, 0.3 to 16.4). Nonetheless, when evaluated more closely, only two patients had IMT ratios exceeding 2.0 (12.0 and 16.4). When these two patients are excluded, the IMT ratio averaged 1.01, suggesting an absence of significant intimal trauma secondary to aortic endograft implantation. If we presume that the cause of this increased intimal thickness is iliac trauma secondary to endograft placement, then the maximum incidence is 2/66 (3.0%). Analysis by follow-up intervals suggests no duration effect of significance. Conclusions Iliac artery trauma resulting in intimal hyperplasia or premature atherosclerosis appears to be a rare event after endograft abdominal aortic aneurysm repair. With current devices and current clinical selection, iliac artery pathology after endograft placement is not a significant concern.