less invasive procedure in repair of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), reduced risk of death

Filed in archive Treatment on March 9, 2006

The March issue of Journal of Vascular Surgery reported a study on the reduced risk of death for patients undergoing repair of dangerous abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) when a less-invasive endovascular procedure is adapted instead of the conventional surgery.

"Our results show that vascular surgeons are saving more lives through the increased use of endovascular AAA repair-even while operating on older and less-fit patients," said Dr. Ellen D. Dillavou, Assistant Professor of Vascular Surgery at University of Pittsburgh, one of the study authors. Dr. Dillavou and colleagues used Medicare data to analyze trends in AAA surgery from 2000 to 2003.

Abdominal aortic aneurysm is a ballooning of the aorta, the body's large central artery, resulting from a weakening or stretching of the vessel wall. If the aneurysm ruptures (bursts), it is usually fatal. If detected through proper screening, AAAs can be repaired to prevent rupture. However, traditional open surgery for AAA is a major operation with a significant risk of death and prolonged recovery time.

EVAR or endovascular aneurysm repair provides a less-invasive alternative to open surgery for AAA repair. This is a procedure where the vascular surgeon makes a small incision in the groin to thread a catheter through the patient's arteries. When the catheter reached the location of the AAA, a device called a stent-graft is placed, expanded, and fixed in place to repair the aneurysm.
Not only is the risk of death when EVAR is administered, but also gave patients less recovery time in hospital and ICU.

Source: [Elsevier]

Photo Credit: [MCG Health System]