People could win the uphill battle against death and amputation using less-invasive procedures to open severely-clogged leg arteries instead of opting for more invasive open surgeries.
The most severe form of clogged leg arteries - critical limb ischemia - may result in slow healing leg wounds, gangrene, or the need for amputation. The study notes that the incidence of critical limb ischemia has continued to rise with the aging U.S. population. By the year 2050, it is estimated that the number of patients who undergo amputation will more than double from 1.6 million to 3.6 million.
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‘Compared with patients who received open surgery first, those who were treated with an endovascular procedure first had a more extended period of amputation-free survival.’
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"The question has been whether to first offer an open surgery or an endovascular procedure to patients with critical limb ischemia. Each strategy has its benefits, but it is unclear which one first is optimal, and we wanted to gain a better understanding of what the current outcomes were," said Jonathan Lin, M.D., a surgery resident in the department of surgery at UC Davis Health.
In open surgery, a section of vein from the patient (or a synthetic material if there is no appropriate vein available) is used to bypass the blockage and provide an alternative route for the blood to reach the lower leg and foot. In a less invasive endovascular procedure, the physician gains access to the inside of the artery with a thin, flexible tube and wire that is inserted through a small incision in the groin and guided to the blocked area. After the clogged area is opened, it can be supported and propped open by inserting a medicine-coated wire mesh tube.
![Better Option than Amputation can Save Your Life and Limbs]( "Better Option than Amputation can Save Your Life and Limbs")
Blood flow restoration is the better option than amputation for treating severe peripheral artery disease, otherwise called as critical limb ischemia.
Open procedures require a hospital stay and about a month of recovery. Endovascular procedures can be done on an outpatient basis and may be performed on patients who are not healthy enough for open surgery.
study reported in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, an American Heart Association journal, records of more than 16,000 patients (59% male, average age 71 years). Patients had undergone open bypass first (36%) or an endovascular procedure first (64%) for critical limb ischemia at non-government hospitals in California between 2005 and 2013.
Compared with patients who received open surgery first, researchers found that, during the study period, those who were first treated with an endovascular procedure had a longer period of amputation-free survival and were:
less likely to require a major amputation - below or above the knee, during the study; however slightly more likely to require another procedure or surgery to restore blood flow; no more likely to die, although at the time of their methods many had severe medical conditions such as kidney failure, congestive heart failure, and diabetes. "The data here suggest that, in the grand scheme of things, an endovascular-first approach is at least not producing a worse result," Lin said. "Regardless, the type of therapy a patient will receive needs to be a decision that patients and their physicians arrive at together. Critical limb ischemia is usually not an emergency, and there is time to determine the most appropriate course of therapy. "
The study was limited by not having information on medical factors (such as the severity of their wounds and whether they had a long and wide enough vein to perform a bypass) that might have influenced whether patients were treated with open surgery or an endovascular procedure. The patient population was also limited to specific hospitals in California.
Source: Eurekalert
Better Option than Amputation can Save Your Life and Limbs
Blood flow restoration is the better option than amputation for treating severe peripheral artery disease, otherwise called as critical limb ischemia.
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Open procedures require a hospital stay and about a month of recovery. Endovascular procedures can be done on an outpatient basis and may be performed on patients who are not healthy enough for open surgery.
study reported in Circulation: Cardiovascular Quality and Outcomes, an American Heart Association journal, records of more than 16,000 patients (59% male, average age 71 years). Patients had undergone open bypass first (36%) or an endovascular procedure first (64%) for critical limb ischemia at non-government hospitals in California between 2005 and 2013.
Compared with patients who received open surgery first, researchers found that, during the study period, those who were first treated with an endovascular procedure had a longer period of amputation-free survival and were:
less likely to require a major amputation - below or above the knee, during the study; however slightly more likely to require another procedure or surgery to restore blood flow; no more likely to die, although at the time of their methods many had severe medical conditions such as kidney failure, congestive heart failure, and diabetes. "The data here suggest that, in the grand scheme of things, an endovascular-first approach is at least not producing a worse result," Lin said. "Regardless, the type of therapy a patient will receive needs to be a decision that patients and their physicians arrive at together. Critical limb ischemia is usually not an emergency, and there is time to determine the most appropriate course of therapy. "
The study was limited by not having information on medical factors (such as the severity of their wounds and whether they had a long and wide enough vein to perform a bypass) that might have influenced whether patients were treated with open surgery or an endovascular procedure. The patient population was also limited to specific hospitals in California.
Source: Eurekalert
New Treatment Could Spare Smokers and Diabetics' Legs from Amputation
Australian researchers Wednesday said they had developed a world-first treatment which could save hundreds of thousands of smokers and diabetics from undergoing leg amputations.
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