Background: When antegrade recanalization of femoropopliteal and/or infrapopliteal occlusions fails, retrograde access has become an established option. To evaluate the results of combined antegrade and retrograde recanalization of femoropopliteal and infrapopliteal occlusions, patients undergoing secondary retrograde recanalization attempts were analyzed retrospectively.
Methods: The primary end point was the success of the procedure (successful occlusion crossing using the antegrade/retrograde technique). Secondary end points include complication rate, primary patency and target lesion revascularization (TLR) rate, amputation rate, changes in ankle-brachial index, and Rutherford-Becker class. Predictors for procedure failure and TLR were analyzed.
Results: We included 888 patients: 362 with femoropopliteal (group 1), 353 with infrapopliteal (group 2), and 173 with multilevel (group 3) recanalization. Critical limb-threatening ischemia was present in group 1, 2, and 3 in 36%, 62%, and 76% of patients, respectively. The intervention was successful in 92.5%, 93.8%, and 90.8% of the respective cases (P = .455). The overall peri-interventional complication rate was 7.2%. At 6, 12, and 24 months, primary patency was highest in group 1 (63.9%, 45.8%, and 33.3%), followed by group 3 (59.8%, 46.1%, and 33.3%), and group 2 (58.5%, 43.1%, and 30.4%; P = .537). The risk of undergoing repeated TLR within 24 months was 31.4% for group 1, 39.1% for group 2, and 45.7% for group 3. At 24 months, the survival rates in groups 1, 2, and 3 were 93.8%, 79.4%, and 87.5%, respectively. Over 24 months, 75 patients (8.4%) had to undergo amputation. Significant improvements in both ankle-brachial index and Rutherford-Becker class were present at discharge as well as at 6, 12, and 24 months (P < .001). Dialysis dependency was a predictor of unsuccessful antegrade/retrograde recanalization (P = .048). Lesion length (P = .0043), dialysis (P = .033), and recanalization level (P = .013) increase the risk of TLR.
Conclusions: Using a combined antegrade/retrograde access, recanalization of occluded femoropopliteal and/or infrapopliteal arteries can be achieved in a large number of cases. Owing to the high rate of repeated TLR across all lesion localizations, the indication for antegrade and retrograde recanalization may be limited to patients with critical limb-threatening ischemia.
Keywords: Antegrade/retrograde; CTO; Peripheral artery disease; Recanalization.
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