Contralateral Snare Cannulation vs. Retrograde Gate Cannulation during Endovascular Aortic Repair in Difficult Iliac Artery Anatomy: A Single Center Experience.

OBJECTIVE: Endovascular aneurysm repair is well established as the gold standard in treating abdominal aortic aneurysms. Generally, endovascular repair is performed using a bi or trimodular stent graft, requiring placement of a contralateral iliac limb. Deployment of the contralateral iliac limb requires retrograde gate cannulation of the endograft main body contralateral limb. This step represents the crucial point of a standard endovascular repair procedure and can become challenging, especially in the case of high iliac tortuosity. This study compares the procedural times between the retrograde gate cannulation and the contralateral snare cannulation to demonstrate the possibility of directly performing the contralateral snare cannulation in the case of a complex iliac anatomy assessed by the iliac tortuosity index. METHODS: One hundred and forty-eight patients with infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysms who underwent endovascular aneurysm repair from 2017 to 2022 were analyzed retrospectively. Cannulation times between retrograde gate cannulation and contralateral snare cannulation were compared for each degree of iliac tortuosity. The degree of iliac tortuosity was assessed through the iliac tortuosity index. Cannulation times were detected from inserting the wire into the introducer to passing through the radio-opaque gate markers. RESULTS: The cannulation times were 2.94 min for the retrograde gate cannulation group and 3.15 min for the contralateral snare cannulation group, respectively, with no statistically significant differences (p = 0.33). Overall cannulation times were 2.98 min. For the iliac tortuosity index grade 0, the cannulation times were 2.71 min for the retrograde gate cannulation group and 3.85 min for the contralateral snare cannulation group, respectively, with a significant difference in favor of the retrograde gate cannulation group (p < 0.0001). For the iliac tortuosity index grade 1, the cannulation times were 2.74 min for the retrograde gate cannulation group and 2.8 min for the contralateral snare cannulation group, respectively, with no statistically significant differences (p = 0.63). Regarding the iliac tortuosity index grades 2 and 3, the cannulation times were 3.01 and 4.93 min for the retrograde gate cannulation group and 2.71 and 3.28 min for the contralateral snare cannulation group, respectively. The first group's times were significantly higher than the second group's (p = 0.01 and p = 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: In patients with infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysms undergoing endovascular aortic repair, the gate cannulation times were significantly shorter for the contralateral snare cannulation method than the retrograde gate cannulation method in the iliac tortuosity index grades 2 and 3. Therefore, performing the contralateral snare cannulation method would be appropriate.

Data Recorded in Real Life Support the Safety of Nattokinase in Patients with Vascular Diseases.

Nattokinase (NK) is a serine protease enzyme with fibrinolytic activity. Even if it could be used for the treatment of several diseases, no data have been published supporting its use patients who underwent vascular surgery. In this study, we evaluated both the efficacy and the safety of nattokinase (100 mg/day per os) in patients admitted to vascular surgery. Patients were of both sexes, >18 years of age, with vascular diseases (i.e., deep vein thrombosis, superficial vein thrombosis, venous insufficiency), and naïve to specific pharmacological treatments (anticoagulants or anti-platelets). Patients were divided into three groups. Group 1: patients with deep vein thrombosis, treated with fondaparinux plus nattokinase. Group 2: patients with phlebitis, treated with enoxaparin plus nattokinase. Group 3: patients with venous insufficiency after classical surgery, treated with nattokinase one day later. During the study, we enrolled 153 patients (age 22-92 years), 92 females (60.1%) and 61 males (39.9%;), and documented that nattokinase was able to improve the clinical symptoms (p < 0.01) without the development of adverse drug reactions or drug interactions. Among the enrolled patients, during follow-up, we did not record new cases of vascular diseases. Attention to patients' clinical evolution, monitoring of the INR, and timely and frequent adjustment of dosages represent the cornerstones of the safety of care for patients administered fibrinolytic drugs as a single treatment or in pharmacological combination. Therefore, we can conclude that the use of nattokinase represents an efficient and safe treatment able to both prevent and treat patients with vascular diseases.

Expression of MMP-2, MMP-9, and NGAL in Tissue and Serum of Patients with Vascular Aneurysms and Their Modulation by Statin Treatment: A Pilot Study.

BACKGROUND: Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are involved in vascular wall degradation, and drugs able to modulate MMP activity can be used to prevent or treat aneurysmal disease. In this study, we evaluated the effects of statins on MMP-2, MMP-9, and neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) in both plasma and tissue in patients with aneurysmal disease. METHODS: We performed a prospective, single-blind, multicenter, control group clinical drug trial on 184 patients of both sexes >18 years old with a diagnosis of arterial aneurysmal disease. Enrolled patients were divided into two groups: Group I under statin treatment and Group II not taking statins. In addition, 122 patients without aneurysmal disease and under statin treatment were enrolled as a control group (Group III). The expression of MMPs and NGAL in plasma was evaluated using ELISA, while their expression in endothelial tissues was evaluated using Western blot. RESULTS: The ELISA test revealed greater plasma levels (p < 0.01) of MMPs and NGAL in Groups I and II vs. Group III. Western blot analysis showed higher expression (p < 0.01) of MMPs and NGAL in Group II vs. Group I, and this increase was significantly higher (p < 0.01) in patients treated with low potency statins compared to high potency ones. CONCLUSIONS: MMPs and NGAL seem to play a major role in the development of aneurysms, and their modulation by statins suggests that these drugs could be used to prevent arterial aneurysmal disease.

Nano-hydrogel embedded with quercetin and oleic acid as a new formulation in the treatment of diabetic foot ulcer: A pilot study.

Wound healing, especially diabetic ones, is a relevant clinical problem, so it is not surprising that surgical procedures are often needed. To overcome invasive procedures, several strategies with drugs or natural compound are used. Recently, in an experimental study, we described an increase in keratinocyte proliferation after their exposition to quercetin plus oleic acid. In the present clinical study, we evaluated both the clinical efficacy and the safety of nano-hydrogel embedded with quercetin and oleic acid in the treatment of lower limb skin wound in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). Fifty-six DM patients (28 men and 28 women, mean age 61.7 ± 9.2 years) unsuccessfully treated with mechanical compression were enrolled and randomised to receive an add on treatment with hyaluronic acid (0.2%) or nano-hydrogel embedded with quercetin and oleic acid. The treatment with nano-hydrogel embedded with quercetin and oleic acid significantly (P < .01) reduced the wound healing time, in comparison to hyaluronic acid (0.2%) without developing of adverse drug reactions, suggesting that this formulation could be used in the management of wound healing even if other clinical trials must be performed in order to validate this observation.

Hepatic ischemia reperfusion injury: A systematic review of literature and the role of current drugs and biomarkers.

Hepatic ischemia reperfusion injury (IRI) is not only a pathophysiological process involving the liver, but also a complex systemic process affecting multiple tissues and organs. Hepatic IRI can seriously impair liver function, even producing irreversible damage, which causes a cascade of multiple organ dysfunction. Many factors, including anaerobic metabolism, mitochondrial damage, oxidative stress and secretion of ROS, intracellular Ca(2+) overload, cytokines and chemokines produced by KCs and neutrophils, and NO, are involved in the regulation of hepatic IRI processes. Matrix Metalloproteinases (MMPs) can be an important mediator of early leukocyte recruitment and target in acute and chronic liver injury associated to ischemia. MMPs and neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) could be used as markers of I-R injury severity stages. This review explores the relationship between factors and inflammatory pathways that characterize hepatic IRI, MMPs and current pharmacological approaches to this disease.

Recognizing Severe Adverse Drug Reactions: Two Case Reports After Switching Therapies to the Same Generic Company.

Generic formulations represent a way to reduce the costs of brand compounds when their patent is expired. While, the bio-equivalence in generic drugs is guaranteed, some excipients as well as dyes could be different and this could reduce the drug safety. Herein, we report the development of Adverse Drug Reactions (ADRs) in two patients after the switch from brand to generic formulations. We have tested cytochrome P450 enzymes expression as well as drug serum levels. None of these markers were altered. Checking deeply into both patient's medical history, they harbored poly-sensitivity or allergy to pollen and graminacea and used different active ingredients for different health problems coming from the same generic company Almus(®). This company used different dyes and excipients compared to the branded drugs made by distinguished companies. In conclusion, we strongly suggest to both pharmacists and physicians to be careful in giving the advice to change the drug, thinking to reduce health sanitary costs without considering the personal clinical history of each one. Paradoxically this behavior is causing other health issues, bringing to an increase of the overall costs for patients as well as for National Health System.

Retrospective evaluation of adverse drug reactions induced by antihypertensive treatment.

The use of cardiovascular drugs is related to the development of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) in about 24% of the patients in the Cardiovascular Care Unit. Here, we evaluated the ADRs in patients treated with antihypertensive drugs. The study was conducted in two phases: In the first phase, we performed a retrospective study on clinical records of Clinical Divisions (i.e., Internal Medicine Operative Unit and Geriatric Operative Unit) from January 1, 2012 to December 31, 2012. Moreover from January 1, 2013 to March 30, 2013 we performed a prospective study on the outpatients attending the Emergency Department (ED) of the Pugliese-Ciaccio Hospital of Catanzaro, by conducting patient interviews after their informed consent was obtained. The association between a drug and ADR was evaluated using the Naranjo scale. We recorded 72 ADRs in the Clinical Divisions and six in the ED, and these were more frequent in women. Using the Naranjo score, we showed a probable association in 92% of these reactions and a possible association in 8%. The most vulnerable age group involved in ADRs was that of the elderly patients. In conclusion, our results indicate that antihypertensive drugs may be able to induce the development of ADRs, particularly in elderly women receiving multiple drug treatment. Therefore, it is important to motivate the healthcare providers to understand their role and responsibility in the detection, management, documentation, and reporting of ADRs, as also all the essential activities for optimizing patient safety.