Percutaneous Transsplenic Balloon-Assisted Transjugular Intrahepatic Portosystemic Shunt Placement in Patients with Portal Vein Obliteration for Portal Vein Recanalization: Feasibility, Safety and Effectiveness.

PURPOSE: To assess the feasibility, safety and effectiveness of portal vein recanalization (PVR)-transjugular portosystemic shunt (TIPS) placement via splenic access using a balloon puncture technique. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In a single-center retrospective study from March 2017 to February 2021, 14 consecutive patients with portal hypertension, chronic liver disease and portal vein occlusion or near-complete (> 95%) occlusion were referred for PVR-TIPS placement. Feasibility, safety and effectiveness including procedural characteristics such as technical success, complication profile and splenic access time (SAT), balloon positioning time (BPT), conventional portal vein entry time (CPVET), overall procedure time (OPT), fluoroscopy time (FT), dose-area product (DAP) and air kerma (AK) were evaluated. RESULTS: Transsplenic PVR-TIPS using balloon puncture technique was technically feasible in 12 of 14 patients (8 men, 49 ± 13 years). In two patients without detectable intrahepatic portal vein branches, TIPS placement was not feasible and both patients were referred for further treatment with nonselective beta blockers and endoscopic variceal ligation. No complications grade > 3 of the Cardiovascular and Interventional Radiological Society of Europe classification system occurred. The SAT was 25 ± 21 min, CPVET was 33 ± 26 min, the OPT was 158 ± 54 min, the FT was 42 ± 22 min, the DAP was 167.84 ± 129.23 Gy*cm2 and the AK was 1150.70 ± 910.73 mGy. CONCLUSIONS: Transsplenic PVR-TIPS using a balloon puncture technique is feasible and appears to be safe in our series of patients with obliteration of the portal vein. It expands the interventional options in patients with chronic PVT.

Two-dimensional parametric parenchymal blood flow in transarterial chemoembolisation for hepatocellular carcinoma: perfusion change quantification and tumour response prediction at 3 months post-intervention.

AIM: To evaluate the feasibility and potential value of two-dimensional (2D) parametric parenchymal blood flow (2D-PPBF) for the assessment of perfusion changes during transarterial chemoembolisation with drug-eluting beads (DEB-TACE) and to analyse correlations of 2D-PPBF parameters and tumour response. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Thirty-two patients (six women, 26 men, mean age: 67±8.9 years) with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who underwent their first DEB-TACE were included in this study. To quantify perfusion changes using 2D-PPBF, the acquired digital subtraction angiography (DSA) series were post-processed. Ratios were calculated between the reference region of interest (ROI) and the wash-in rate (WIR), the arrival to peak (AP) and the area under the curve (AUC) of the generated time-density curves. Comparisons between pre- and post-embolisation data were made using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. Tumour response was assessed at 3 months using the modified Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumours (mRECIST) and correlated to changes of 2D-PPBF parameters. RESULTS: All 2D-PPBF parameters derived from the ROI-based time-attenuation curves were significantly different pre-versus post-DEB-TACE. Although the AUC, the WIR and target lesion size measured in accordance with mRECIST decreased (p≤0.0001) significantly, AP values showed a significant increase (p = 0.0033). Tumour response after DEB-TACE correlated with changes in the AUC (p = 0.01, r = -0.45). CONCLUSION: 2D-PPBF offers an objective approach to analyse perfusion changes of embolised tumour tissue following DEB-TACE and can therefore be used to predict tumour response.

Percutaneous isolated hepatic perfusion (chemosaturation) with melphalan following right hemihepatectomy in patients with cholangiocarcinoma and metastatic uveal melanoma: peri- and post-interventional adverse events and therapy response compared to a matched group without prior liver surgery.

To evaluate feasibility, frequency and severity of peri-procedural complications and post-procedural adverse events (AEs) in patients with advanced cholangiocarcinoma or liver metastasis of uveal melanoma and prior hemihepatectomy undergoing chemosaturation percutaneous hepatic perfusion (CS-PHP) and to analyze therapy response and overall survival compared to a matched group without prior surgery. CS-PHP performed between 10/2014 and 02/2018 were retrospectively assessed. To determine peri-procedural safety and post-procedural adverse events, hospital records and hematological, hepatic and biliary function were categorized using Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (CTCAE) v5.0 (1-5; mild-death). Significance was tested using Wilcoxon signed-rank and Mann-Whitney U test. Kaplan-Meier estimation and log-rank test assessed survival. Overall 21 CS-PHP in seven patients (4/7 males; 52 ± 10 years) with hemihepatectomy (grouphemihep) and 22 CS-PHP in seven patients (3/7 males; 63 ± 12 years) without prior surgery (groupnoresection) were included. No complications occurred during the CS-PHP procedures. Transient changes (CTCAE grade 1-2) of liver enzymes and blood cells followed all procedures. In comparison, grouphemihep presented slightly more AEs grade 3-4 (e.g. thrombocytopenia in 57% (12/21) vs. 41% (9/22; p = 0.37)) 5-7 days after CS-PHP. These AEs were self-limiting or responsive to treatment (insignificant difference of pre-interventional to 21-45 days post-interventional values (p > 0.05)). One patient in grouphemihep with high tumor burden died eight days following CS-PHP. No deaths occurred in groupnoresection. In comparison, overall survival after first diagnosis was insignificantly shorter in groupnoresection (44.7(32-56.1) months) than in grouphemihep (48.3(34.6-72.8) months; p = 0.48). The severity of adverse events following CS-PHP in patients after hemihepatectomy was comparable to a matched group without prior liver surgery. Thus, the performance of CS-PHP is not substantially compromised by a prior hemihepatectomy.