Focusing on Diabetic Ulcers.

Foot ulcers associated with Diabetes mellitus require immediate attention due to risk of amputation if left untreated. Herein we focus on the mitigating risk factors and physiopathology of the diabetic foot, recounting our own surgical approach and revascularization procedures.

Acute Deep Vein Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism: is the Thromboaspiration Device an Appropriate Choice?

Nowadays patients affected by deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE) are studied widely but the challenge for physicians is when and how they are to be treated. Most patients present serious comorbidities that can potentially make treatment difficult. An increasing cohort of patients cannot be treated with systemic fibrinolysis but fortunately today, physicians can utilize a number of different instruments to resolve acute DVT and PE.

An update of the Italian Stroke Organization-Stroke Prevention Awareness Diffusion Group guidelines on carotid endarterectomy and stenting: a personalized medicine approach

Although proof-based medicine has generated much valid evidence for the drawing up of guidelines and recommendations for best clinical practice in symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid stenosis, whether and when it is better to employ endarterectomy or stenting as the intervention of choice still remain matters of debate. Moreover, guidelines have been targeted up to now to the 'representative' patient, as resulting from the statistical analyses of the studies conducted on the safety and efficacy of both interventions as well as on medical therapy alone. The Italian Stroke Organization (ISO) and Stroke Prevention and Awareness Diffusion (SPREAD) group has thus decided to update its statements for an 8th edition. To this end, a multidisciplinary team of authors representing Italian scientific societies in the neurology, neuroradiology, vascular and endovascular surgery, interventional cardiology, and general medicine fields re-examined the literature available on stroke. Analyses and considerations on patient subgroups have allowed to model the risks/benefits of endarterectomy and stenting in the individual. Accordingly, the guideline's original methodology has been revised to follow the new SIGN (Scottish Intercollegiate Guideline Network) Grade-like approach, integrating it with new considerations on Precision, or Personalized Medicine. Therefore, this guideline offers recommendations on precision medicine for the single patient, and can be followed in addition to the more standard guidelines.

Editor's Choice - Carotid Stenosis Treatment: Variation in International Practice Patterns.

OBJECTIVES: The aim was to determine current practice for the treatment of carotid stenosis among 12 countries participating in the International Consortium of Vascular Registries (ICVR). METHODS: Data from the United States Vascular Quality Initiative (VQI) and the Vascunet registry collaboration (including 10 registries in Europe and Australasia) were used. Variation in treatment modality of asymptomatic versus symptomatic patients was analysed between countries and among centres within each country. RESULTS: Among 58,607 procedures, octogenarians represented 18% of all patients, ranging from 8% (Hungary) to 22% (New Zealand and Australia). Women represented 36%, ranging from 29% (Switzerland) to 40% (USA). The proportion of carotid artery stenting (CAS) among asymptomatic patients ranged from 0% (Finland) to 26% (Sweden) and among symptomatic patients from 0% (Denmark) to 19% (USA). Variation among centres within countries for CAS was highest in the United States and Australia (from 0% to 80%). The overall proportion of asymptomatic patients was 48%, but varied from 0% (Denmark) to 73% (Italy). There was also substantial centre level variation within each country in the proportion of asymptomatic patients, most pronounced in Australia (0-72%), Hungary (5-55%), and the United States (0-100%). Countries with fee for service reimbursement had higher rates of treatment in asymptomatic patients than countries with population based reimbursement (OR 5.8, 95% CI 4.4-7.7). CONCLUSIONS: Despite evidence about treatment options for carotid artery disease, the proportion of asymptomatic patients, treatment modality, and the proportion of women and octogenarians vary considerably among and within countries. There was a significant association of treating more asymptomatic patients in countries with fee for service reimbursement. The findings reflect the inconsistency of the existing guidelines and a need for cooperation among guideline committees all over the world.

Abdominal aortic aneurysm.

Endovascular repair of abdominal aortic aneurysm has become a milestone in the treatment of patients with abdominal aortic aneurysm.Technological improvement allows treatment in more and more complex cases. This review summarizes all grafts available in the market. At the best of our knowledge a complete review of most important trial on this topic are provided and at least technical tips and tricks for standard cases are recapitulated.

The risk for type B aortic dissection in Marfan syndrome.

Marfan syndrome is the most prevalent connective tissue disorder, with an autosomal dominant inheritance with variable penetrance. This paper aims to summarize epidemiology and treatment for type B dissection in Marfan patients.

Endovascular Treatment of Isolated Dissection of Superior Mesenteric Artery.

Isolated spontaneous dissection of the superior mesenteric artery is extremely rare. In December 2012, a 45-year-old man, without significant comorbidities, presented at the emergency room of another hospital with abdominal pain. The patient was treated with medical therapy and discharged on resolution of the pain. Three months later he returned to the emergency room with a new onset of pain. CT-angiography (CTA) showed an isolated SMA dissection associated with aneurysmal dilatation. The patient was referred to our attention. We attempted endovascular exclusion of the dissecting aneurysm in May 2013. We deployed a self-expandable nitinol stent (BostonSC Adapt 4-9×32 mm) in order to simultaneously repair the dissection, preserve the branches and exclude the aneurysm. Postoperative course was uneventful and the patient was discharged on postoperative day 2. At 10-month follow-up CTA showed excellent positioning of the stent, patency of the visceral branches and shrinkage of the aneurysm.

Physician-initiated prospective Italian Registry of carotid stenting with the C-Guard mesh-stent: the IRON-Guard registry. Rationale and design.

According to the World Health Organization, every year, 5 million peoples die for stroke and another 5 million are permanently disabled. Although there are many causes of acute stroke, a common treatable cause of acute stroke is atheromatous narrowing at the carotid bifurcation. Carotid endarterectomy is still the standard of car, even if carotid artery stenting (CAS) has become an effective, less invasive alterantive. Unfortunately, CAS procedure is not yet perfect; regardless the use of an embolic protection device (EPD), percutaneous treatment has been correlated with a risk of cerebral ischemic events related to distal embolization. The objective of the IRON-Guard Registry is to evaluate the clinical outcome of treatment by means of stenting with the C-Guard (InspireMD, Boston, MA, USA) in subjects requiring CAS due to significant extracranial carotid artery stenosis with a physician-initiated, Italian, prospective, multicenter, single-arm study. A total of 200 enrolled subjects divided over different centers are planned to be enrolled. CAS will performed by implanting of C-Guard stent. Procedure will be performed according to the physician's standard of care. Standard procedures will be followed based on the Instructions for Use, for the C-Guard device of Inspire. The primary endpoint of this study is the 30-day rate of major adverse events (MAE), defined as the cumulative incidence of any periprocedural (≤30 days postprocedure) death, stroke or myocardial infarction. Secondary endpoints are rate of late ipsilateral stroke (31 through 365 days), system technical success, device malfunctions, major adverse events (MAEs), serious device-related and procedure-related adverse events, target lesion revascularization, and in-stent restenosis rates.

Endovascular treatment of popliteal aneurysm.

Although traditional surgical repair by aneurysm exclusion and bypass is still considered the gold standard in the treatment of popliteal artery aneurysms (PAAs), the endovascular repair (ER) has been gaining great interest in the last decades. ER offers several advantages over open bypass, including lower morbidity and mortality, and faster functional recovery, but some concerns about migration, occlusion, or fracture remain when a stent graft is deployed across a joint that undergo constant flexion. This review summarizes the current evidence on ER for PAAs. Level I evidence is still very limited, while the majority of published data come from retrospective studies. Moreover the heterogeneity of PAA morphology seems to play a major role in the outcomes after popliteal endografts placement, so that many anatomical criteria should be taken into account to determine which patient is best treated endovascularly. In conclusion, while it is unlike that endovascular treatment may displace open surgical bypass in the near future, it indeed does provide a feasible option for selected patients with high surgical risk and good anatomical features.

Experimental study of a new open stent for vessel banding in a swine model: long-term results.

AIM: A new stent was designed, conceived for being placed externally around blood vessels to perform vessel banding in a much simple and fast way. In fact it requires the dissection of a single segment of the aortic wall, as its mechanical features allow it to slide on the tunica adventitia. After previous tests (ex vivo and in vivo test), the new stent has been evaluated in vivo long-term study. METHODS: In female pig of average weight of 60 kg, after placement of endoprosthesis in infrarenal abdominal aorta, immediately below renal arteries, aortic banding was performed with new stent at the level of each end of endoprosthesis, identified under fluoroscopic guidance. Pigs were followed up for six months, and acetylsalicylic acid was administrated: 100 mg once a day. After six months, histological evaluation of explanted abdominal aorta was performed. RESULTS: New stent made the aortic banding simple and fast. Postoperative course was uneventful. Histological results were similar to previous 10-week survival tests and not damages of aortic wall were observed. CONCLUSION: Positive outcome of three last long-term survival tests, as of all those ex vitro and in vivo tests previously performed, makes conceivable further scientific investigation and trials.

A new ethical and medico-legal issue: vascular surgery and the postoperative cognitive dysfunction.

Patients undergoing major surgery are at risk for postoperative cognitive dysfunction (POCD). The consciousness of the POCD arises new ethical and medico-legal issues that should be identified, managed and, if possible, prevented. Elderly patients still represent a real challenge for physicians and medical science. This challenge can be surmounted not only through technical progress but also by safeguarding the correct ethical behavior at the base of each relationship between a patient and his physician. Effective communication with the elderly patient is a prerequisite for clear and complete information, involving family members and caregivers when necessary. In every case, the identification of patients with pre-existing risk factors of POCD, shortening the period of time preceding the surgery and a proper technique of the procedure as well as physical and intellectual exercises, nutrition and medication play an important role in decreasing the incidence of neurocognitive deficits in the elderly.

Reinterventions in vascular and endovascular carotid surgery.

In recent years the number of carotid revascularization has increased steadily. This increased has inevitably resulted in an increase (relative) in complications, both after carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and carotid stenting (CAS), despite the technical evolutions of new available materials and the expertise of the operators. So, complications which may potentially require operative intervention, although not very frequent, are possible. However, after diagnosis, immediate management should be undertaken in order to avoid sequelae which are often irreversible and potentially fatal. To minimize this risk, it's important that these procedures are performed by skilled operators in high-volume Centers of activity. The aim of this review is to assess local complications which can lead to re-interventions after CEA and CAS.

Prosthesis infection: prevention and treatment.

Implantation of a vascular prosthesis increases surgical site infection risk by producing a microenvironment conducive to bacterial attachment and biofilm formation, which sustains bacterial colonization and protects encased organisms from host defenses and antimicrobial therapy. Many maneuvers are used in an attempt to reduce infection in arterial reconstructions, but there are no clear guidelines on the most appropriate or effective. As well, there is no good evidence to guide management. A general principle is that indication for removal of the entire infected graft is mandatory when a suture line is involved in the infectious process, an infected anastomotic aneurism and a suture-line hemorrhage is evident, or when a graft-enteric fistula is diagnosed. Conservative, non-resectional management of graft infection is still a respectable solution for selected patients, as those with significant comorbidities, or those where the implanted aortic graft is in a location that precludes excision without causing a high likelihood of morbidity and/or mortality. Anyway, definitive management depends on the patient's condition and a tailored approach should be always offered. Surgical techniques favor in terms of mortality, patency and reinfection rate the in situ reconstruction. Currently, the choice of the technique used relies on center and operator's experience. This article summarizes the incidence of graft infection, analyze the predisponding factors to graft infection, and review current strategies for prevention and treatment of prosthesis and endograft infection.