Ultrasound-Guided peripheral nerve blocks for major amputation in critically ill patients with peripheral artery disease.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess the safety and efficacy of major amputation under ultrasound-guided peripheral nerve blocks in critical peripheral artery disease (PAD) patients. METHODS: We reviewed the medical records of consecutive patients who underwent major amputation at our center between December 2012 and December 2020. The patients' baseline demographics and comorbidities were collected. The primary outcomes were 30-day and 12-month mortality. The secondary outcomes were intraoperative events, complications and intensive care unit (ICU) admission. RESULTS: Fifteen patients classified as American Society of Anesthesiologist (ASA) III and 13 ASA IV (mean age: 76.07 ± 11.78 years) were included in the study. These patients were critically ill and had many comorbidities, such as coronary artery disease. All amputations were successfully performed under ultrasound-guided PNB without conversion to GA, but intravenous analgesia was given in 7 patients during the operation. The majority of the patients had stable hemodynamics except for 2 patients who had hypoxia, so none of the patients were transferred to the ICU postoperatively. None of the patients suffered from acute cardio-cerebral events. However, 5 patients had wound infections, and 4 of 5 patients had to receive reamputation. None of the patients died within 48 h after amputation. However, the 30-day mortality was 3.57%, and the 12-month mortality was up to 35.71%. CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that major amputation could be safely and effectively performed under ultrasound-guided peripheral nerve blocks for critically ill patients, and ultrasound-guided peripheral nerve blocks could be an alternative for patients at high risk of general anesthesia or spinal anesthesia.

Safety and Efficacy of Rivaroxaban for Inferior Vena Cava Thrombosis after Successful Catheter-Directed Thrombolysis.

Rivaroxaban use for inferior vena cava (IVC) thrombosis after successful catheter-directed thrombolysis (CDT) is rarely reported. This study aimed at investigating the safety and efficacy of rivaroxaban for IVC thrombosis after CDT. The clinical data on 38 consecutive patients with IVC thrombosis (68% male; mean age, 51.5 ± 16.5), who received rivaroxaban after CDT between July 2017 and January 2020, were retrospectively analyzed in this study. Safety and efficacy of rivaroxaban (bleedings and recurrent venous thromboembolism), cumulative prevalence of post-thrombotic syndrome (PTS), primary patency, clinically driven target lesion revascularization rate, and other adverse events including all-cause mortality and vascular events (systemic embolism, acute coronary syndrome, ischemic stroke, and transient ischemic attack) were retrospectively analyzed. Of the 38 patients who received rivaroxaban for IVC thrombosis after CDT, 27 (71%) had an anticoagulant duration of 6 months and 11 patients (29%) of more than 6 months. Four patients (10%) suffered recurrent thrombosis. No patient suffered major bleeding, while clinically relevant nonmajor bleeding occurred in two (5%) patients. The cumulative prevalence of PTS was 18% (7/38) during the 12 months follow-up period. Primary patency at 1, 3, 6, and 12 months was 97, 92, 90, and 90%, respectively. According to follow-up data, the clinically driven target lesion revascularization of this study was 10%. Cardiovascular events and mortality did not occur in any patient during the study period. Rivaroxaban for IVC thrombosis after successful CDT can be safe and effective.