Optimal Wire Myography Normalization for the Rat Dorsal Penile, Internal Pudendal and Internal Iliac Arteries

In functional arterial studies using wire myography, the determination of a vessel’s standardized normalization factor (factor k) is an essential step to ensure optimal contraction and relaxation by the arteries when stimulated with their respective vasoactive agents and to obtain reproducible results. The optimal factor k for several arteries have been determined; however, the optimal initial tension and factor k for the arteries involved in erection remains unknown. Hence, in the present study we set out to determine the optimal factor k for the internal iliac artery, proximal and distal internal pudendal artery (IPA), and dorsal penile artery. After isolating, harvesting, and mounting the arteries from male Sprague-Dawley rats on a multi wire myograph, we tested arterial responsivity to high K+-stimulation when the factor k was set at 0.7, 0.8, 0.85, 0.9, 0.95, 1.0, 1.1, and 1.2 to determine the factor k setting that results in the greatest K+-induced active force production for each vessel type. The data showed the optimal factor k is 0.90-0.95 for the dorsal penile, distal internal pudendal and internal iliac arteries while it is 0.85-0.90 for proximal internal pudendal artery. These optimal values corresponded to initial passive tension settings of 1.10±0.16 - 1.46±0.23, 1.28±0.20 - 1.69±0.34, 1.03±0.27 - 1.33±0.31, and 1.33±0.31 - 1.77±0.43 mN/mm for the dorsal penile, distal IP, proximal IP, and internal iliac arteries, respectively.

Acute aortic thrombosis in a patient with SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus disease (COVID-19)

One of the rare and life-threatening conditions is acute aortic thrombosis. We have described a case of thrombosis of the aorta and iliac arteries in a patient against the background of viral pneumonia COVID-19, with newly diagnosed diabetes mellitus and arterial hypertension.

SURGICAL TREATMENT OF PATIENTS WITH EXTRAORGANIC TUMORS OF THE PELVIC LOCALIZATION WITH INVASION OF THE ILIAC VESSELS

The aim of our study was to determine the indications for expanding the scope of operations in patients with pelvic extraorgan local formations. Materials and methods. The results of surgical treatment of 7 patients with nonorgan tumors of the pelvic localization, who underwent resection on the main vessels in connection with their involvement in the tumor process, are presented. Results and discussion. A total of 7 interventions were performed on the iliac arteries — 2 resections with an end-to-end anastomosis and 5 prostheses (one case — the aorta resection with reconstruction with a bifurcation prosthesis). Patients with pelvic extraorgan tumors are a special cohort of patients, due to the presence of several organs in a narrow space, which inevitably causes them to fit snugly to the tumor. Locally advanced tumor process in extraorganic tumors involving the main vessels of the pelvis and adjacent organs is not a reason to refuse surgery, and despite the complications, repeated recurrences and previous operations, are well tolerated by patients. This is especially important due to the lack of a real alternative to surgical treatment of this group of patients. Conclusions. Surgical intervention in the treatment of pelvic inorganic tumors involving the main vessels is the only radical method of treatment. Invasion of the main arterial and venous vessels is not a contraindication to surgery in patients with pelvic tumors. Combined angioplastic interventions allow to achieve a long without recurrent period even after cytoreductive operations.

Spot Stenting Combined With False Lumen Endovascular Occlusive Repair for Post-dissection Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm

Purpose: To introduce a new spot stenting, combined with a false lumen endovascular occlusive repair (SS-FLEVOR) technique for treating post-dissection abdominal aortic aneurysms. Technique: This technique is demonstrated in a 74-year-old man who received an initial thoracic endovascular aortic repair 7 years ago and suffered from distal aortic expansion during the follow-up session. All the tears located more than 15 mm away from the orifice of visceral arteries were excluded by spot stenting in the aortic true lumen. Then, a compliant stent-graft was implanted in the false lumen to seal the tears near the visceral arteries orifice from the outside. In addition, coils were deployed to block the potential backflow from the intercostal arteries and to induce false lumen thrombosis. Moreover, visceral arteries originated from false lumen were repaired by covered-stents implanted from the true lumen. The distal iliac arteries were sealed either with iliac extensions or cover-stents. This new technique has been applied in 5 patients, resulting in 100% technical success and encouraging intermediate outcomes. Conclusion: SS-FLEVOR is a feasible and safe technique to promote false lumen thrombosis in selected cases.

Efficacy of median sacral artery embolization for treating severe pelvic fractures: a retrospective study

Objective Transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE) of bilateral internal iliac arteries (IIAs) in patients with a hemodynamically unstable pelvic fracture is associated with a low mortality rate. The persistence of unstable hemodynamics after IIA embolization indicates the involvement of other arteries, such as the median sacral artery (MSA). This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of MSA embolization. Methods In this single-center, retrospective, observational study, medical records of patients who underwent MSA angiography or embolization for pelvic fractures (n = 21) between January 2007 and August 2019 were reviewed. The percentage of patients achieving hemodynamic stabilization by MSA embolization was calculated. Results Fifteen patients underwent MSA embolization, and the remaining six underwent MSA angiography. The shock index value was significantly higher after MSA embolization than that before MSA embolization in hemodynamically unstable patients who underwent this procedure. The success rate of MSA selection was 100%. One patient presented with urinary retention because of bladder and rectal disorders after MSA embolization. The 30-day survival rate was 85.7%. Conclusions Severe pelvic fractures, such as a Dennis Zone III fracture and suicidal jumper’s fracture due to trauma from a fall, may require MSA embolization.

Interventional Treatment of Access Site Complications During Transfemoral TAVI: A Single Center Experience

Introduction: Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) has rapidly developed over the last decade and is nowadays the treatment of choice in the elderly patients irrespective of surgical risk. The outcome of these patients is mainly determined not only by the interventional procedure itself, but also by its complications.Material and Methods: We analyzed the outcome and procedural events of transfemoral TAVI procedures performed per year at our institution. The mean age of these patients is 79.2 years and 49% are female. All the patients underwent duplex ultrasonography of the iliac arteries and inguinal vessels before the procedure and CT of the aorta and iliac arteries.Results: Transfemoral access route is associated with a number of challenges and complications, especially in the patients suffering from peripheral artery disease (PAD). The rate of vascular complications at our center was 2.76% (19/689). Typical vascular complications (VC) include bleeding and pseudoaneurysms at the puncture site, acute or subacute occlusion of the access vessel, and dissection or perforation of the iliac vessels. In addition, there is the need for primary PTA of the access pathway in the presence of additional PAD of the common femoral artery (CFA) and iliac vessels. Balloon angioplasty, implantation of covered and uncovered stents, lithoplasty, and ultrasound-guided thrombin injection are available to treat the described issues.Conclusion: Interventional therapy of access vessels can preoperatively enable the transfemoral approach and successfully treat post-operative VC in most of the cases. Training the heart team to address these issues is a key focus, and an interventional vascular specialist should be part of this team.

Deep Learning-Based Image Reconstruction for CT Angiography of the Aorta

To evaluate the impact of a novel, deep-learning-based image reconstruction (DLIR) algorithm on image quality in CT angiography of the aorta, we retrospectively analyzed 51 consecutive patients who underwent ECG-gated chest CT angiography and non-gated acquisition for the abdomen on a 256-dectector-row CT. Images were reconstructed with adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction (ASIR-V) and DLIR. Intravascular image noise, the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) were quantified for the ascending aorta, the descending thoracic aorta, the abdominal aorta and the iliac arteries. Two readers scored subjective image quality on a five-point scale. Compared to ASIR-V, DLIR reduced the median image noise by 51-54% for the ascending aorta and the descending thoracic aorta. Correspondingly, median CNR roughly doubled for the ascending aorta and descending thoracic aorta. There was a 38% reduction in image noise for the abdominal aorta and the iliac arteries, with a corresponding improvement in CNR. Median subjective image quality improved from good to excellent at all anatomical levels. In CT angiography of the aorta, DLIR substantially improved objective and subjective image quality beyond what can be achieved by state-of-the-art iterative reconstruction. This can pave the way for further radiation or contrast dose reductions.

Cardiovascular morbidities in postoperative colorectal cancer patients

This retrospective observational study investigated the long-term prevalence of new-onset cardiovascular disease (CVD) and the predictive role of atherosclerotic plaque in the aorta and iliac arteries for CVD in postoperative colorectal cancer (CRC) patients who received surgical treatment between 2014 and 2015. CVD included coronary or cerebrovascular diseases which required treatment and new-onset CVD included peri-and postoperatively diagnosed CVDs or aggravated CVDs that required additional treatment during follow-up. Of the 2,875 patients included in this study, the prevalence of CVD was 8.9% (255/2875) and 141 (4.9%) developed new-onset CVD. Maximum arterial stenosis in the aorta or iliac arteries occurred in 40.8 ± 18.6% of patients with new-onset CVD and 11.6 ± 13.8% of patients without new-onset CVD (p < 0.001). The mean new-onset CVD-free survival time in patients with > 30% and < 30% stenoses were 52.5 [95% confidence intervals (CIs) 50.0–54.9] and 66.5 (95% CIs 66.2–66.8) months, respectively (p < 0.001). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of the maximal arterial stenosis for new-onset CVD was 0.911. These results suggest that CRC patients are at risk for developing new-onset CVD, which is associated with reduced survival. Atherosclerotic burden in the aorta or both iliac arteries may help predict future CVD events.

Horseshoe kidney with high bifurcation of abdominal aorta: a rare imaging finding

Vascular variations of the bifurcation of the abdominal aorta (BAA) are rare, and they are usually discovered incidentally. We report a unique clinically and surgically significant case of variations of the abdominal aorta as related to the location and type of bifurcation. A high-positioned bifurcation of the abdominal aorta upon a horseshoe kidney at the level of upper L2 vertebral body was detected during contrast-enhanced abdominal computed tomography scan. Due to the halted ascent in horseshoe kidney, abdominal vascular anomalies are common: usually, multiple renal arteries arise from the distal aorta or iliac arteries; this is important when these patients undergo any procedure, particularly abdominal angiogram. The awareness of the variations of the abdominal aorta is of great importance during surgery and interventional radiological procedures to reduce complications during abdominal and spinal interventions, as well as for radiologists for precise interpretation of angiograms.