Vascular graft infection in the aortoiliac territory – our view in the light of European Society for Vascular Surgery Guidelines − the retrospective observation study

Overview

Introduction: Vascular graft infection in the aortoiliac territory (abdominal VGI) is undoubtedly one of the most serious complications in vascular surgery. The treatment is burdened with high mortality and morbidity rates. In 2020, the Guidelines on the Management of Vascular Graft and Endograft Infections were published by the European Society for Vascular Surgery (ESVS). In the light of these guidelines, we decided to review retrospectively all patients who presented to our institution with abdominal VGI.

Methods: Retrospective observational study of patients presented with abdominal VGI treated in our institution between 2011−2019 (9 years). The primary goal was to elucidate the rate of vascular graft infection in aortoiliac reconstructions performed between 2011−2019 and also the mortality rate in the patient cohort operated for this complication. The secondary goals were to evaluate the success rate and the complication rate in different types of reconstructions.

Results: In the defined period between 2011−2019 we performed 363 open aortoiliac reconstructions. During the same period we treated altogether 15 patients with abdominal VGI, whose primary reconstruction was mostly performed before 2011 (11 patients). In our cohort of patients who underwent reconstruction between 2011−2019 we observed a graft infection only in 4 cases (1.1%). In the group of 15 patients with abdominal VGI, the male gender prevailed (14 patients). The mean age at the time of primary reconstruction was 61 years. Most of our reconstructions were performed for occlusive disease (14 cases). All infected grafts were aortobifemoral (1 unilateral aortofemoral). They were all late infections with an average presentation time of 61 months since the primary reconstruction (15−180 months). Early mortality rate was as high as 27% (4 patients) and overall mortality was 40%. The secondary reinfection rate after primary treatment was 33%.

Conclusion: Treatment of abdominal VGI is still burdened with high mortality and morbidity rates. The current ESVS guidelines provide valuable guidance for the diagnosis and management of VGI. It nevertheless remains obvious that the treatment needs to be tailored individually in a multidisciplinary team environment.

Keywords:

abdominal aorta – graft – infection