Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to J M Seeger.
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Saphenous vein patch angioplasty has been used to improve the results of carotid endarterectomy by decreasing the incidence of postoperative occlusion and recurrent stenosis. A rare but potentially lethal complication of this technique is aseptic necrosis and rupture of the vein patch during the postoperative period. We report three cases of this phenomenon and review an additional 13 cases from the literature. This event generally occurs without warning 2 to 7 days postoperatively and may result in death or stroke. At reoperation, the central portion of the vein patch is necrotic, without evidence of infection. Technical considerations in the harvesting and preparation of these grafts are reviewed, as are the physical parameters predisposing certain vein patches to rupture. Saphenous vein harvested from the ankle has been linked to every reported case. Small diameter veins in particular appear to carry a higher risk of rupture.
To further examine the use of arm vein for bypass to the popliteal or infrapopliteal arteries, we retrospectively reviewed 43 patients undergoing infrageniculate arterial bypass by use of an arm vein as a conduit. Nine grafts were done to the below-knee popliteal artery and 34 to the infrapopliteal arteries. Six grafts were done by use of a single segment of an arm vein, whereas 37 grafts were composites of either multiple segments of arm vein (n = 19) or segments of saphenous and arm vein (n = 18). Mean follow-up time was 15 1/2 months. Initial (30-day) graft patency and limb salvage were 95%. Primary graft patency by life-table analysis was 67% at 1 year and 49% at 3 years. Follow-up examination detected graft stenosis before occlusion in six patients (all of whom were given anticoagulant medication) and three failing grafts were salvaged. This increased overall 3-year secondary graft patency to 64% and 3-year secondary patency for infrapopliteal bypasses to 66%. Eleven of 12 graft occlusions resulted in major amputations (eight were above the knee, and three were below the knee) so that limb salvage paralleled secondary graft patency (63% at 3 years). Thus arm veins provide an excellent alternative venous conduit for infrageniculate arterial bypass, even when composite venous grafts must be used.
Ischemic colitis resulting in colonic infarction after aortic reconstruction is a highly lethal complication. Reimplantation of all patent inferior mesenteric arteries should improve this problem but can be justified only if the procedure is effective and safe. To investigate this, 337 aortic reconstructions done between July 1982 and May 1989 were reviewed. Patent inferior mesenteric arteries had been reimplanted when possible during 151 aortic reconstructions done between April 1986 and May 1989. Before this, patent inferior mesenteric arteries were selectively ligated on the basis of intraoperative bowel inspection, colonic mesenteric Doppler signals, and inferior mesenteric arteries stump pressures during 186 aortic procedures. No patient had colonic infarction as a result of ischemia during the period in which patent inferior mesenteric arteries were reimplanted if possible. In contrast, five patients (2.7%; p less than 0.05) had colonic infarction and perforation during the period of selective inferior mesenteric arteries ligation resulting in four deaths. The operative mortality rate was less during the period of inferior mesenteric arteries reimplantation (4.0% vs 14.5%; p less than 0.05), and transfusion requirements were unchanged. Thus routine reimplantation of patent inferior mesenteric arteries limits colonic infarction and operative deaths after aortic reconstruction.
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To determine probe temperature required to achieve laser thermal recanalization of human peripheral arteries, temperature was monitored at the probe tip using a K-type thermocouple and displayed on a computer screen in real-time in 21 procedures. Recanalization was performed using a Spectraprobe-PLR delivering both laser light and heat in patients with prolonged ischemic limb symptoms. Laser recanalization of totally occluded peripheral arteries (occlusion length = 5.3 +/- 3.8 cm) was done percutaneously (17 procedures) or intraoperatively (4 procedures), after unsuccessful attempts of recanalization using standard guide wire and balloon angioplasty techniques. Probes were activated using argon laser irradiation starting at 5 W and increased by 1-W increments until successful recanalization, or up to a maximum of 12 W. Laser recanalization was achieved in 16/21 (76%) procedures at a mean temperature of 178 +/- 120 degrees C (range 64-503 degrees C) and a mean time of 12.4 +/- 14.1 s. Eleven of the 16 (69%) recanalizations occurred at probe temperature lower than 160 degrees C. Recanalization was achieved at a mean power of 7 +/- 2 W. Perforation occurred in 6 arteries at peak probe temperatures ranging from 73 to 502 degrees C. Perforations occurred in 4 of 6 densely calcific vessels which required high probe temperatures (greater than 250 degrees C). An important feature of temperature monitoring was the immediate detection of probe dysfunction. Although recanalization temperature had a wide range, the majority of recanalizations occurred at probe temperature below 160 degrees C.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Laser recanalization was attempted in 13 patients in whom the risk of surgical therapy was increased by severe angina, infection, absent venous conduit, or recent deep venous thrombosis, and in 4 patients at high risk for limb loss due to severe infrapopliteal arterial occlusive disease. Total occlusions of the superficial femoral, tibial, or peroneal arteries were treated. Recanalization was accomplished using Argon laser power and a Spectraprobe-PLR. Two patients also required common femoral artery endarterectomy to improve inflow. Laser recanalization was successful in 9 patients (53%), and 8 (47%) had relief symptoms. None of the 4 patients with tibial and peroneal artery occlusion had successful recanalization or limb salvage. Restenosis or reocclusion developed in 4 patients during the first year after successful recanalization, but only 1 had recurrent symptoms. Limb salvage was initially achieved in 5 of 8 recanalization failures by surgical reconstruction but 3 developed graft infections requiring graft removal in 2 and amputation in 1. Thus, laser recanalization can accomplish limb salvage in selected patients whose medical or surgical risks complicate arterial bypass surgery.
Laser recanalization using metal-capped laser fibers and continuous-wave laser energy occurs by thermal ablation of atherosclerotic plaque. Different types of plaque respond differently to laser energy and plaque composition may be an important determinant of the success of laser recanalization. To investigate this hypothesis, 16 patients with symptomatic arterial occlusions in the mid and distal superficial femoral artery underwent B-mode ultrasound arterial imaging prior to attempted argon laser recanalization. The composition of the occlusions was classified as soft (echogenicity less than the adjacent arterial wall), dense (echogenicity equal to the adjacent arterial wall), or calcified (echoreflective). Recanalization was successful in 100% (8/8) of patients with soft occlusions versus 38% (3/8) with dense or calcified occlusions (P = 0.01). Thus, plaque composition as assessed by B-mode ultrasound imaging appears to be an important predictor of the success or failure of arterial recanalization using a thermal laser probe.
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Prosthetic grafts are rapidly covered by blood proteins after implantation. Cellular ingrowth and accumulation of interstitial proteins such as collagen complete the development of graft pseudointima. To investigate the effect of these changes on graft platelet reactivity, indium 111-labeled platelet accumulation on two grafts of differing porosity and thrombogenicity (polytetrafluoroethylene [PTFE] and Dacron) was measured 1, 7, and 21 days after graft implantation in canine carotid arteries. Pseudointima structure, weight, and collagen content were also determined at each measurement interval. In addition, platelet accumulation on carotid autografts and dissected carotid arteries was determined for comparison. Platelet accumulation on all grafts and arteries diminished significantly (p less than 0.05) between 1 and 7 days. Platelet accumulation on autografts and dissected arteries decreased further between 7 and 21 days and approached baseline. In contrast, platelet accumulation on Dacron grafts increased significantly (p less than 0.05) between 7 and 21 days to levels above those measured at 1 day, whereas platelet accumulation in PTFE grafts increased minimally and remained significantly below 1-day levels. A thick pseudointima that contained significant amounts of collagen developed in Dacron grafts during this time period, and a thin, incomplete pseudointima containing minimal collagen covered PTFE grafts. These differences in pseudointimal platelet reactivity and composition were associated with decreased patency of Dacron grafts (78%) compared to PTFE grafts (89%).
(1) Laser thermo-optical angioplasty in totally occluded peripheral arteries permits recanalization of lesions which would have otherwise required surgical bypass procedures. (2) Technical success was accomplished more frequently in patients with shorter occlusions. The technical success range in totally occluded blood vessels is 70-80%. (3) Clinical success in the peripheral circulation requires balloon angioplasty in most cases. Laser angioplasty has yet to be evaluated as monotherapy. (4) The combination of laser and balloon angioplasty has not decreased the restenosis rate from that seen with balloon angioplasty alone. (5) Restenosis rate was not influenced by lesion length. (6) In a significant number of patients with a totally occluded vessel a surgical procedure was avoided by performance of a percutaneous therapy.
Blood may limit laser ablation of arterial plaque by decreasing thermal energy transfer from metal-capped probes to arterial occlusions. Since a gas is a good insulator of heat, CO2 may be a better medium for laser recanalization. To study this possibility, a metal-capped fiber was positioned in a segment of blood-filled polyethylene tubing and activated with an argon laser. Probe temperatures were measured in blood and as the blood was displaced by flowing CO2 gas. Probe temperatures were higher at all powers studied in CO2 gas than in blood. Maximum probe temperatures averaged 518 +/- 24 degrees C after CO2 infusion versus 320 +/- 7 degrees C in blood, (P less than 0.0001). Blood aggregate formation was noted on the probe surface in blood but not in CO2 medium. Thus CO2 gas may be a preferable medium for laser recanalization, since higher probe temperatures are achieved, and the probe surface remains free of insulating blood coagulate.
One hundred ninety-five patients have been evaluated for possible laser recanalization (LR). Current laser delivery systems are most appropriate for the treatment of superficial femoral, popliteal, or isolated common iliac artery occlusions, and therefore one half (110) of the patients were initially excluded because of inappropriate disease location. An additional 39 patients were excluded because they showed minimal symptoms or the procedure would have been excessively risky for them. The remaining 46 patients underwent LR for total arterial occlusions, with relief of symptoms and increased ankle brachial indexes in 22 (48%). Of the four patients who could not be surgically reconstructed because of tibial artery occlusion, none was successfully treated. Only one patient required emergency reconstruction for ischemia after LR failure, and no procedures were required for treatment of perforation or bleeding. Successful LR was most likely when isolated lesions less than 15 cm in length, in the common iliac, middle or distal superficial femoral, and above-knee popliteal arteries were treated. Of the 22 patients for whom LR was successful, 11 would have been candidates for standard surgical therapy, six would have been excluded from such therapy by medical or surgical risks, and five had symptoms usually considered too mild to be offered surgery. Thus, at present the impact of LR on the treatment of patients with peripheral vascular disease appears limited.
Carbon dioxide (CO2) gas is a safe and effective arterial contrast agent that images arteries by displacing blood. The use of CO2 gas to displace blood during angioscopy may improve intraoperative angioscopy and allow percutaneous angioscopy. To study this, 46 angioscopic evaluations in the femoral arteries of four dogs were done without inflow occlusion. The ability of CO2 gas to clear the flowing blood was compared to a high-pressure infusion of saline solution. Carbon dioxide gas successfully displaced flowing blood in 20 of 25 evaluations (80%) as compared to three of 21 evaluations (14%) with infusion of saline solution (p less than 0.0001). After the CO2 gas infusion was stopped, the image remained clear for 9 +/- 1 seconds. When saline was used, the image was clear only as long as the infusion was continued. The quality of clear images for the two media were similar through the eyepiece of the angioscope, but images observed through the motion picture camera had better contrast and depth of field in CO2 gas. The use of a CO2 gas infusion can clear the field of flowing blood without the risk of volume overloading and potentially allow performance of a successful percutaneous angioscopy.
Progressive peripheral atherosclerosis commonly leads to failure of a bypass graft. Lowering blood cholesterol retards coronary atherosclerosis and similar treatment might limit peripheral atherosclerosis. To identify lipid risk factors for peripheral atherosclerosis, 144 patients with peripheral atherosclerosis (98 with severe disease and 46 with stable claudication) and 61 age-matched control subjects were studied. Fasting lipid (cholesterol and triglycerides) and lipoprotein (high-density lipoprotein [HDL], low-density lipoprotein [LDL], and very-low-density lipoprotein [VLDL] cholesterol [C]) levels were measured. The incidence of hypertension and diabetes mellitus, amount of previous tobacco use, and location and severity of the peripheral atherosclerosis were also determined. Patients with peripheral atherosclerosis had higher VLDL-C and lower HDL-C levels than controls had, but serum cholesterol and plasma LDL-C levels were similar. Patients with peripheral atherosclerosis also had a higher incidence of diabetes mellitus and hypertension. Predictors of peripheral atherosclerosis by regression analysis were diabetes mellitus, low HDL-C levels, and tobacco use, with diabetes mellitus being the strongest variable. Peripheral atherosclerosis below the inguinal ligament was strongly predicted by low HDL-C and increased VLDL-C levels but not by increased cholesterol or LDL-C levels. Thus lipid risk factors for peripheral atherosclerosis are different, and attempts at limiting late graft failure by lowering lipid levels should be directed toward these lipoproteins.
Laser recanalization using metal capped fibers occurs by thermal vaporization of occluding plaque. However, little is known about the effects of blood and flow on the temperature of the laser probe or the arterial wall during lasing. To study this, probe and arterial wall temperatures were measured while a metal capped fiber, activated by an argon laser, was held stationary in a stenotic human peripheral artery. Arteries were perfused with saline and blood, and flow was varied from 0 to 140 cc/min. Probe temperatures were significantly higher in blood than in saline. However, the increased probe temperature achieved in blood was not transferred to the arterial wall. Increasing flow decreased probe temperature in both media, but again arterial wall temperatures were minimally affected. Thus, the presence of blood and flow may significantly affect heat generation and heat transfer during arterial recanalization using metal capped fibers.
Endothelial cell growth in vitro is enhanced by coating with fibronectin the surface on which cells grow. Similar coating of prosthetic arterial grafts may promote in vivo graft endothelialization if graft patency is not adversely affected. In each of 15 dogs, two fibronectin-coated polytetrafluoroethylene grafts and two grafts that were not coated were implanted. One graft in each pair was seeded with autologous endothelial cells, so that four different grafts were studied in each animal: a coated, seeded graft; a coated graft that was not seeded; a seeded graft that was not coated; a graft that was neither coated nor seeded. At 2, 4, and 8 weeks, grafts from five animals were examined for patency, surface endothelialization, and indium 111 platelet reactivity. After seeding, surface coverage by endothelium of coated grafts was more complete and more rapid than in uncoated grafts (64% +/- 23% vs 31% +/- 13% at 4 weeks, p less than 0.05). Without seeding, coated grafts also appeared to have increased endothelial cell ingrowth compared with plain grafts (48.8% +/- 15.1% vs 37.6% +/- 1.5% at 8 weeks). Early (2-week) platelet reactivity of coated grafts was increased (p = 0.06), but patency was not adversely affected. Thus fibronectin coating of prosthetic grafts promotes surface endothelialization in vivo without altering graft patency.
Variations in plaque composition, particularly an increased lipid concentration, could make carotid plaques unstable and prone to embolization. To investigate this hypothesis, 35 carotid bifurcation plaques from 31 patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy (20 symptomatic, 11 asymptomatic) were prospectively analyzed. Plaque total lipid, cholesterol, collagen, and Ca2+ content were determined, and the plaque collagen was fractionated into pepsin-soluble collagen (PSC) (indicative of less crosslinked, more recently synthesized collagen) and pepsin-insoluble collagen. Preoperative serum lipid and plasma lipoprotein levels were also obtained in all patients. Results revealed that plaques removed from symptomatic patients contained significantly more total lipid and cholesterol (P less than 0.001) than those removed from asymptomatic patients. There was also an increased amount of pepsin-soluble collagen in symptomatic plaques, potentially indicating increased metabolic activity (P less than 0.05). In addition, mean plasma low-density lipoprotein cholesterol was higher in symptomatic patients than in asymptomatic patients (P less than 0.05). Since lipid-laden plaques can potentially be identified by B-mode ultrasound, it may be important to remove these plaques in asymptomatic patients or, alternatively, to attempt to lower the plaque cholesterol by lipid-lowering maneuvers.