title: Sympathectomy and limb salvage in peripheral vascular insufficiency: a clinical study of 100 patients.
abstract: An analysis of clinical features and response to sympathectomy of one hundred patients with peripheral vascular insufficiency were reviewed. The commonest symptom was intermittent claudication followed by ulcer, gangrene and rest pain. Symptoms were severe enough to require unilateral cervical sympathectomy in 11 and bilateral in four patients [corrected]. Lumbar sympathectomy was undertaken unilaterally in 59 patients while in 29 patients bilateral procedure was carried out. Nine patients had undergone both cervical and lumbar sympathectomy as they had the disease involving both the upper and lower extremities. The disease was far advanced in 38 [corrected] patients who underwent conservative amputation. A policy of sympathectomy with conservative amputation gave excellent results.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Faculty of Medicine, University of Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Amir
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Amin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006784:Hospitals, Teaching; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D012008:Recurrence; D012307:Risk Factors; D013562:Sympathectomy / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*; D014652:Vascular Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000601:surgery*