Dilatation of the proximal neck of infrarenal aortic aneurysms after endovascular AAA repair.
OBJECTIVE
to assess size changes of the proximal aortic neck after endograft placement.


METHODS
since 1994, 54 consecutive patients have undergone abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair with the Endovascular Technologies (EVT) endograft. The study group comprised the 33 patients who had completed at least six months of the prospective follow-up protocol. The pre-, postoperative and follow-up helical computed tomography (CT) angiograms (CTAs) were processed on a workstation. The proximal neck dimensions were measured perpendicular to the central lumen line of the aortic neck. The cross-sectional area was measured at the proximal attachment system and at 1 cm proximal to the renal arteries.


RESULTS
while the dimensions of suprarenal aorta did not change, a significant dilatation of the proximal neck was found. The median increase was 10.3% at 6 months and 15.5% at 12 months. No correlation could be found between the amount of dilatation and pre- or postoperative neck-size, graft diameter and amount of graft-oversizing.


CONCLUSIONS
the infrarenal aortic neck demonstrates continued dilatation during follow-up after endograft placement.
Wever
J J
JJ
Department of Vascular Surgery, University Medical Center, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
de Nie
A J
AJ
Blankensteijn
J D
JD
Broeders
I A
IA
Mali
W P
WP
Eikelboom
B C
BC
D000368:Aged; D000792:Angiography; D001012:Aorta, Abdominal / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D017544:Aortic Aneurysm, Abdominal / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000601:surgery*; D019917:Blood Vessel Prosthesis Implantation; D004108:Dilatation, Pathologic; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D018709:Statistics, Nonparametric; D015607:Stents; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed