title: Surveillance of arteriovenous accesses with the use of duplex Doppler ultrasonography.
abstract: Stenosis is the most frequent vascular access complication and is responsible for access thrombosis and thus long-term patency limitation. Regular arteriovenous graft (AVG) examination by ultrasonography and preemptive balloon angioplasty prolong AVG cumulative patency according to some, but by far not all trials. This was why the routine use of ultrasound surveillance is not recommended recently.In this review we show huge differences in the definition of stenosis significance among the trials and other probable factors, which may have caused the contradiction of the results. Without precise definition of stenosis significance, many AVGs have been undergoing unnecessary balloon interventions with high morbidity, high cost and low benefit.
authors.affiliation: 1 Third Department of Internal Medicine, First Faculty of Medicine, Charles University in Prague, Prague - Czech Republic.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Malik
authors.forename: Jaroslav
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kudlicka
authors.forename: Ludmila
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Novakova
authors.forename: Josef
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Adamec
authors.forename: Hana
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Malikova
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kavan
mesh_terms: D001166:Arteriovenous Shunt, Surgical / Q000009:adverse effects*; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D019917:Blood Vessel Prosthesis Implantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006083:Graft Occlusion, Vascular / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D006801:Humans; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012039:Regional Blood Flow; D006435:Renal Dialysis; D013927:Thrombosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000209:etiology / Q000503:physiopathology; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D018616:Ultrasonography, Doppler, Duplex; D014654:Vascular Patency