Hypothesis Infragenicular polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE)–venous cuff bypass grafting provides acceptable graft patency and limb salvage rates for limb salvage.
Design Retrospective clinical review of a consecutive series.
Setting Vascular surgical practice during the interval October 1, 2000, to September 1, 2004.
Patients Fifty-one male and 49 female patients whose mean age was 76.9 years were operated on for tissue loss (67%), chronic rest pain (28%), and severe claudication (6%). Fifty-two percent of patients were diabetic and 49% had undergone previous leg bypass surgery. All patients had absent or inadequate greater saphenous vein, and 84 patients had absent or inadequate arm vein.
Interventions One hundred five infragenicular PTFE bypasses were performed in these 100 patients. Distal targets were the infragenicular popliteal (40), posterior tibial (35), anterior tibial (16), and peroneal arteries (14). Sixty-eight venous cuffs were constructed from lesser saphenous vein.
Main Outcome Measures Graft patency, limb salvage, and patient survival were analyzed.
Results Twelve early graft failures resulted in 7 leg amputations. The mean ± SE 3-year primary patency and limb salvage rates were 64.4% ± 12.8% and 74.4% ± 11.9%, respectively. Perioperative mortality was 2.9% and 3-year survival was 38%. Graft follow-up ranged from 1 to 47 months with a mean of 13 months using life-table methods.
Conclusions For patients requiring arterial revascularization for limb salvage, in which autologous venous conduit is unavailable, distal venous cuff–PTFE bypass provides acceptable patency and limb salvage rates when viewed in the context of short life expectancy for these elderly patients.
