Purpose: The aim of this study was to report early experiences with the Sydney and Endovascular Technologies (EVT) prostheses for the treatment of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA) deemed suitable for endoluminal tube graft repair.
Methods: Consecutive endoluminal tube graft repairs were analyzed over the first 12 months in which the Sydney and EVT prostheses were used. Patients eligible for the EVT prosthesis had type I AAAs: a proximal neck length > or = 2 cm, a distal cuff length > or = 1.5 cm, and nontortuous iliac arteries > or = 8 mm. Selection criteria for the Sydney device were more liberal and included AAAs that had distal cuffs < 1.5 cm. During the study period, 28 of 91 patients evaluated for AAA repair were thus selected for endoluminal grafting: 18 patients received the Sydney endograft and 10 the EVT device. Medical comorbidities were present in slightly less than one third of patients in both groups. Contrast-enhanced computerized tomography (CT) was performed preoperatively, within 10 days of operation, and at 6 and 12 months postprocedure.
Results: All endografts were successfully deployed in both groups. Postprocedural CT scans revealed incomplete aneurysm exclusion in four patients with the Sydney endograft. Subsequent deployment of a second endograft sealed these "leaks" in two cases; the other two were converted to open repair (89% clinical success). No leaks were seen with the EVT device. Local/vascular complications occurred in 33% of the Sydney group compared with 20% for the EVT device (p = 0.001); systemic sequelae were more common in the EVT group (30% versus 17% in the Sydney cohort, p = 0.002). There were no deaths within 30 days; three late deaths were not procedure related.
Conclusion: AAAs that are suitable for endoluminal tube graft repair may be treated with a high rate of initial success with either the Sydney or EVT prostheses. More liberal selection criteria may increase the likelihood of local/vascular complications.