Mid-Term Results of Left Carotid-Subclavian Bypass in Patients Undergoing Zone 2 TEVAR.

Introduction: The aim of this study was to present the mid-term results of patients who had undergone a carotid-subclavian bypass surgery after a thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) stent-graft implantation with proximal landing at zone 2 of the aorta.

Methods: A total of 66 patients had undergone TEVAR and carotid-subclavian bypass between January 2015 and May 2020 at our clinic. Five of these patients were lost to follow-up, so 61 patients were included in this retrospective study. At follow-up visits, patency of the carotid-subclavian bypass grafts was evaluated with physical examination and radiological imaging.

Results: The mean follow-up time was 15.11±12.29 months (ranging from 1 to 56 months). There were 3 (4.91%) in-hospital deaths of patients admitted with bilateral lower limb and visceral malperfusion. There were also 2 (3.27%) deaths unrelated to the procedure. Carotid-subclavian graft occlusion occurred in 3 (4.91%) patients. The occlusion was detected with radiological imaging within a period of 12 to 24 months. The graft patency rate was 100% in the first 12 months. The mean graft patency time (survival) was 52.56±2.10 months.

Conclusion: Periprocedural carotid-subclavian bypass surgery with synthetic grafts is a recommended procedure with high patency and acceptably low mortality and morbidity rates in TEVAR.