Endovascular Treatment of Complications of Femoral Arterial Access

Endovascular repair of femoral arterial access complications is nowadays the treatment of choice in a group of patients who cannot tolerate vascular reconstruction and bleeding due to advanced cardiovascular disease. Endovascular procedures can be performed under local anesthesia, are well tolerated by the patient, and are associated with a short hospitalization time. Ninitinol stent technology allows for safe stent and stent-graft extension at the common femoral artery (CFA) level, due to increased resistance to external compression and bending stress. Active pelvic bleeding can be insidious, and prompt placement of a stent-graft at the site of leakage is a lifesaving procedure. Percutaneous thrombin injection under US guidance is the treatment of choice for femoral pseudoaneurysms (PAs); this can theoretically be safer with simultaneous balloon occlusion across the entry site of a PA without a neck or with a short and wide neck. In a few cases with thrombin failure due to a large arterial defect or accompanying arteriovenous fistula (AVF), a stent-graft can be deployed. The vast majority of catheter-induced AVFs can be treated effectively with stent-graft implantation even if they are located very close to the femoral bifurcation. Obstructive dissection flaps localized in the CFA are usually treated with prolonged balloon inflation; however, in more extensive dissections involving iliac arteries, self-expanding stents should be deployed. Iliofemoral thrombosis can be treated effectively with catheter-directed thrombolysis (CDT) followed by prolonged balloon inflation or stent placement. Balloon angioplasty and CDT can occasionally be used to treat stenoses and occlusions complicating the use of percutaneous closure devices.