Femoral artery catheterization in patients with previous bifemoral grafting

✍ Scribed by Chisholm, R. J.

• Book ID: 101827731
• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1993
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 74 KB
• Volume: 30
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0098-6569
• DOI: 10.1002/ccd.1810300411

✦ Synopsis

Patients with previous aortobifemoral graft surgery often have diffuse vascular disease and concomitant coronary artery disease may require cardiac catheterization and coronary arteriography. These patients may be approached through the Sones technique or perhaps a percutaneous brachial approach. In some patients, a brachial approach is not possible and many physicians are not comfortable with these techniques and prefer catheterization through the leg.

We and others [l] have used the femoral approach in these patients for several years without undue difficulty. On some occasions, the femoral graft is extremely thick and it is difficult to advance a dilator or guidewire into the lumen because of fibrous scarring. It is not unusual that the guidewire will pass into the lumen easily but attempts to advance any dilator over the guidewire result in kinking of the guidewire at the point of entry. In these situations we would suggest the following: