[Indications for reconstructing injured veins in associated arterial lesions (author's transl)]

The authors have organized therapeutic measures in simultaneous bullet injuries to the arteries and the veins of the extremities on the basis of experience attained in 26 cases. 1. Simultaneous reconstruction of an injured artery and its satellite vein must be aimed at in all instances; 2. even the smallest injuries to the arterial intima favour acute arterial thrombosis, if the satellite vein has been tied up simultaneously; 3. acute arterial occlusion is not caused by the isolated ligature of the vein but by the deep, extended venous thrombosis building up on it; 4. where a main vein is ligated, anticoagulant therapy must be initiated immediately to prevent deep venous thrombosis; 5. simultaneous reconstruction of both the arterial and the venous flow systems must be maintained by postoperative anticoagulant therapy. The paper goes into details of thrombectomy, the technical details of vein reconstruction, the question of whether the establishment of a temporary arteriovenous anastomosis is indispensable,, and injuries to veins associated with fractures and dislocations.