Lumbar sympathectomy under CT guidance: therapeutic option in critical limb ischaemia

Lumbar sympathectomy is a complementary therapeutic option for patients with severe peripheral vascular occlusive disease presenting rest pain or gangrene and not eligible for surgical revascularisation. Traditional surgical sympathectomy was widely used in the past. However, due to its invasive character, it has increasingly been replaced by percutaneous techniques and, in some recent cases, by laparoscopic procedures. Percutaneous lumbar sympathectomy is a safe, cost-effective and widely available treatment option. We report our experience on 19 patients subjected to percutaneous sympathectomy under CT guidance.

Between 1998 and 2000, 19 patients underwent percutaneous sympathectomy under CT guidance. All patients had severe vascular disease of the lower extremities (Fontaine stage IV), with rest pain and gangrene. They were not eligible for surgical revascularisation. Phenol was injected at the level of L2 and L4 using two 22 G needles (15 cm long). Signs of interrupted sympathetic activity usually occur 2'-15' after the procedure with warmth and flushing and dryness of the lower extremities.

Percutaneous sympathectomy under CT guidance is a simple, safe and well-tolerated procedure with a low rate of complications. Of the 19 patients, 9 (47.3%) showed clinical improvement, whereas 5 experienced a worsening of ischaemia in the months immediately following the procedure.

Results suggest that percutaneous lumbar sympathectomy causes a sympathetic blockade in patients with advanced vascular disease of the limbs. CT guidance ensures a high level of precision in drug dosing, thus lowering the risk of complications. Although the results are demoralizing. the impossibility of achieving surgical revascularisation in advanced peripheral arteriosclerosis enhances the role of CT-guided percutaneous sympathectomy in relieving rest pain and healing ulcers in order to postpone the amputation.