Dacron-covered stent-grafts in transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunts: initial experience

To retrospectively review the authors' experience with use of a Dacron-covered stent-graft in transjugular intrahepatic postosystemic shunts (TIPS).

The need for internal review board approval was waived. Informed consent was obtained from all patients. The study was compliant with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. A retrospective analysis was performed of 16 patients who received a Dacron-covered stent-graft during revision or de novo creation of TIPS. There were 13 men and three women aged 44-80 years (mean age, 61 years). Primary unassisted and assisted patency rates and secondary patency rates were estimated. The primary unassisted patency of patients who underwent de novo placement of stent-grafts (n = 10) was compared with that of patients with stent-grafts placed during shunt revision (n = 6); in all patients, stent-grafts were placed within stents. Primary unassisted patency was also compared between patients in whom the covered stent was confined to the parenchymal tract (n = 7) and those in whom the stent extended 1 cm or more into the portal vein (n = 9). Patency was estimated with the Kaplan-Meier method, and group comparisons were performed with the log-rank test.

Primary unassisted patency rates following stent-graft placement at 4, 12, and 24 months (+/- standard error) were 64% +/- 14, 54% +/- 15, and 40% +/- 16, respectively. The rates for primary assisted patency were 78% +/- 12, 67% +/- 14, and 67% +/- 14 and those for secondary patency were 91% +/- 9, 81% +/- 12, and 54% +/- 23. At 12 months, primary unassisted patency with de novo stent-graft placement was 90% +/- 9, whereas that with stent-grafts placed during TIPS revision was 17% +/- 15 (P = .005). At 12 months, the primary unassisted patency in patients with stent-grafts confined to the parenchymal tract was 75% +/- 22, and that of patients with stent-grafts extending at least 1 cm into the portal vein was 40% +/- 17 (P = .21).

In this small series, satisfactory long-term patency was observed among patients in whom Dacron-covered stent-grafts were placed during revision or de novo creation of TIPS. More favorable outcomes were observed when the stent-graft was placed during de novo TIPS creation and when the device was confined to the parenchymal tract.