Patient preference for surgical method of abdominal aortic aneurysm repair: postal survey

To determine whether men with small abdominal aortic aneurysm have a preference between either endovascular or open aneurysm repair for future treatment.

Prospective study of self-declared treatment preference following receipt of a validated patient information pack.

Men aged 65-84 years (n=237) with asymptomatic aneurysm (4.0-5.4 cm) detected by population-based screening.

An unbiased, validated patient information pack and questionnaire were developed to conduct a postal survey.

One hundred sixty seven participants (70%) returned a completed questionnaire; 24 (10%) did not respond at all. Initially, only 38 (23%) declared a treatment preference. After reading the information pack, 130 participants (80%) declared a treatment preference: 30 preferred open repair (18%), 77 endovascular repair (46%), 23 were happy with either option (14%) and only 34 remained without any preference (20%). Nearly all (92%) thought that the information pack had prepared them well for future discussions with clinicians and with no single feature identified as influencing the preference-making process, 66 respondents (40%) still opted to 'take the advice of the doctor'.

The patient information pack facilitated the development of treatment preferences with endovascular repair being preferred to open repair. Nevertheless for patient-centred care, vascular centres must continue to safely provide both open and endovascular repair.