Ambulatory percutaneous angioplasty in patients with claudication

The aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of outpatient peripheral angioplasty in patients who were treated for lower limb claudication.

Between February 1 and December 31, 2007, a monocentric observational study was carried out on 98 consecutive patients who presented with claudication (mean age: 63 years [range: 31-90]; 81 men) and were treated by using a percutaneous femoral approach for either iliac (n = 62) or femoropopliteal lesions (n = 36). Exclusion criteria were requiring a renal angioplasty or an associated surgical procedure, having a creatinine clearance value of <30 mL/min/1.73 m(2), body mass index exceeding 35 kg/m(2), and critical ischemia or vascular surgery history at the site of femoral puncture. Treatment involved manual compression and/or use of a closure system, after which the patients were made to wear a compression bandage. After 4 hours, the patients were carefully examined for the presence of a local complication (puncture site), a general complication (thoracic pain), or a complication related to the surgical procedure (early thrombosis). When no complications were detected, the patients were allowed to get up and walk. At the sixth hour, the patients were again examined for the presence of the aforementioned complications. In the absence of any complications, the patients were deemed as "fit to be discharged" and were allowed to stroll about inside the hospital. The following day, a final evaluation was carried out just before their discharge. The risk factors and comorbidities were evaluated.

At the sixth postoperative hour, 78 patients (80%) were deemed as "fit to be discharged." The remaining 20 (20%) were deemed as "unfit to be discharged" because of either a major hematoma (n = 3, including two redo surgeries and a blood transfusion) or a minor evolutive hematoma. All the complications (n = 17) occurred before the fourth postoperative hour. Bilateral femoral puncture was the only risk factor found to be associated with contraindication to being discharged in the evening (OR = 3.8, p = 0.02).

Ambulatory treatment for patients with claudication treated with an endovascular approach was possible because complications that required overnight surveillance always occurred within the first 4 postoperative hours. Bilateral femoral puncture is a potential risk factor for failure of outpatient management.