Experience with PGE1 in patients with postoperative trashfoot

Within a 16 years observation period a trash phenomenon was seen in 15 patients. In 13 of these patients it occurred as a postoperative complication of a surgical intervention for infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm. In 2 cases an aortobifemoral bypass had become necessary because of an underlying AOD. In addition to the standard therapy with heparin 8 patients were intravenously given 2 ampoules of Prostavasin (60 mcg of PGE1) twice daily. All patients survived, and only in 1 case a thigh amputation was unavoidable. Apart from the heparinization, the 7 patients of the control group had received i.v. administrations of vaso-active drugs (naftidrofuryl, pentoxifylline) and hemodilution. 3 patients died within the first three postoperative days, one of them after a thigh amputation. A further patient suffered the loss of both lower legs, but survived and recovered completely as did 3 patients who did not require amputation. Though these results cannot claim the significance of a randomized controlled study they indicate that PGE1 may act favourably in the treatment of the trash syndrome.