Open Surgery for Ruptured Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm - 38 Years Experience at an Academic Center in Chile

Few series of ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm (RAAA) from Latin America have been published.

To report the outcomes of RAAA treated with open surgical repair (OSR) in a University Hospital in Chile. Secondary objectives are the identification of prognostic factors and survival rates.

Retrospective review of consecutive RAAA patients treated with OSR between September 1979 and December 2017. Medical records, diagnostic images, and follow-up details were obtained. Statistical methods include multiple logistic regression analysis.

One hundred and sixteen patients underwent OSR for RAAA. The average age was 72.3 years (54-95), 62.9% ≥ 70 years, and 81.9% male. Preoperative systolic pressure <90 mm Hg was present in 74 patients (63.8%), and 10 (8.6%) experienced cardiac arrest before surgery. Only 30.2% were known to have an AAA before rupture. The mean aortic diameter was 7.9 cm. Sixteen patients had juxtarenal aneurysms (13.8%). The rupture was intra or retroperitoneal in 111 cases (95.7%), there were 4 fistulas to neighboring veins and one into the duodenum. Reconstruction included tubular graft in 39.7% and bifurcated in 58.6%. The estimated mean blood loss was 3,456 ± 2,768 mL (median 3,000). Mean mechanical ventilation was 7.4 ± 12.0 days and hemodialysis requirement in 21.8%. Six patients died during surgery and other 24 during the first postoperative month or in hospital, for an overall mortality rate of 25.9%. Age ≥70 years (P < 0.01), blood pressure less than 90 mm Hg (P = 0.03) and dialysis (P < 0.01) were associated with higher 30-day mortality rates. The survival rate was 68.0, 65.3, 44.3, and 25.2% at 1, 2, 5, and 10 years, respectively.

EVAR for RAAA is not affordable in every country. Outcomes of open RAAA repair at our institution are similar to results reported recently for OSR by the USA and European Medical centers.