Reaccessing an occluded radial artery for neuroendovascular procedures: techniques and complication avoidance

Radial artery occlusion (RAO) occurs in 1% to 10% of cases following transradial arterial access (TRA) for neuroendovascular procedures. When repeat access is required in patients discovered to have RAO, a transfemoral approach is often used. This study reports experience with repeat TRA procedures at a single center and techniques for reaccessing an occluded radial artery in select patients.

The electronic records of all patients who underwent multiple neuroendovascular procedures with an attempted TRA as the index procedure at a single center from July 2019 through February 2020 were reviewed.

There were 656 TRA attempts for diagnostic angiography or intervention from July 2019 through February 2020. A total of 106 patients underwent a repeated attempt at TRA. Techniques for reaccessing an occluded radial artery were implemented halfway through the study period. One hundred patients (94.3%) had a successful second radial catheterization. Six patients required conversion to a transfemoral approach: five for RAO and one for radial branch perforation during the index procedure. After we implemented our techniques for reaccess, four additional patients with RAO successfully underwent TRA. There were no short-term complications, including pain, vessel perforation, forearm hematoma, or hand ischemia, following successful repeat catheterization of a previously occluded radial artery.

RAO is not an absolute limitation for attempting TRA in patients undergoing repeat catheterization. Reaccessing the radial artery after occlusion is feasible for repeat neuroendovascular procedures.