Arterial grafting through the obturator foramen

This paper reviews the indications for obturator bypass and adds five more cases to the 29 reported in the literature. The indications were groin sepsis, fear of sepsis, severe groin scarring and false femoral aneurysm. The graft material was variously alone or in composite fashion saphenous vein, arm vein, umbilical vein, dacron and PTFE. All patients are alive but one graft occluded at 12 months and another required ligation at 5 days because of further infection and haemorrhage. The other three are patent at 5, 4 and 2 1/2 years.