Publications
142 results found
Sutanto SA, Tan M, Onida S, et al., 2022, A systematic review on isolated coil embolization for pelvic venous reflux, Journal of vascular surgery. Venous and lymphatic disorders, Vol: 10, Pages: 224-232.e9, ISSN: 2213-3348
OBJECTIVE: Pelvic venous reflux (PVR) can present with symptoms such as chronic pelvic pain, dysmenorrhea, and dyspareunia, resulting in a decreased quality of life among those affected. Percutaneous coil embolization (CE) is a common intervention for PVR; however, the efficacy and safety of its use in isolation has yet to be reviewed. METHODS: The MEDLINE and EMBASE databases were systematically searched from 1990 to July 20, 2020, for studies reporting on adult patients undergoing isolated CE for PVR. Articles not in English, case reports, studies reporting on pediatric patients, and studies not performing isolated CE were excluded. Search, review, and data extraction were performed by two independent reviewers (S.S. and M.T.). Changes in pain before and after CE was evaluated through a pooled analysis of visual analogue scale scores in seven studies. RESULTS: A total of 970 patients (range, 3-218, 100% female) undergoing isolated ovarian vein or mixed veins embolization from 20 studies were included. Pooled analysis revealed mean improvements of 5.47 points (95% CI, 4.77-6.16) on the visual analogue scale. Common symptoms such as urinary urgency and dyspareunia reported significant improvements of 78-100% and 60-89.5% respectively. Complications were rare, with coil migration (n = 19) being the most common. Recurrence rates differed based on the varying symptoms and studies, with recurrence in pain 1-2 years after CE ranging from 5.9-25%. Two randomized controlled trials revealed improved clinical outcomes with CE as compared with vascular plugs and hysterectomy. CONCLUSIONS: The current data suggests that isolated CE is technically effective and can result in clinical improvement among patients with PVR. However, further trials are required to ascertain its long-term effects.
Salim S, Machin M, Patterson BO, et al., 2021, Global Epidemiology of Chronic Venous Disease <i>A Systematic Review With Pooled Prevalence Analysis</i>, ANNALS OF SURGERY, Vol: 274, Pages: 971-976, ISSN: 0003-4932
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The Vascular and Endovascular Research Network, COVIDSurg Collaborative, Shalhoub J, 2021, Impact of COVID-19 on Vascular Patients Worldwide: Analysis of the COVIDSurg Data, The Journal of Cardiovascular Surgery: a journal on cardiac, vascular and thoracic surgery, ISSN: 0021-9509
Khatri C, Ward AE, Nepogodiev D, et al., 2021, Outcomes after perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection in patients with proximal femoral fractures: an international cohort study, BMJ Open, Vol: 11, Pages: 1-10, ISSN: 2044-6055
Objectives Studies have demonstrated high rates of mortality in people with proximal femoral fracture and SARS-CoV-2, but there is limited published data on the factors that influence mortality for clinicians to make informed treatment decisions. This study aims to report the 30-day mortality associated with perioperative infection of patients undergoing surgery for proximal femoral fractures and to examine the factors that influence mortality in a multivariate analysis.Setting Prospective, international, multicentre, observational cohort study.Participants Patients undergoing any operation for a proximal femoral fracture from 1 February to 30 April 2020 and with perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection (either 7 days prior or 30-day postoperative).Primary outcome 30-day mortality. Multivariate modelling was performed to identify factors associated with 30-day mortality.Results This study reports included 1063 patients from 174 hospitals in 19 countries. Overall 30-day mortality was 29.4% (313/1063). In an adjusted model, 30-day mortality was associated with male gender (OR 2.29, 95% CI 1.68 to 3.13, p<0.001), age >80 years (OR 1.60, 95% CI 1.1 to 2.31, p=0.013), preoperative diagnosis of dementia (OR 1.57, 95% CI 1.15 to 2.16, p=0.005), kidney disease (OR 1.73, 95% CI 1.18 to 2.55, p=0.005) and congestive heart failure (OR 1.62, 95% CI 1.06 to 2.48, p=0.025). Mortality at 30 days was lower in patients with a preoperative diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 (OR 0.6, 95% CI 0.6 (0.42 to 0.85), p=0.004). There was no difference in mortality in patients with an increase to delay in surgery (p=0.220) or type of anaesthetic given (p=0.787).Conclusions Patients undergoing surgery for a proximal femoral fracture with a perioperative infection of SARS-CoV-2 have a high rate of mortality. This study would support the need for providing these patients with individualised medical and anaesthetic care, including medical optimisation before t
Waldron C-A, Gwilym BL, Thomas-Jones E, et al., 2021, The PERCEIVE quantitative study: PrEdiction of Risk and Communication of outcome following major lower limb amputation: protocol for a collaboratiVE study, BJS Open, Vol: 5, Pages: 1-6, ISSN: 2474-9842
BackgroundAccurate prediction of outcomes following surgery with high morbidity and mortality rates is essential for informed shared decision-making between patients and clinicians. It is unknown how accurately healthcare professionals predict outcomes following major lower limb amputation (MLLA). Several MLLA outcome prediction tools have been developed. These could be valuable in clinical practice, but most require validation in independent cohorts before routine clinical use can be recommended. Our primary aim is to evaluate the accuracy of healthcare professionals’ predictions of outcomes in adult patients undergoing MLLA for complications of chronic limb threatening ischaemia (CLTI) or diabetes. Secondary aims include the validation of existing outcome prediction tools.MethodThis study is an international, multicentre prospective observational study including adult patients undergoing a primary MLLA for CLTI or diabetes. Healthcare professionals’ accuracy in predicting outcomes at 30-days (mortality, morbidity and MLLA revision) and 1-year (mortality, MLLA revision and ambulation) will be evaluated. Sixteen existing outcome prediction tools specific to MLLA will be examined for validity. Data collection began on 1st October 2020, the end of follow-up will be 1st May 2022. The C-statistic, Hosmer-Lemeshow test, reclassification tables, and Brier score will be used to evaluate the predictive performance of healthcare professionals and prediction tools, respectively.Study registration and disseminationThis study will be registered locally at each centre in accordance with local policies before commencing data collection, overseen by local clinician leads. Results will be disseminated to all centres, and any subsequent presentation(s) and/or publication(s) will follow a collaborative co-authorship model.
Gwilym B, Maheswaran R, Edwards A, et al., 2021, Income deprivation and groin wound surgical site infection: cross-sectional analysis from the Groin wound Infection after Vascular Exposure (GIVE) multicentre cohort study, Surgical Infections, ISSN: 1096-2964
Geoghegan L, Super J, Machin M, et al., 2021, Are venous thromboembolism risk assessment tools reliable in the stratification of microvascular risk following lower extremity reconstruction?, JPRAS Open, Vol: 29, Pages: 45-54, ISSN: 2352-5878
IntroductionThe incidence of flap failure is significantly higher in the lower extremity compared to free tissue transfer in the head, neck and breast. The most common cause of flap failure is venous thrombosis. The aim of this study was to assess the reliability of venous thromboembolism (VTE) risk assessment tools in this high-risk cohort and to assess the ability of such tools to identify patients at risk of developing microvascular venous thrombosis and venous thromboembolism following lower extremity free flap reconstruction.MethodsA single centre retrospective cohort study was conducted between August 2012-August 2019. Adult patients who had undergone free tissue transfer following open lower extremity fractures were eligible for inclusion. All patients were retrospectively risk assessed using the Department of Health (DoH), Modified Caprini and Padua VTE risk assessment tools.ResultsFifty-eight patients were included; all were at high risk of DVT according to the DoH (mean score ± SD, 3.7 ± 0.93), Caprini (10.2 ± 1.64) and Padua (5.4 ± 0.86) risk assessment tools. All patients received appropriate thromboprophylaxis; the incidence of symptomatic hospital acquired VTE was 3.5%. Micro-anastomotic venous thrombosis occurred in 4 patients resulting in one amputation. Partial flap necrosis occurred in 7 patients. There were no significant differences in scaled Caprini (median score, 10 vs 9, z = 1.289, p = 0.09), DoH (3 vs 3, z = 0.344, p = 0.36), and Padua (5 vs 5.5, z= -0.944, p = 0.17) scores between those with and without microvascular venous thrombosis.ConclusionThis data suggests that current VTE risk assessment tools do not predict risk of microvascular venous thrombosis following lower extremity reconstruction. Further prospective studies are required to optimise risk prediction models and thromboprophylaxis use in this cohort.
Cruddas L, Onida S, Davies AH, 2021, What, if anything, should replace the Villalta score for post thrombotic syndrome?, PHLEBOLOGY, Vol: 36, Pages: 595-596, ISSN: 0268-3555
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Cardiothoracic Interdisciplinary Research Network and COVIDSurg Collaborative, 2021, Early outcomes and complications following cardiac surgery in patients testing positive for coronavirus disease 2019: An international cohort study., Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Vol: 162, Pages: e355-e372, ISSN: 0022-5223
COVIDSurg Collaborative Co-authors, 2021, Machine learning risk prediction of mortality for patients undergoing surgery with perioperative SARS-CoV-2: the COVIDSurg mortality score, British Journal of Surgery, Vol: 108, Pages: 1274-1292, ISSN: 0007-1323
Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic tens of millions of operations have been cancelled1 as a result of excessive postoperative pulmonary complications (51.2 per cent) and mortality rates (23.8 per cent) in patients with perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection2. There is an urgent need to restart surgery safely in order to minimize the impact of untreated non-communicable disease.As rates of SARS-CoV-2 infection in elective surgery patients range from 1–9 per cent3–8, vaccination is expected to take years to implement globally9 and preoperative screening is likely to lead to increasing numbers of SARS-CoV-2-positive patients, perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection will remain a challenge for the foreseeable future.To inform consent and shared decision-making, a robust, globally applicable score is needed to predict individualized mortality risk for patients with perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection. The authors aimed to develop and validate a machine learning-based risk score to predict postoperative mortality risk in patients with perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Salim S, Vidal-Diez A, Machin M, et al., 2021, Venous Leg Ulceration: an assessment of associated lifestyle, sociodemographic and clinical factors using UK Biobank, Publisher: OXFORD UNIV PRESS, Pages: V6-V6, ISSN: 0007-1323
Guni A, Machin M, Onida S, et al., 2021, Acute iliofemoral DVT – what evidence is required to justify catheter-directed thrombolysis?, Phlebology, Vol: 36, Pages: 339-341, ISSN: 0268-3555
Ravikumar R, Lane TRA, Babber A, et al., 2021, A randomised controlled trial of neuromuscular stimulation in non-operative venous disease improves clinical and symptomatic status, Phlebology, Vol: 36, Pages: 290-302, ISSN: 0268-3555
BackgroundThis randomised controlled trial investigates the dosing effect of neuromuscular electrical stimulation (NMES) in patients with chronic venous disease (CVD).MethodsSeventy-six patients with CEAP C3-C5 were randomised to Group A (no NMES), B (30 minutes of NMES daily) or C (60 minutes of NMES daily). Primary outcome was percentage change in Femoral Vein Time Averaged Mean Velocity (TAMV) at 6 weeks. Clinical severity scores, disease-specific and generic quality of life (QoL) were assessed.ResultsSeventy-six patients were recruited - mean age 60.8 (SD14.4) and 47:29 male. Six patients lost to follow-up. Percentage change in TAMV (p<0.001) was significantly increased in Groups B and C. Aberdeen Varicose Veins Questionnaire Score (-6.9, p=0.029) and Venous Clinical Severity Score (-4, p-0.003) improved in Group C, and worsened in Group A (+1, p=0.025).ConclusionsDaily NMES usage increases flow parameters, with twice daily usage improving QoL and clinical severity at 6 weeks in CVD patients.
Staniszewska A, Gimzewska M, Onida S, et al., 2021, Lower extremity arterial interventions in England, ANNALS OF THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS OF ENGLAND, Vol: 103, Pages: 360-366, ISSN: 0035-8843
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- Citations: 1
Salim S, Tan M, Geoghegan L, et al., 2021, A systematic review assessing the quality of clinical practice guidelines in chronic venous disease, JOURNAL OF VASCULAR SURGERY-VENOUS AND LYMPHATIC DISORDERS, Vol: 9, Pages: 787-+, ISSN: 2213-333X
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- Citations: 2
Ding A, Machin M, Onida S, et al., 2021, The Role of Prophylactic and Therapeutic Fasciotomy in Acute Limb Presentations, Publisher: OXFORD UNIV PRESS, ISSN: 0007-1323
Wood A, Denholm R, Hollings S, et al., 2021, Linked electronic health records for research on a nationwide cohort of more than 54 million people in England: data resource, BMJ-BRITISH MEDICAL JOURNAL, Vol: 372, ISSN: 0959-535X
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- Citations: 55
Onida S, Heatley F, Peerbux S, et al., 2021, Study protocol for a multicentre, randomised controlled trial to compare the use of the decellularised dermis allograft in addition to standard care versus standard care alone for the treatment of venous leg ulceration: DAVE trial, BMJ Open, Vol: 11, ISSN: 2044-6055
Introduction Venous leg ulceration (VLU), the most common type of chronic ulcer, can be difficult to heal and is a major cause of morbidity and reduced quality of life. Although compression bandaging is the principal treatment, it is time-consuming and bandage application requires specific training. There is evidence that intervention on superficial venous incompetence can help ulcer healing and recurrence, but this is not accessible to all patients. Hence, new treatments are required to address these chronic wounds. One possible adjuvant treatment for VLU is human decellularised dermis (DCD), a type of skin graft derived from skin from deceased tissue donors. Although DCD has the potential to promote ulcer healing, there is a paucity of data for its use in patients with VLU.Methods and analysis This is a multicentre, parallel group, pragmatic randomised controlled trial. One hundred and ninety-six patients with VLU will be randomly assigned to receive either the DCD allograft in addition to standard care or standard care alone. The primary outcome is the proportion of participants with a healed index ulcer at 12 weeks post-randomisation in each treatment arm. Secondary outcomes include the time to index ulcer healing and the proportion of participants with a healed index ulcer at 12 months. Changes in quality of life scores and cost-effectiveness will also be assessed. All analyses will be carried out on an intention-to-treat (ITT) basis. A mixed-effects, logistic regression on the outcome of the proportion of those with the index ulcer healed at 12 weeks will be performed. Secondary outcomes will be assessed using various statistical models appropriate to the distribution and nature of these outcomes.Ethics and dissemination Ethical approval was granted by the Bloomsbury Research Ethics Committee (19/LO/1271). Findings will be published in a peer-reviewed journal and presented at national and international conferences.
Salim S, Heatley F, Bolton L, et al., 2021, The management of venous leg ulceration post the EVRA (early venous reflux ablation) ulcer trial: Management of venous ulceration post EVRA, Phlebology, Vol: 36, Pages: 203-208, ISSN: 0268-3555
ObjectivesThis survey study evaluates current management strategies for venous ulceration and the impacts of the EVRA trial results.MethodsAn online survey was disseminated to approximately 15000 clinicians, through 12 vascular societies in 2018. Survey themes included: referral times, treatment times and strategies, knowledge of the EVRA trial and service barriers to managing venous ulceration. Data analysis was performed using Microsoft Excel and SPSS.Results664 responses were received from 78 countries. Respondents were predominantly European (55%) and North American (23%) vascular surgeons (74%). Responses varied between different countries. The median vascular clinic referral time was 6 weeks and time to be seen in clinic was 2 weeks. This was significantly higher in the UK (p ≤ 0.02). 77% of respondents performed surgical/endovenous interventions prior to ulcer healing, the median time to intervention was 4 weeks. 31% of participants changed their practice following EVRA. Frequently encountered barriers to implementing change were a lack of operating space/time (18%).ConclusionVenous ulcers are not managed as quickly as they should be. An evaluation of local resource requirements should be performed to improve service provision for venous ulceration. When interpreting the results of this survey consideration should be given to the response rate.
Groin wound Infection after Vascular Exposure Study Group, Shalhoub J, 2021, Groin wound infection after vascular exposure (GIVE) multicentre cohort study, International Wound Journal, Vol: 18, Pages: 164-175, ISSN: 1742-4801
Background: Surgical site infections (SSIs) of groin wounds are a common and potentially preventable cause of morbidity, mortality and healthcare costs in vascular surgery. Our aim was to define the contemporaneous rate of groin SSIs, determine clinical sequelae, and identify risk factors for SSI.Method:An international multicentre prospective observational cohort study of consecutive patients undergoing groin incision for femoral vessel access in vascular surgery was undertaken over 3 months, follow up was 90 days. The primary outcome was incidence of groin wound SSI.Results:1337 groin incisions (1039 patients) from 37 centres were included. 115 groin incisions (8.6%) developed SSI, of which 62 (4.6%) were superficial. Patients who developed an SSI had a significantly longer length of hospital stay (6 vs 5 days, p=0.005), a significantly higher rate of post-operative acute kidney injury (19.6% vs 11.7%, p=0.018), with no significant difference in 90-day mortality. Female sex, Body Mass Index≥30kg/m2, ischaemic heart disease, aqueous betadine skin preparation, bypass/patch use (vein, xenograft or prosthetic) and increased operative time were independent predictors of SSI. Conclusion:Groin infections which are clinically apparent to the treating vascular unit are frequent and their development carries significant clinical sequelae. Risk factors include modifiable and non-modifiable variables.
Benson R, Nandhra S, Shalhoub J, 2021, Outcomes of vascular and endovascular interventions performed during the COronaVIrus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic: The Vascular and Endovascular Research Network (VERN) COvid-19 Vascular sERvice (COVER) Tier 2 study, Annals of Surgery, Vol: 273, Pages: 630-635, ISSN: 0003-4932
Objective: The aim of the COVER Study is to identify global outcomes and decision making for vascular procedures during the pandemic.Background data: During its initial peak, there were many reports of delays to vital surgery and the release of several guidelines advising later thresholds for vascular surgical intervention for key conditions.Methods: An international multi-centre observational study of outcomes following open and endovascular interventions.Results: In an analysis of 1,103 vascular intervention (57 centres in 19 countries), 71.6% were elective or scheduled procedures. Mean age was 67 ± 14 years (75.6% male). Suspected or confirmed COVID-19 infection was documented in 4.0%. Overall, in-hospital mortality was 11.0%. (aortic interventions mortality 15.2% [23/151], amputations 12.1% [28/232], carotid interventions 10.7% [11/103], lower limb revascularisations 9.8% [51/521]). Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (Odds ratio [OR] 2.02, 95% CI 1.30-3.15) and active lower respiratory tract infection due to any cause (OR 24.94, 95% CI 12.57-241.70) ware associated with mortality, whereas elective or scheduled cases were lower risk (OR 0.4, 95% CI 0.22-0.73 and 0.60, 95% CI 0.45-0.98 respectively. After adjustment, antiplatelet (Odds Ratio [OR] 0.503, 95% Confidence Interval [CI]:0.273 - 0.928) and oral anticoagulation (OR 0.411, 95% CI: 0.205 - 0.824) were linked to reduced risk of in-hospital mortality.Conclusions: Mortality following vascular interventions during this period was unexpectedly high. Suspected or confirmed COVID-19 cases were uncommon. Therefore an alternative cause e.g. recommendations for delayed surgery, should be considered. The vascular community must anticipate longer term implications for survival.Copyright © 2020 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.
Gwilym B, Dovell G, Dattani N, et al., 2021, Systematic review and meta-analysis of wound adjuncts for the prevention of groin wound surgical site infection in arterial surgery, European Journal of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery, Vol: 61, Pages: 636-646, ISSN: 1078-5884
Review methodsThis review was undertaken according to established international reporting guidelines and was registered prospectively with the International prospective register of systematic reviews (CRD42020185170). The MEDLINE, EMBASE, and CENTRAL databases were searched using pre-defined search terms without date restriction. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and observational studies recruiting patients with non-infected groin incisions for arterial exposure were included; SSI rates and other outcomes were captured. Interventions reported in two or more studies were subjected to meta-analysis.ResultsThe search identified 1 532 articles. Seventeen RCTs and seven observational studies, reporting on 3 747 patients undergoing 4 130 groin incisions were included. A total of seven interventions and nine outcomes were reported upon. Prophylactic closed incision negative pressure wound therapy (ciNPWT) reduced groin SSIs compared with standard dressings (odds ratio [OR] 0.34, 95% CI 0.23 – 0.51; p < .001, GRADE strength of evidence: moderate). Local antibiotics did not reduce groin SSIs (OR 0.60 95% CI 0.30 – 1.21 p = .15, GRADE strength: low). Subcuticular sutures (vs. transdermal sutures or clips) reduced groin SSI rates (OR 0.33, 95% CI 0.17 – 0.65, p = .001, GRADE strength: low). Wound drains, platelet rich plasma, fibrin glue, and silver alginate dressings did not show any significant effect on SSI rates.ConclusionThere is evidence that ciNPWT and subcuticular sutures reduce groin SSI in patients undergoing arterial vascular interventions involving a groin incision. Local antibiotics did not reduce groin wound SSI, although the strength of this evidence is lower. No other interventions demonstrated a significant effect.
Machin M, Salim S, Tan M, et al., 2021, Surgical and non-surgical approaches in the management of lower limb post-thrombotic syndrome, Expert Review of Cardiovascular Therapy, Vol: 19, Pages: 191-200, ISSN: 1477-9072
Introduction: Post-thrombotic syndrome (PTS) is a common lifelong condition affecting up to 50% of those suffering from deep vein thrombosis (DVT). PTS compromises function and quality of life with subsequent venous ulceration in up to 29% of those affected.Areas covered: A literature review of surgical and non-surgical approaches in the prevention and treatment of PTS was undertaken. Notable areas include the use of percutaneous endovenous interventions and the use of graduated compression stockings (GCS) after acute proximal DVT.Expert opinion: In patients with acute iliofemoral DVT, we think it is important to have a frank conversation with the patient about catheter-directed thrombolysis, aiming to reduce the severity of PTS experienced. We advocate ultrasound-accelerated thrombolysis with adjunctive procedures, such as deep venous stenting for proximal iliofemoral DVT. For patients with isolated femoral DVT, we believe that anticoagulation and GCS should be recommended. In patients with established PTS, we recommend GCS for symptomatic relief. We recommend that patients engage in regular exercise where possible with the prospect of gaining symptomatic relief. For those with severe PTS that has a significant effect on quality of life, we discuss the patient’s case at a multi-disciplinary team meeting to plan for endovenous intervention.
Richards T, Anwar M, Beshr M, et al., 2021, Systematic review of ambulatory selective variceal ablation under local anesthetic technique for the treatment of symptomatic varicose veins, JOURNAL OF VASCULAR SURGERY-VENOUS AND LYMPHATIC DISORDERS, Vol: 9, Pages: 525-535, ISSN: 2213-333X
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Tan MKH, Salim S, Onida S, et al., 2021, Postsclerotherapy compression: A systematic review, JOURNAL OF VASCULAR SURGERY-VENOUS AND LYMPHATIC DISORDERS, Vol: 9, Pages: 264-274, ISSN: 2213-333X
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Heatley F, Saghdaoui LB, Salim S, et al., 2020, Primary care survey of venous leg ulceration management and referral pre-EVRA trial., Br J Community Nurs, Vol: 25, Pages: S6-S10, ISSN: 1462-4753
Venous leg ulceration (VLU) is a public health concern that is largely managed in community settings. The present study aimed to survey current VLU management in the community. A 14-question survey was distributed to primary care professionals, and 90 responses were received. Some 54% of respondents stated that they would assess ankle brachial pressure indices (ABPI) for those with VLU, while 25% reported that they would not. Additionally, 62% reported not organising duplex ultrasound scanning. Compression therapy was offered by 82% of respondents. When asked whether VLU patients were referred to specialist services in secondary or tertiary care, some 32% reported that they would. However, 57% reported that, if a study suggested that referral to specialist services was beneficial, they would change their practice. On the basis of the findings, the authors concluded that there is diversity in VLU diagnostic and treatment pathways. New, high-quality evidence may improve practice, but care delivery is influenced by local factors including time and resource distribution.
Benson R, Nandra S, on behalf of the Vascular and Endovascular Research Network, et al., 2020, Study protocol for COvid-19 Vascular sERvice (COVER) study: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the provision, practice and outcomes of vascular surgery, PLoS One, ISSN: 1932-6203
BackgroundThe novel Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is having a profound impact on global healthcare. Shortages in staff, operating theatre space and intensive care beds has led to a significant reduction in the provision of surgical care. Even vascular surgery, often insulated from resource scarcity due to its status as an urgent specialty, has limited capacity due to the pandemic. Furthermore, many vascular surgical patients are elderly with multiple comorbidities putting them at increased risk of COVID-19 and its complications. There is an urgent need to investigate the impact on patients presenting to vascular surgeons during the COVID-19 pandemic.Methods and AnalysisThe COvid-19 Vascular sERvice (COVER) study has been designed to investigate the worldwide impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on vascular surgery, at both service provision and individual patient level. COVER is running as a collaborative study through the Vascular and Endovascular Research Network (VERN), an independent, international vascular research collaborative with the support of numerous national and international organisations). The study has 3 ‘Tiers’: Tier 1 is a survey of vascular surgeons to capture longitudinal changes to the provision of vascular services within their hospital; Tier 2 captures data on vascular and endovascular procedures performed during the pandemic; and Tier 3 will capture any deviations to patient management strategies from pre-pandemic best practice. Data submission and collection will be electronic using online survey tools (Tier 1: SurveyMonkey® for service provision data) and encrypted data capture forms (Tiers 2 and 3: REDCap® for patient level data). Tier 1 data will undergo real-time serial analysis to determine longitudinal changes in practice, with country-specific analyses also performed. The analysis of Tier 2 and Tier 3 data will occur on completion of the study as per the pre-specified statistical analysis plan.
Tan K, Salim S, Beshr M, et al., 2020, A methodological assessment of lymphoedema clinical practice guidelines, Journal of vascular surgery. Venous and lymphatic disorders, Vol: 8, Pages: 1111-1118.e3, ISSN: 2213-3348
ObjectivesTo determine the methodological quality of current lymphoedema clinical practice guidelines (CPGs) to assist healthcare professionals in selecting accessible, high-quality guidance and to identify areas for improvement in future CPGs.MethodsMedline, EMBASE, online CPG databases and reference lists of included guidelines were searched up to 31st January 2020. Full-text CPGs reporting on evidence-based recommendations in lymphoedema diagnosis and/or management in English were included. CPGs based on expert consensus, CPG summaries or CPGs that were not freely available were excluded. Two reviewers identified eligible CPGs, extracted data and assessed their quality independently using the Appraisal of Guidelines for Research and Evaluation II (AGREE II) instrument. Significant scoring discrepancies were discussed with a third reviewer. An overall scaled quality score of ≥80% was the threshold to recommend guideline use.ResultsSix relevant CPGs were identified. One was subsequently excluded as its full-text could not be obtained. Overall, there was very good inter-reviewer reliability of scores with ICC of 0.952 (95% CI, 0.921-0.974). No single CPG scored highest in all domains, with methodological heterogeneity observed. Poor performance was noted in domains 5 (mean scaled score 23.8±17.1%) and 6 (22.9±26.7%). No CPG achieved an overall scaled quality score of ≥80%, with the top CPG scoring 79.2%.ConclusionsAccording to the defined threshold, no lymphoedema CPG was considered adequate for use in clinical practice. All current lymphoedema CPGs have areas for improvement with elements of methodological quality lacking, particularly with respect to rigour of development. A structured approach, guided by the use of CPG creation tools and checklists such as the AGREE II instrument, should help CPG development groups in improving the quality of future CPGs; this is of particular importance in a complex, multidisciplinary condition such as lympho
Staniszewska A, Onida S, Lane T, et al., 2020, The good, bad and the ugly of the acute venous thrombosis: thrombus removal with adjunctive catheter-directed thrombolysis trial from the viewpoint of clinicians, Journal of vascular surgery. Venous and lymphatic disorders, Vol: 8, Pages: 912-918, ISSN: 2213-3348
OBJECTIVE: Acute deep venous thrombosis (DVT) can be complicated by post-thrombotic syndrome, which is associated with significant morbidity and healthcare costs. The Acute Venous Thrombosis: Thrombus Removal with Adjunctive Catheter-Directed Thrombolysis (ATTRACT) was the largest and most controversial randomized controlled trial evaluating the use of pharmacomechanical catheter-directed thrombolysis (CDT) for the prevention of post-thrombotic syndrome after acute DVT. This study aimed to evaluate clinicians' opinion on the ATTRACT trial and its impact on clinical practice. METHODS: An online survey consisting of 10 core multiple choice items and a maximum of five follow-up open-ended questions was delivered to vascular surgeons, interventional radiologists, hematologists, and interventional cardiologists affiliated with 10 international societies between April 23 and July 1, 2019. Clinicians' views on the main limitations of the ATTRACT trial, its impact on patient selection for thrombolysis and the need for a new trial were evaluated. RESULTS: Out of 15,650 contacted clinicians, 451 (3%) completed the survey, with 74% vascular surgeons, 24% interventional radiologists, 2% hematologists, and 0.2% interventional cardiologists. The majority of respondents (79%) were aware of the results of the ATTRACT trial before completing the survey and routinely performed pharmacomechanical CDT (PCDT) in their centers (70%). Only 20% of clinicians considered ATTRACT to be a well-designed and well-performed trial. The inclusion of femoropopliteal DVT was reported as the main limitation of the trial by 55% of respondents. Despite half of the participating clinicians reporting no change in their clinical practice, equal number of clinicians (14%) were encouraged and discouraged from treating iliofemoral DVT. More than one-half of the respondents thought that the use of PCDT would be defensible in a court of law despite the increased risk of bleeding reported in the study. Nearly tw
Ding A, Machin M, Onida S, et al., 2020, A systematic review of fasciotomy in chronic exertional compartment syndrome, Journal of Vascular Surgery, Vol: 72, Pages: 1802-1812, ISSN: 0741-5214
BackgroundChronic exertional compartment syndrome (CECS) is an overuse injury typically seen in young and athletic patients. The five cardinal symptoms are pain, tightness, cramping, weakness and paraesthesia. These classically occur during exertion and disappear with cessation of the activity, with no permanent damage to tissues within the compartment; nonetheless, CECS presents a significant functional impairment to those affected. Regulating exercise has been shown to alleviate symptoms but this may not be acceptable to some patients e.g. professional athletes. For patients that fail to respond to conservative management or where exercise reduction is unrealistic, fasciotomy can be considered. There are no established guidelines on the management of CECS, and it remains underdiagnosed. The aim of this systematic review is to compare the outcomes in patients suffering from CECS managed with either fasciotomy or non-operative means by examining functional outcomes and resolution of symptoms.MethodsMEDLINE, Embase databases and clinical trial registries were searched comprehensively. 219 articles were identified and 14 articles were included in the systematic review. Given the heterogeneity between the studies in terms of outcomes reported, a qualitative synthesis was performed.ResultsThe majority of included studies were retrospective cohort studies, with a single prospective cohort study. Studies included fasciotomies performed in the upper and lower limbs. Patient population included military servicemen, motocross racers and unselected patients. There is insufficient evidence in the literature to support conservative or surgical management over the other in the management of CECS. However, fasciotomy appears to be a safe approach with satisfaction rates of 48-94%. Complications related to the fasciotomy included haematomas (2.7- 22.5%), nerve injuries (2.0 -18.6%), DVT (2.7%) and symptom recurrence (0.65- 8.4%). Up to 10.4% patients required revision fasciotomy.C
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