Early Versus Delayed Thoracic Endovascular Aortic Repair for Blunt Thoracic Aortic Injury: A Propensity Score-Matched Analysis

Anne Sophie C. Romijn*, Vinamr Rastogi, Jefferson A. Proaño-Zamudio, Dias Argandykov, Christina L. Marcaccio, Georgios F. Giannakopoulos, Haytham M.A. Kaafarani, Vincent Jongkind, Frank W. Bloemers, Hence J.M. Verhagen, Marc L. Schermerhorn, Noelle N. Saillant

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

10 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: 

We examined early (≤24 h) versus delayed (>24 h) thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) for blunt thoracic aortic injury (BTAI), taking the aortic injury severity into consideration. BACKGROUND: Current trauma surgery guidelines recommend delayed TEVAR following BTAI. However, this recommendation was based on small studies, and specifics regarding recommendation strategies based on aortic injury grades are lacking. 

METHODS: 

Patients undergoing TEVAR for BTAI in the American College of Surgeons Trauma Quality Improvement Program between 2016 and 2019 were included and then stratified into 2 groups (early: ≤24 h vs. delayed: >24 h). In-hospital outcomes were compared after creating 1:1 propensity score-matched cohorts, matching for demographics, comorbidities, concomitant injuries, additional procedures, and aortic injury severity based on the acute aortic syndrome (AAS) classification. 

RESULTS: 

Overall, 1339 patients were included, of whom 1054(79%) underwent early TEVAR. Compared with the delayed group, the early group had significantly less severe head injuries (early vs delayed; 25% vs 32%; P =0.014), fewer early interventions for AAS grade 1 occurred, and AAS grade 3 aortic injuries often were intervened upon within 24 hours (grade 1: 28% vs 47%; grade 3: 49% vs 23%; P <0.001). After matching, the final sample included 548 matched patients. Compared with the delayed group, the early group had a significantly higher in-hospital mortality (8.8% vs 4.4%, relative risk: 2.2, 95% CI: 1.1-4.4; P =0.028), alongside a shorter length of hospital stay (5.0 vs 10 days; P =0.028), a shorter intensive care unit length of stay (4.0 vs 11 days; P <0.001) and fewer days on the ventilator (4.0 vs 6.5 days; P =0.036). Furthermore, regardless of the higher risk of acute kidney injury in the delayed group (3.3% vs 7.7%, relative risk: 0.43, 95% CI: 0.20-0.92; P =0.029), no other differences in in-hospital complications were observed between the early and delayed group. 

CONCLUSION: 

In this propensity score-matched analysis, delayed TEVAR was associated with lower mortality risk, even after adjusting for aortic injury grade.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)e848-e854
JournalAnnals of Surgery
Volume278
Issue number4
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Oct 2023

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
C.M. is supported by grant number F32HS027285 from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2023 Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. All rights reserved.

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