Preoperative vascular imaging for predicting intraoperative modification of peripheral arterial cannulation during minimally invasive mitral valve surgery.

OBJECTIVE: Minimally invasive mitral valve surgery using peripheral cannulation for cardiopulmonary bypass (CBP) is increasingly prevalent. Although conceptually straightforward, peripheral CBP involves challenges and risks specific to this method of perfusion. The utility of preoperative vascular imaging in predicting these technical challenges and preventing vascular complications was studied.

METHODS: We performed a retrospective analysis of 73 consecutive patients undergoing minimally invasive mitral valve surgery using femorofemoral CBP with intraluminal aortic occlusion balloon catheter. All patients underwent preoperative computed tomography angiogram or magnetic resonance angiography to study the iliofemoral axes.

RESULTS: None of the patients operated with this technique was found to have arterial stenoses. Patients with a femoral artery diameter of less than 7.3 mm needed bilateral or side-graft arterial cannulation significantly more frequently than patients with larger femoral arteries (46.2% vs 9.1%, P = 0.001). There was a trend toward more frequent modification of arterial cannulation strategy in patients with body surface area less than 1.7 m compared with larger patients (body surface area, 1.7-2.0) (26.3% vs 8.3%, P = 0.07). Patients needing high CBP flow rate (>5 L/min) were no more likely to need dual arterial cannulation (18.2% vs 19.1%, P = 0.68). No patient experienced a vascular complication.

CONCLUSIONS: This preliminary study suggests that preoperative vascular imaging and patient evaluation may predict difficulties with femoral cannulation and perfusion, which can lead to better preoperative planning and potentially prevent vascular complications. Further data will be accumulated and analyzed to confirm these findings.