Multicenter prospective study of nonruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm. Part II. Variables predicting morbidity and mortality.

A previous article (Part I) described the patient population and operative management of 666 patients who had surgery for nonruptured abdominal aortic aneurysms. This article details the perioperative complications and, by chi-square and logistic regression analysis, identifies the variables that are associated with each complication. In summarizing the results (below) the incidence of each complication is listed, along with the predictive risk factors in parentheses that have significance levels less than 0.05. Vascular morbidity data are as follows: intraoperative bleeding, 4.8%; postoperative bleeding requiring transfusion, 2.3% or repeat operation, 1.4% (large volume of blood transfusion and/or use of an autotransfusion device); intraoperative limb ischemia, 3.5%; graft thrombosis, 0.9% (femoropopliteal disease and/or distal anastomosis at the femoral level); distal thromboembolism, 3.3% (male sex, femoral popliteal disease, and/or intraoperative graft thrombosis); amputation, 1.2%; graft infection, 1 case. General morbidity data are as follows: cerebrovascular event, 0.6%; paraplegia, 1 case; cardiac event, 15.1% (age, previous episode of congestive heart failure, and/or electrocardiogram [ECG] evidence of a previous myocardial infarction); myocardial infarction, 5.2% (advancing age, angina, and/or prolonged aortic cross-clamp time); congestive heart failure, 8.9% (previous history of congestive heart failure, ECG evidence of ischemia, and/or chronic obstructive lung disease); arrhythmia requiring treatment, 10.5% (preoperative ventricular premature beats and/or respiratory failure requiring ventilation for more than 48 hours); new arrhythmia, 8.4% (angina and/or chronic obstructive lung disease); respiratory failure, 8.4% (chronic obstructive lung disease, large volume of blood transfused, and/or occurrence of postoperative bleeding, cerebrovascular accident, congestive heart failure, or myocardial infarction); renal damage with rise in creatinine or blood urea nitrogen, 5.4% and/or renal failure requiring dialysis, 0.6% (elevated preoperative creatinine, suprarenal aortic cross-clamping, and/or renal vein ligation); diarrhea without evidence of ischemia colitis, 7.1% and ischemic colitis, 0.6% (pelvic flow interrupted); prolonged ileus, 11.0% (aortoiliac occlusive disease, deterioration of renal function, prolonged ventilation, and/or preoperative history of angina); superficial wound infection, 1.5% and deep infection, 0.5% (femoral anastomosis and/or female sex); coagulopathy, 1.1% (large volume of blood transfused).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)