Key result
Color-duplex ultrasound compared with computed tomography for post-EVAR surveillance yielded mixed results, requiring further research before it can replace CT as the primary imaging modality.
Why the study?
Does color-duplex ultrasound provide comparable accuracy and safety to computed tomography for post-EVAR surveillance?
Does color-duplex ultrasound provide comparable accuracy and safety to computed tomography for post-EVAR surveillance?
Current evidence is mixed regarding the use of color-duplex ultrasound as a replacement for CT in post-EVAR surveillance, necessitating further long-term research.
Mixed results caution against replacing CT with color-duplex ultrasound for post-EVAR surveillance; leaves open need for prospective validation trials.
In the last decade, endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR) has rapidly developed to be the preferred method for infrarenal abdominal aortic aneurysm repair in patients with suitable anatomy. EVAR offers the advantage of lower perioperative mortality and morbidity but carries the cost of device-related complications such as endoleak, graft migration, graft thrombosis, and structural graft failure. These complications mandate a lifelong surveillance of EVAR patients and their endografts. The purpose of this study is to review and evaluate the safety of color-duplex ultrasound (CDU) as compared with computed tomography (CT), based on the current literature, for post-EVAR surveillance. The post-EVAR follow-up modalities, CDU versus CT, are evaluated questioning three parameters: (1) accuracy of aneurysm size, (2) detection and classification of endoleaks, and (3) detection of stent-graft deformation. Studies comparing CDU with CT scan for investigation of post-EVAR complications have produced mixed results. Further and long-term research is needed to evaluate the efficacy of CDU versus CT, before CDU can be recommended as the primary imaging modality for EVAR surveillance, in place of CT for stable aneurysms.
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Dalainas et al. (2014) conducted a review in Endovascular Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Repair (EVAR). Color-duplex ultrasound (CDU) vs. Computed tomography (CT) was evaluated on Accuracy of aneurysm size, detection and classification of endoleaks, and detection of stent-graft deformation. Color-duplex ultrasound compared with computed tomography for post-EVAR surveillance yielded mixed results, requiring further research before it can replace CT as the primary imaging modality.
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