BackgroundThe indications for conservative “best medical treatment” (BMT) versus additional renal artery stenting are a matter of ongoing debate. The RADAR study aimed to evaluate the impact of percutaneous renal artery stenting on the impaired renal function in patients with hemodynamically significant atherosclerotic renal artery stenosis (RAS).MethodsRADAR is an international, prospective, randomized (1:1) controlled study comparing BMT alone versus BMT plus renal artery stenting in patients with duplex sonographic hemodynamically relevant RAS. Follow-up assessments were at 2, 6, and 12 months and at 3 years. The primary endpoint was change in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) at 12 months.ResultsDue to slow enrollment, RADAR was terminated early after inclusion of 86 of the scheduled 300 patients (28.7%). Change in eGFR between baseline and 12 months was 4.3 ± 15.4 ml/min/1.73 m2 (stent group) and 3.0 ± 14.9 ml/min/1.73 m2 (BMT group), p > 0.999. Clinical event rates were low with a 12-month composite of cardiac death, stroke, myocardial infarction, and hospitalization for congestive heart failure of 2.9% in the stent and 5.3% in the BMT group, p = 0.526, and a 3-year composite of 14.8% and 12.0%, p = 0.982. At 3 years, target vessel (re-)vascularization occurred in one patient (3.0%) in the stent group and in 8 patients (29.4%) in the BMT group.ConclusionIn RADAR, outcomes of renal artery stenting were similar to BMT. These results have to be interpreted with the caveat that the study did not reach its statistically based sample size.Trial registrationClinicaltrials.gov, NCT00640406. Registered on 17 March 2008.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s13063-017-2126-x) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Below the knee (BTK) vascular pattern differs in patients with either DM or CKD alone. Severe CKD is a risk factor for loss of patency of the pedal-plantar arch.

Antiplatelet and anticoagulation therapy after venous stenting is still not standardized, data from randomized-controlled trials are missing. Rare prothrombotic disorders and nonresponsiveness to drugs must be taken into account. This case report demonstrates successful haemostaselogical complication management in recurrent rethromboses due to underlying clopidogrel resistance and low responsiveness to anticoagulation with dabigatran after endovascular stent reconstruction of chronic pelvic and caval vein occlusion in a patient with severe postthrombotic syndrome.

ObjectiveTo facilitate precise local ablation of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in a setting of combined ablation and transarterial chemoembolization (TACE), we evaluated accuracy and efficiency of a novel technique for navigated positioning of ablation probes using intrahepatic tumor referencing and electromagnetic (EM) guidance, in a porcine model.MethodsAn angiographic wire with integrated EM reference sensor at its tip was inserted via a transarterial femoral access and positioned in the vicinity of artificial liver tumors. The resulting offset distance between the tumor center and the intrahepatic endovascular EM reference was calculated. Subsequently, EM tracked ablation probes were inserted percutaneously and navigated toward the tumor center, relying on continuous EM guidance via the intrahepatic reference. Targeting accuracy was assessed as the Euclidean distance between the tip of the ablation probe and the tumor center (Target Positioning Error, TPE). Procedural efficiency was assessed as time efforts for tumor referencing and tumor targeting.ResultsIn 6 animals, 124 targeting measurements were performed with an offset distance < 30 mm (clinically most feasible position), resulting in a mean TPE of 2.9 ± 1.6 mm. No significant correlation between the TPE and different intrahepatic offset distances (range 21 to 61 mm, n = 365) was shown as long as the EM reference was placed within the liver. However, the mean TPE increased when placing the EM reference externally on the animal skin (p < 0.01). TPE was similar when targeting under continuous ventilation or in apnea (p = 0.50). Mean time for tumor referencing and navigated targeting was 6.5 ± 3.8 minutes and 14 ± 8 seconds, respectively.ConclusionThe proposed technique allows precise and efficient navigated positioning of ablation probes into liver tumors in the animal model. We introduce a simple approach suitable for combined ablation and TACE of HCC in a single treatment session.