Complex abdominal aortic aneurysms: a review of radiological and clinical assessment, endovascular interventions, and current evidence of management outcomes

Abstract

Endovascular aortic aneurysm repair is an established approach to treat abdominal aortic aneurysms, however, challenges arise when the aneurysm involves visceral branches with insufficient normal segment of the aorta to provide aneurysm seal without excluding those vessels. To overcome this, a range of technological developments and solutions have been proposed including fenestrated, branched, physician-modified stents, and chimney techniques. Understanding the current available evidence for each option is essential to select the most suitable procedure for each patient. Overall, the evidence for fenestrated endovascular repair is the most comprehensive of these techniques and shows an early post-operative advantage over open surgical repair but with a catch-up mortality in the mid-term period. In this review, we will describe these endovascular options, pre- and post-procedure radiological assessment and current evidence of outcomes.