Catheter-Directed Thrombolysis in the Management of Thrombotic Peripheral Artery Occlusions—Acute and Mid-Term Clinical Outcomes

Objectives: To evaluate the safety and efficacy of catheter-directed thrombolysis (CDT) with the recombinant tissue plasminogen activator (rt-PA) in all patients with symptomatic peripheral artery disease in real world practice. Methods: Consecutive patients treated with CDT between January 2013 and December 2020 were included in this retrospective analysis. The primary endpoint was the rate of serious adverse events (SAEs) until discharge. Secondary endpoints included interventional success, predictors for SAEs, bleeding and reperfusion edema/compartment syndrome, limb salvage, and clinical outcomes including target lesion revascularization rate (TLR). Results: Overall, 1238 patients were treated with CDT. SAEs occurred in 511 (41.3%) of the patients, 314 (25.4%) being bleeding complications. There were 95 cases of reperfusion edema/compartment syndrome. Forty-two patients underwent amputation and 33 patients (2.7%) died. CDT was successful in 1177 cases (95.1%). Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified age, abciximab and alprostadil usage, and lysis duration as predictors for SAEs and the use of abciximab as a predictor of reperfusion edema/compartment syndrome. Predictors for bleeding were age, alprostadil usage, and lysis duration. At 12 and 24 months, the limb salvage rate was 91.6% and 88.8%, and TLR rate was 46% and 57.2%, respectively. Conclusions: CDT is an effective endovascular method for the treatment of thrombotic peripheral artery occlusions but is associated with a high complication rate. For SAEs in general and bleeding specifically, increasing age, alprostadil use, and lysis duration were independent risk factors.