Analysis of factors for post–percutaneous transluminal angioplasty primary patency rate in hemodialysis vascular access

Background: Although percutaneous transluminal angioplasty has been established as a first-line therapy for access failure in dialysis, there are few reports on primary patency after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty. We investigated factors associated with primary patency following the first percutaneous transluminal angioplasty performed after vascular access construction in patients with arteriovenous fistula, including blood flow volume before and after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty and previously reported factors. Methods: We used medical records at six dialysis centers to retrospectively identify and analyze prognostic factors for primary patency after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty in 159 patients with arteriovenous fistula who underwent initial percutaneous transluminal angioplasty after vascular access construction. Results: Multivariate analysis with the Cox proportional hazard model showed that primary patency after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty in patients with arteriovenous fistula was significantly associated with lesion length (hazard ratio, 1.76; 95% confidence interval, 1.01–3.07; P = 0.045), and blood flow volume after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (hazard ratio, 0.71; 95% confidence interval, 0.60–0.84; P < 0.001). When blood flow volume after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty was classified into three categories, risks of outcome events defining the end of primary patency after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty were significantly lower for 400–630 mL/min (hazard ratio, 0.38; 95% confidence interval, 0.21–0.68; P = 0.001) and >630 mL/min (hazard ratio, 0.16; 95% confidence interval, 0.06–0.40; P < 0.001) compared with <400 mL/min. Conclusion: Our study showed that blood flow volume after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty is an important prognostic factor for primary patency after percutaneous transluminal angioplasty in patients with arteriovenous fistula.