Effectiveness of iliac vein stenting combined with high ligation/endovenous laser treatment of the great saphenous veins in patients with Clinical, Etiology, Anatomy, Pathophysiology class 4 to 6 chronic venous disease.

Abstract

BACKGROUND\nLower limb chronic venous disease (CVD), resulting from iliac vein compression syndrome (IVCS), manifests as a series of symptoms ranging from varicose veins to venous ulcerations. Stent implantation has been considered an effective treatment method; however, the management of CVD has rarely been reported. In the present study, we evaluated the treatment and outcomes of patients with CVD.\n\n\nMETHODS\nWe performed a retrospective cohort study of patients with severe iliac vein stenosis with lower limb CVD. The patients were divided into two groups: group 1 had received stenting alone (n\xa0= 42), and group 2 had received stenting and high ligation/endovenous laser treatment (n\xa0= 29). We evaluated the clinical outcomes using the Venous Clinical Severity Score and visual analog scale, and assessed the quality of life (QoL) using the Chronic Venous Disease QoL questionnaire at a median follow-up point of 15\xa0months (range, 6-25\xa0months).\n\n\nRESULTS\nIn our cohort, the prevalence rate of nonthrombotic IVCS (NIVCS) was 11.7% (98 of 838 patients). The technical success rate was 100%, without severe complications. During the study period, three group 1 patients and two group 2 patients were lost to follow-up. The overall patency rate in the patients with NIVCS during a mean follow-up period of 15.0\xa0months (range, 6-25\xa0months) was 94.4%. For patients with a Clinical, Etiology, Anatomy, Pathophysiology (CEAP) clinical class of\xa0<4, all parameters showed similar improvements in the two groups, except for the disappearance of varicose veins. However, in patients with a CEAP clinical class of ≥4, the combination therapy significantly improved their QoL. The Venous Clinical Severity Score reduction was 4.64\xa0± 1.72 in group 1 and 11.89\xa0± 1.82 in group 2 (P\xa0< .01). Pain, scored using the visual analog scale, demonstrated a decrease from 4.41 to 2.52 (P\xa0< .05) in group 1 and 4.71 to 0.53 (P\xa0<\xa0.01) in group 2. The relief rate of stasis dermatitis in groups 1 and 2 was 26.9% and 90.5%, respectively (P\xa0< .05), and the venous ulceration healing rate was 16.7% and 87.5%, respectively (P\xa0< .05).\n\n\nCONCLUSIONS\nThe prevalence of NIVCS should not be overlooked. The proposed combination treatment is an effective\xa0therapeutic strategy for patients with NIVCS and advanced CVD (CEAP clinical class, ≥4) during short-term follow-up.