Preoperative factors affecting long-term mortality in patients survived to ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysm repair.

Background: Aim of this study was to retrospectively evaluate preoperative factors affecting long-term mortality in patients survived to surgical repair for ruptured abdominal aortic aneurysms (rAAAs).

Methods: From January 2007 to December 2021, 444 patients have been treated for symptomatic or ruptured aortoiliac aneurysms in two tertiary referral centers. Only 405 with diagnosis of rAAA at computed tomography were included in the present study. Initial outcome measures were assessed during at 30 and 90 days post-treatment. Estimated 10-year survival of patients survived after 90 days from the index procedure was evaluated with Kaplan-Meier Test. Uni- and multivariate analyses of the preoperative factors affecting 10-year survival in survivor patients was performed by means of log-rank and multivariate Cox regression analysis.

Results: Among included patients, 94 (23.3%) underwent endovascular aortic repair (EVAR) and 311 (76.8%) open surgical repair (OSR). Intraoperative death occurred in 29 patients (7.2%). At 30 days, overall death rate was 24.2% (98/405 cases). Hemorrhagic shock (HR 15.5, 95% CI 3.5 to 41.1, P<0.001) was an independent predictor for 30-day mortality. The overall rate of 90-day mortality was 32.6%. In survivors estimated survival rates at 1, 5, and 10 years were 84.2%, 58.2%, and 33.3%, respectively. Type of treatment (OSR vs. EVAR) did not affect long-term freedom from AAA-related death (HR 0.6, P=0.42). In survivor patients, multivariate analysis confirmed the association between late mortality and female sex (HR 4.7, 95% CI 3.8 to 5.9, P=0.03), age >80 years (HR 28.5, 95% CI 25.1 to 32.3, P<0.001), and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (HR 5.2, 95% CI 4.3 to 6.3, P=0.02).

Conclusions: Late freedom from AAA-related death was not affected by the type of treatment (EVAR vs. OSR) in patients undergoing urgent repair for rAAA. In survivors, female gender, elderly age, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease negatively affected long-term survival.