Abstract
Distal arm and hand ischemia from vessel thrombosis or embolism remains a difficult clinical challenge. The causes of ischemia are variable and include connective tissue disease, embolism, atherosclerosis, and iatrogenic etiology. Although reports are limited, treatment with catheter-directed thrombolysis has favorable results in cases of acute thrombosis, with most patients (80%) demonstrating improvement. Digital amputation rates are less than 10% and the hand is often salvaged. Bleeding and access-site complications remain prevalent in patients undergoing intra-arterial thrombolysis. This review discusses etiology, treatment approaches, outcomes, and complications when thrombolytic therapy is used for distal arm and hand ischemia.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 13-21 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Hand Clinics |
Volume | 31 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Feb 1 2015 |
Keywords
- Arterial occlusion
- Catheter
- Hand ischemia
- Thrombolysis
- Thrombolytics
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Surgery
- Orthopedics and Sports Medicine