|
|
||||||||
Ann Thorac Surg 2004;77:116-119
© 2004 The Society of Thoracic Surgeons
a Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, England, UK
b Nuffield Department of Surgery, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, England, UK
Accepted for publication July 25, 2003.
* Address reprint requests to Dr Taggart, Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headley Way, Headington, Oxford, England, UK
e-mail: david.taggart{at}orh.nhs.uk
BACKGROUND: The Allen test is commonly used to assess collateral hand circulation before radial artery harvest for coronary artery bypass grafting. However there is no consensus as to whether an abnormal Allen test is an absolute or relative contraindication to radial artery harvesting. We assessed the safety of harvesting the radial artery using arterial duplex ultrasonography in patients with an abnormal Allen test.
METHODS: Two hundred and eighty-seven consecutive patients scheduled for total arterial coronary revascularisation underwent preoperative Allen tests over a 34-month period. Patients with an abnormal Allen test underwent duplex ultrasonography preoperatively to assess the adequacy of the ulnar collateral supply and the suitability of the radial artery for harvesting.
RESULTS: Two hundred and forty-four patients (85%) had a normal left Allen test and proceeded directly to radial artery harvest. Forty-three patients (15%) with an abnormal left Allen test underwent duplex ultrasonography scans and of those, 5 patients had an abnormal scan. These patients underwent scanning of the contralateral forearm. Three patients had a normal right forearm arterial duplex scan and the right radial artery was harvested. The mean diameter of the radial and ulnar arteries was not significantly different between the patients with normal and abnormal duplex ultrasonograms. There were no ischemic hand complications in this series.
CONCLUSIONS: The Allen test is a quick, easy, and reliable screening test before radial artery harvesting in the majority of patients. Duplex ultrasonography predicts safe radial artery harvest in the majority of patients with an abnormal Allen test.
This article has been cited by other articles:
![]() |
M. Brzezinski, T. Luisetti, and M. J. London Radial Artery Cannulation: A Comprehensive Review of Recent Anatomic and Physiologic Investigations Anesth. Analg., December 1, 2009; 109(6): 1763 - 1781. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
M. Brueck, D. Bandorski, W. Kramer, M. Wieczorek, R. Holtgen, and H. Tillmanns A Randomized Comparison of Transradial Versus Transfemoral Approach for Coronary Angiography and Angioplasty J. Am. Coll. Cardiol. Intv., November 1, 2009; 2(11): 1047 - 1054. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
C.-C. Wu, S.-C. Wen, M.-K. Chen, C.-W. Yang, S.-Y. Pu, K.-C. Tsai, C.-J. Chen, and C.-H. Chao Radial artery approach for endovascular salvage of occluded autogenous radial-cephalic fistulae Nephrol. Dial. Transplant., August 1, 2009; 24(8): 2497 - 2502. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
M. Kohonen, O. Teerenhovi, T. Terho, J. Laurikka, and M. Tarkka Non-harvestable radial artery. A bilateral problem? Interactive CardioVascular and Thoracic Surgery, October 1, 2008; 7(5): 797 - 800. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
E. Gongora and T. M. Sundt III Myocardial Revascularization with Cardiopulmonary Bypass Card. Surg. Adult, January 1, 2008; 3(2008): 599 - 632. [Full Text] |
||||
![]() |
S. S. Shah, J. R. Sadaba, T. J.P. Batchelor, P. Coughlin, M. T. Burniston, M. Barnfield, and C. M. Munsch Tissue perfusion in non-donor and donor forearm/hand after radial artery harvest: 1- and 5-year follow-up Interactive CardioVascular and Thoracic Surgery, August 1, 2006; 5(4): 353 - 355. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
K. Tegtmeyer, G. Brady, S. Lai, R. Hodo, and D. Braner Placement of an Arterial Line N. Engl. J. Med., April 13, 2006; 354(15): e13 - e13. [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
K. Cagli, A. Uzun, M. Emir, V. Bakuy, M. Ulas, and E. Sener Correlation of Modified Allen Test with Doppler Ultrasonography Asian Cardiovasc Thorac Ann, April 1, 2006; 14(2): 105 - 108. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
M. Gaudino, M. Serricchio, P. Tondi, L. Gerardino, A. D. Giorgio, P. Pola, and G. Possati Chronic compensatory increase in ulnar flow and accelerated atherosclerosis after radial artery removal for coronary artery bypass J. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg., July 1, 2005; 130(1): 9 - 12. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
Z. Csiki, I. Garai, and Z. Galajda The Allen Test Ann. Thorac. Surg., February 1, 2005; 79(2): 755 - 755. [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
S. Mussa, B. P. Choudhary, and D. P. Taggart Radial artery conduits for coronary artery bypass grafting: Current perspective J. Thorac. Cardiovasc. Surg., February 1, 2005; 129(2): 250 - 253. [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
Y. Abu-Omar, S. Mussa, and D. P. Taggart The Allen Test: Reply Ann. Thorac. Surg., February 1, 2005; 79(2): 755 - 756. [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
| ANN THORAC SURG | ASIAN CARDIOVASC THORAC ANN | EUR J CARDIOTHORAC SURG |
| J THORAC CARDIOVASC SURG | ICVTS | ALL CTSNet JOURNALS |