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Arterial tortuosity syndrome is a rare autosomal recessive connective tissue disease characterized by elongation, tortuosity, and aneurysmal formation of the large and middle-sized arteries sometimes associated with stenosis of the pulmonary arteries and/or aorta. We present three cases of severe arterial tortuosity with different manifestations. In two cases, the aortic arch was involved. Angiography showed a very tortuous aortic arch, with many loops and twists and a normal descending aorta. One required operation. The third case presented multiple severe stenoses of both pulmonary arteries with many tortuous segments. Surgical repair consisted of pulmonary artery augmentation utilizing a bovine pericardial patch from hilum to hilum.

Objectives: We sought to perform transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) via the transfemoral approach in patients with peripheral arterial disease (PAD), small caliber ileofemoral vessels and vascular tortuosity., Background: For patients with increased surgical risk, TAVR is associated with a higher 1-year survival rate than surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR). Transfemoral vascular access for TAVR results in superior outcomes versus procedures performed via other routes in terms of mortality, morbidity and healthcare economics. In many patients, the ability to safely perform the procedure via the transfemoral approach is limited by narrow, diseased and tortuous ileofemoral vasculature., Methods: We employed the SoloPath Balloon Expandable TransFemoral Access System (Terumo Med. Corp., Tokyo, Japan) to perform transfemoral TAVR in five patients with PAD, small caliber ileofemoral vessels and vascular tortuosity., Results: We report our experience using this balloon-expandable sheath during 5 cases of transfemoral TAVR in patients with inhospitable ileofemoral vasculature of mean diameter ⩽ 5.8 mm. The unexpanded sheath's malleable structure and hydrophilic coating permitted deployment despite severe stenoses and tortuosity. Subsequent inflation to 18 Fr facilitated successful TAVR. Postprocedural angiography demonstrated no significant vascular access complications. In one case, the entire procedure was performed percutaneously, without common femoral artery surgical cutdown., Conclusions: The SoloPath sheath system permits transfemoral TAVR in patients with PAD small caliber ileofemoral vessels and vascular tortuosity. The transfemoral balloon-expandable sheath allowed these patients to avoid the increased morbidity and mortality risks associated with direct aortic or transapical access., (© The Author(s), 2015.)