A retrospective cohort study: Balloon blockage-guided intercostal angiography synchronously displaying intercostal arteries

PURPOSE: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of balloon blockage-guided intercostal angiography (BBIA) for simultaneous observation of intercostal arteries. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Eight patients who underwent BBIA were retrospectively enrolled at a single institution from January 2018 to June 2019. All the procedures were performed during endovascular aneurysm repair. The patients’ demographics, angiographic parameters, and complications were recorded and analyzed. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 69.4 ± 5.0 years and male: female ratio was 7:1. Mean body mass index was 24.1 ± 2.9 kg/m². The number of patients with smoking, hypertension, diabetes, and hyperlipidemia was 4 (50%), 7 (87.5%), 0 (0%) and 2 (25%), respectively. The total procedural duration, balloon-blocking time, and fluoroscopy time were averaged into 24.1 ± 3.0 min, 35.8 ± 5.0 s, and 5.6 ± 0.6 min, respectively. The mean contrast volume was 85.3 ± 11.6 ml and the mean radiation exposure was 417.3 ± 36.6 mGy. The technical success rate was 100%. A mean of 14 ± 2.5 intercostal arteries was finally visualized. No major complication related to intercostal artery angiography was noted; however, two minor complications were observed, one patient developed hematoma at the groin site after the procedure. Another patient presented with low back pain. CONCLUSIONS: BBIA is a safe and effective method for visualizing multiple intercostal arteries simultaneously. The technique may present an alternative for rapidly locating the pathologies at intercostal artery.