Current study situation on shunt surgery

A well-functioning vascular access is a prerequisite for life-sustaining dialysis treatment in patients with chronic renal failure. Complications of a vascular access belong to the major causes of the high morbidity and mortality in dialysis-dependent patients. The outcome of the dialysis access and patient's quality of life is dependent on the timing of access creation, selection of the appropriate vascular region, type of access and the follow-up. Autologous arteriovenous (a.v.) fistulae are considered to be the first choice dialysis access. Compared to an alloplastic access (prosthetic grafts, dialysis catheters) a.v. fistulae offer the highest patency and lowest complication rates. Autologous arteriovenous grafts remain the second choice for dialysis access mainly due to high occlusion rates. Particularly pharmacological and new technical approaches have recently provided further progress in prevention of anastomotic stenoses caused by neo-intimal hyperplasia. Access complications are increasingly being managed by interventional therapy. New thrombectomy devices have improved results of interventional revascularization of occluded a.v. accesses but up to now have not replaced surgical techniques. Stenotic lesions of dialysis accesses are predominantly treated by interventional methods. Apart from the sole use of balloon angioplasty, different recommendations for additional interventions have emerged depending on shunt localization and type of stenosis. Shunt-induced steal syndromes require differentiated therapy which considers factors such as access flow and localization as well as vascular status and patient co-morbidities.