COMPARISON OF THE TELESCOPING ANASTOMOTIC TECHNIQUE WITH THE END-TO-END TECHNIQUE UTILIZING VEIN GRAFTS FOR VENOUS DEFECTS - SHORT-TERM ANDLONG-TERM RESULTS

The telescoping anastomotic technique was used for both anastomoses of vein grafts placed in the rat left epigastric vein in an effort to ma ke the anastomosis easier and faster. Vein grafting in the right epiga stric vein was completed using the conventional technique. The 20 rats with 20 left and 13 right vein grafts, which were patent at 3 weeks, were seen again 3 months postoperatively to compare the two techniques with regard to long-term stenosis and histological changes, Patency o f the grafts 2 hr postoperatively was also compared between the two te chniques in another 25 rats to eliminate the influence of recanalizati on on patency. Ali the vein grafts, which had been patent 3 weeks post operatively, remained patent after 3 months and no statistically signi ficant difference was found between the telescoping and conventional t echnique in the degree of stenosis, The vein grafts 2 hr postoperative ly were all patent in both groups. (C) 1995 Wiley-Liss, Inc.