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Peripheral artery bypass - leg - Risks

Alternative Names

Aortobifemoral bypass; Femoropopliteal; Femoral popliteal; Aorta-bifemoral bypass; Axillo-bifemoral bypass; Ilio-bifemoral bypass; Femoral-femoral bypass; Distal leg bypass

Risks:

Risks for any anesthesia are:

Risks for any surgery are:

  • Blood clots in the legs that may travel to the lungs
  • Breathing problems
  • Heart attack or stroke
  • Infection, including in the lungs, urinary tract, and belly

Risks for this surgery are:

  • Bypass does not work
  • Damage to a nerve that causes pain or numbness in your leg
  • Damage to nearby organs in the body
  • Damage to the bowel during aortic surgery
  • Excess bleeding
  • Infection in the surgical cut
  • Injury to nearby nerves
  • Sexual problems caused by damage to a nerve during aortofemoral or aortoiliac bypass surgery
  • Surgical cut opens up
  • You need to have a second bypass surgery or a leg amputation
  • Reviewed last on: 1/25/2011
  • Shabir Bhimji, MD, PhD, Specializing in General Surgery, Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery, Midland, TX. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network. Also reviewed by David Zieve, MD, MHA, Medical Director, A.D.A.M., Inc.

References

Creager MA and Libby P. Peripheral arterial disease. In: Libby P, Bonow RO, Mann DL, Zipes DP, eds. Libby: Braunwald's Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine. 8th ed. Saunders; 2007:chap 57.

Eisenhauer AC, White CJ. Endovascular treatment of noncoronary obstructive vascular disease. In: Libby P, Bonow RO, Mann DL, Zipes DP, eds. Braunwald's Heart Disease: A Textbook of Cardiovascular Medicine. 8th ed. Philadelphia, Pa: Saunders Elsevier; 2007:chap 59.

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