Costs and outcomes of endovascular treatment of thrombosed dialysis autogenous fistulae.

Functional vascular access is a prerequisite for adequate haemodialysis treatment in patients with end-stage renal disease. Autogenous arteriovenous fistulae are considered superior to synthetic grafts and central venous catheters; however, fistulae are not without problems. Fistulae thrombosis has become a clinical challenge in nephrology practice, with relevant clinical implications for dialysis patients. Several studies have reported on the feasibility and relatively high-clinical success rate of the endovascular approach to thrombosed fistulae in recent years. However, as repeated interventions are usually required to achieve long-term access survival, maintenance of a previously thrombosed fistulae could be a highly expensive policy. The goals of this article are to provide the reader an insight into the multiple endovascular approaches for thrombosed arteriovenous fistulae, bearing in mind its clinical effectiveness and financial implications.