Outcomes of hypogastric artery ligation and transcatheter uterine artery embolization in women with postpartum hemorrhage

Guideline No. 431: Postpartum Hemorrhage and Hemorrhagic Shock

OBJECTIVE

This guideline aims to provide evidence for prevention, recognition, and treatment of postpartum hemorrhage including severe hemorrhage leading to hemorrhagic shock.

TARGET POPULATION

All pregnant patients.

BENEFITS, HARMS, AND COSTS

Appropriate recognition and treatment of postpartum hemorrhage can prevent serious morbidity while reducing costs to the health care system by minimizing more costly interventions and length of hospital stays.

EVIDENCE

Medical literature, PubMed, ClinicalTrials.gov, the Cochrane Database, and grey literature were searched for articles, published between 2012 and 2021, on postpartum hemorrhage, uterotonics, obstetrical hemorrhage, and massive hemorrhage protocols.

VALIDATION METHODS

The authors rated the quality of evidence and strength of recommendations using the Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development and Evaluation (GRADE) approach. See online Appendix A (Tables A1 for definitions and A2 for interpretations of strong and conditional [weak] recommendations).

INTENDED AUDIENCE

All members of the health care team who care for labouring or postpartum women, including, but not restricted to, nurses, midwives, family physicians, obstetricians, and anesthesiologists.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Vaginal haematoma as a postpartum complication: a case report

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Hypogastric Artery Flow Interruption is Associated with Increased Mortality after Open Aortic Repair

OBJECTIVES

Potential complications of pelvic flow disruption during aortic aneurysm repair include buttock ischemia and mesenteric ischemia. Unilateral or bilateral hypogastric artery flow interruption, either from atherosclerosis or intentionally to facilitate aneurysm repair, is considered problematic in endovascular repair; however, it has not been well studied in open abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair (OAR). We sought to examine the effect of interruption of flow to one or both hypogastric arteries on outcomes after OAR.

METHODS

The Society for Vascular Surgery Quality Initiative database was queried for all patients undergoing elective open AAA repair between 2003 and 2020. (redundant) Patients with appropriate data on their hypogastric arteries postoperatively were stratified into two groups - patent bilaterally (normal pelvic perfusion, NPP), and unilateral or bilateral occlusion or ligation (compromised pelvic perfusion, CPP). Primary endpoints were 30-day major morbidity (myocardial infarction, respiratory complications, renal injury, and lower extremity or intestinal ischemia) and mortality.

RESULTS

During the study period, 9.492 patients underwent elective open AAA repair - 860 (9.1%) with compromised pelvic perfusion and 8,632 (90.9%) with patent bilateral hypogastric arteries. The groups had similar cardiac risk factors, including history of coronary artery disease, prior coronary intervention and use of P2Y12 inhibitors and statins. A majority of patients in the CPP cohort had concurrent iliac aneurysms (63.3% versus 24.8%; p<.001). The perioperative mortality was significantly higher in patients with compromised pelvic perfusion (5.5% versus 3.1%; p<.001). Bilateral flow interruption had a trend toward higher perioperative mortality compared to unilateral interruption (7.1% versus 4.7%; p<.147). The CPP group also had increased rates of myocardial injury (6.7% versus 4.7%; p=.012), renal complications (18.9% versus 15.9%; p=.024), leg and bowel ischemia (3.5% versus 2.1%;, p=.008; and 5.7% versus 3.4%; p<.001, respectively). On multivariable analysis, CPP was associated with increased perioperative mortality (OR 1.47, CI 1.14-1.88, p=.003). On Kaplan-Meier analysis, there was no difference in survival at 2 years post discharge, between the NPP and CPP cohorts (86.1% versus 87.5%, logrank-p=0.275).

CONCLUSIONS

Compromised pelvic perfusion is associated with increased perioperative complications and higher mortality in patients undergoing OAR. The sequalae of losing pelvic perfusion in addition to the presence of more complex atherosclerotic and aneurysmal disease resulting in more difficult dissection likely contribute to these findings. Thus, patients considered for OAR who have occluded hypogastric arteries or aneurysmal involvement of the hypogastric artery preoperatively may be candidates for more conservative management beyond traditional size criteria.

Unilateral uterine artery embolization and Bakri tamponade balloon insertion in the treatment of acute puerperal uterine inversion: a case report

Background

Acute puerperal uterine inversion is rare but may cause massive postpartum blood loss due to uterine atony. Therefore, these patients must be diagnosed, and uterine replacement must be performed as soon as possible. However, in some cases, active bleeding due to uterine atony becomes uncontrollable, even though the uterine inversion itself is treated. In these cases, additional treatments, including surgical procedures, are needed.

Case presentation

A 41-year-old Japanese woman, gravida 1, para 0, was hospitalized for labor induction at 40 weeks and 3 days of gestational age. She had a vacuum-assisted delivery after 3 days of oxytocin administration, but acute uterine inversion occurred. Although replacement of the inverted uterus was successful by manual repositioning and Bakri balloon tamponade insertion, massive postpartum hemorrhage caused by uterine atony became uncontrollable. In this situation, since disseminated intravascular coagulation had developed, we used uterine artery embolization to stop the bleeding. After detecting the pseudo-aneurysmal sac and tortuous vessels of the right uterine artery, transcatheter right-sided uterine artery embolization was performed. Thirteen days after uterine artery embolization, she was discharged with no complications.

Conclusions

In cases of disseminated intravascular coagulation caused by massive postpartum bleeding, uterine artery embolization may often be selected. In our case, since we performed angiography to detect the main bleeding site, the hemorrhage could be stopped with unilateral uterine artery embolization alone, without hysterectomy.

Effect of Uterine Artery Ligation and Uterine Artery Embolization on Postpartum Hemorrhage Due to Uterine Asthenia after Cesarean Section and Its Effect on Blood Flow and Function of Uterine and Ovarian Arteries

Objective

To investigate the efficacy of uterine artery ligation (UAL) and uterine artery embolization (UAE) in the treatment of uterine asthenia postpartum hemorrhage (PPH) after cesarean section and its effect on uterine and ovarian artery blood flow and function.

Methods

100 patients with uterine asthenia PPH after cesarean section in our hospital from January 2018 to November 2020 were randomly divided into 50 cases in the UAL group and 50 cases in the UAE group. They were followed up for 12 months. The bleeding volume, operation time, immediate hemostasis rate, and hemostasis effective rate; lochia clearance time and menstrual rehydration time; RI and S/D; and serum FSH, E2, and LH levels were compared between the two groups.

Results

Compared with the UAL group, the amount of bleeding in the UAE group was significantly increased and the operation time was significantly shortened (p < 0.05). There was no significant difference in the immediate hemostatic rate and hemostatic effective rate between the two groups (p > 0.05). There was no significant difference in lochia clearance time and menstrual rehydration time between the two groups (p > 0.05). There was no significant difference in RI and S/D between the two groups (p > 0.05). Compared with before the operation, the levels of FSH and LH in the two groups decreased significantly, and the level of E2 increased significantly (p < 0.05). There was no significant difference between the two groups (p > 0.05).

Conclusion

The efficacy of UAL and UAE in the treatment of PPH with uterine asthenia after cesarean section and its effect on the blood flow and function of uterine and ovarian arteries are equivalent, but the amount of bleeding in UAL is less and the operation time of UAE is shorter. The appropriate operation method can be selected according to the actual situation.

Optimal approach for management of postpartum vulva hematoma: Report of three cases

OBJECTIVE

Vulvar hematomas though common in obstetrical practice can rapidly evolve into a life-threatening condition if not managed appropriately. Depending on clinical status and medical facility, conservative management, surgical debridement, or vessel-occlusion strategy can be considered.

CASE REPORT

Case 1 was a 28 year-old pregnant woman. Increasing hematoma over 12 cm in size was noted on postpartum Day 2. Debridement and arterial embolization were done. Case 2 was a referred woman at age of 30 who delivered at a local obstetric clinic. Debridement was performed successfully. Case 3 was a 23 year-old woman with postpartum bilateral hematoma. Drop in hemoglobin level prompted the medical team to transfer and airlift the patient for arterial embolization and subsequent vulva debridement.

CONCLUSION

Optimal management of hematoma is dependent on maternal hemodynamic condition, bleeding status, and availability of interventional radiology.

Hypogastric artery ligation in postpartum haemorrhage: a ten-year experience at a tertiary care centre

This study investigated patients who underwent bilateral hypogastric artery ligation (BHAL) due to postpartum haemorrhage (PPH). Patients who underwent BHAL because of PPH following a conservative treatment were included in this study. Placental abnormalities were referred to as placenta accreta. A total of 130 BHAL procedures took place at the study hospital as a result of PPH. Of these, 39 (30%) were referred to the hospital. The rate of BHAL requirement was 62 out of 10,000 births. Among the 130 patients, the most frequent indication for BHAL was placenta accreta (58.5%). Haematological parameters were poorer among the referral patients. Four of the exitus patients (80%) were referral patients. The mortality rate among the referral patients was 10.25%, whereas this rate was only 1.01% among the patients who gave birth at the hospital. PPH is a life-threatening condition that requires immediate medical attention. BHAL, with its fertility-preserving features, is a good option that can be employed in all PPH patients. BHAL not only preserves patients' fertility, but it also gives them a higher chance of survival.IMPACT STATEMENTWhat is already known on this subject? PPH is a life-threatening condition. Due to the worldwide increase in caesarean sections, placenta accreta has also increased. BHAL is a vital treatment method for PPH.What do the results of this study add? Placenta accreta is one of the most common causes of PPH. Traditional hysterectomy rates can be reduced by replacing this treatment with BHAL in this group of patients. Without early intervention in PPH, a patient's mortality risk can increase by up to 10 times. As research and surgeons' experience grows, PPH can be controlled with treatments with less complex modalities without the need for BHAL.What are the implications of these findings for clinical practice and/or further research? The need for BHAL should be kept in mind when addressing PPH, especially in cases of placenta accreta. The need for hypogastric artery ligation, which is a more aggressive treatment for the surgical correction of the pathology, can be reduced as surgeons' experience increases. Early intervention and/or referral in cases of PPH is of great importance.