Important new recommendations are provided for the care of patients with an AAA, including suggestions to improve mutual decision-making between the treating physician and the patients and their families as well as a number of new strategies to enhance perioperative outcomes for patients undergoing elective and emergent repair. Areas of uncertainty are highlighted that would benefit from further investigation in addition to existing limitations in diagnostic tests, pharmacologic agents, intraoperative tools, and devices.

Management of carotid bifurcation stenosis is a cornerstone of stroke prevention and has been the subject of extensive clinical investigation, including multiple controlled randomized trials. The appropriate treatment of patients with carotid bifurcation disease is of major interest to the community of vascular surgeons. In 2008, the Society for Vascular Surgery published guidelines for treatment of carotid artery disease. At the time, only one randomized trial, comparing carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and carotid stenting (CAS), had been published. Since that publication, four major randomized trials comparing CEA and CAS have been published, and the role of medical management has been re-emphasized. The current publication updates and expands the 2008 guidelines with specific emphasis on six areas: imaging in identification and characterization of carotid stenosis, medical therapy (as stand-alone management and also in conjunction with intervention in patients with carotid bifurcation stenosis), risk stratification to select patients for appropriate interventional management (CEA or CAS), technical standards for performing CEA and CAS, the relative roles of CEA and CAS, and management of unusual conditions associated with extracranial carotid pathology. Recommendations are made using the GRADE (Grades of Recommendation Assessment, Development and Evaluation) system, as has been done with other Society for Vascular Surgery guideline documents.[corrected] The perioperative risk of stroke and death in asymptomatic patients must be<3% to ensure benefit for the patient. CAS should be reserved for symptomatic patients with stenosis of 50% to 99% at high risk for CEA for anatomic or medical reasons. CAS is not recommended for asymptomatic patients at this time. Asymptomatic patients at high risk for intervention or with <3 years life expectancy should be considered for medical management as the first-line therapy.

Hemodynamically significant left common iliac vein compression is a frequent anatomic variant in asymptomatic individuals. Therefore compression of the left iliac vein may represent a normal anatomic pattern that has thus far been thought of as a pathologic condition.

Aortic endograft infection can be eradicated by excision and in situ or extra-anatomic replacement but is often associated with early postoperative morbidity and mortality and occasionally with a need for late removal for reinfection. Prosthetic graft replacement after explanation is associated with higher reinfection and graft-related complications and decreased survival compared with autogenous reconstruction.

Subclavian revascularization procedures can be performed with relatively low risk. Complications are rare, and patient recovery is rapid. Although this is not necessary in all cases, we advocate subclavian to carotid transposition when the aortic lesion is within 15 mm of the left subclavian orifice to prevent type II endoleak or perfusion of a dissected false lumen when the ipsilateral vertebral artery is patent and dominant or when coronary revascularization using an ipsilateral internal mammary artery is anticipated and in cases that necessitate extensive coverage of intercostals that contribute to spinal cord perfusion. Carotid to subclavian artery bypass should be reserved for patients with a patent internal mammary artery conduit perfusing a coronary vessel and should be combined with proximal subclavian ligation.