Effectiveness of Exclusion of a Persistent Sciatic Artery Aneurysm with an Amplatzer™ Plug

Abstract

Persistent sciatic artery is a rare developmental anomaly. In its complete form, it provides the major arterial supply to the lower leg since the femoral system is hypoplastic. These unique arteries are prone to aneurysm formation and most commonly present with complications related to aneurysm formation, which can lead to limb loss. We encountered a 68-year-old man presenting with bilateral lower-extremity ischemia who was found to have bilateral persistent sciatic artery aneurysms. One aneurysm had already thrombosed, but the other was still patent. We treated this patient with a hybrid open and endovascular repair on the patent side. The aneurysm was excluded with an Amplatzer™ plug (St. Jude Medical, Inc., St. Paul, MN) followed by a femoropopliteal bypass with saphenous vein in situ to revascularize the lower leg. To our knowledge, this is only the second report of a persistent sciatic artery aneurysm successfully treated with Amplatzer plug occlusion.

Successful Hybrid Approach Treatment of a Large Persistent Sciatic Artery Aneurysm—A Case Report

“…The literature reports several cases of PSA aneurysms that have been successfully treated using a hybrid approach [ 18 , 19 ]. It is worth noting that several studies have been conducted on persistent sciatic artery aneurysms, many of which presented with a complete form of PSA akin to our patient.…”