Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate if preoperative hemoglobin (Hb) A1c levels was associated with worse outcomes in patients undergoing open lower extremity (LE) revascularization.
Methods: A retrospective review of a statewide vascular surgery registry was queried for all patients who underwent open infrainguinal bypass or open LE thrombectomy procedures between January 2014 and June 2021. Patients were categorized into four groups depending on whether their plasma HbA1c was ≤6%, \u3e6% to ≤8%, \u3e8% to ≤10%, and \u3e10%. Regression models were used to evaluate the association between preoperative HbA1c and postoperative major adverse limb events (MALE), major adverse cardiac events (MACE), mortality, and length of stay (LOS).
Results: A total of 5388 patients were included in the study. The average age was 66 years. Sixty-six percent of the cohort were male, and 78% were white. Demographics and comorbidities were associated with the HbA1c level. Mean LOS was 7 days for HbA1c \u3c6% and 10 days for HbA1c \u3e10% (P \u3c.001). No significant association was found when looking at perioperative MALE, MACE, 30-day mortality, or 1-year mortality. On multivariate analysis, only LOS remained significantly associated with the level of HbA1c (P \u3c.001) (Table).
Conclusions: Suboptimal preoperative glycemic control in patients undergoing open LE vascular procedures for ischemia is associated with an increased risk of LOS. HbA1c level was not predictive of worse perioperative MACE, MALE, or mortality in this cohort. The increased in LOS could be explained by unmeasured complications, frailty, or increased hospitalization time needed to optimize glycemic control before discharge. [Formula presented
