One-year Results of the ANCHOR Trial of EndoAnchors for the Prevention and Treatment of Aortic Neck Complications After Endovascular Aneurysm Repair

Objectives: EndoAnchors have been used to address proximal aortic neck complications including type Ia endoleaks and endograft migration after endovascular aortic aneurysm repair (EVAR).

Methods: The study population included 100 patients with one-year follow-up in the ANCHOR study. A primary cohort (N = 73) comprised patients who underwent EndoAnchor implantation at the time of an initial EVAR and a Revision cohort (N = 27) included patients treated remote from EVAR. A hostile neck was defined for neck length <10 mm, neck diameter >28 mm, angulation >60°, conical configuration or significant mural thrombus or calcium.

Results: Baseline anatomy included neck length of 17 ± 14 mm, diameter of 27 ± 5 mm, and angulation of 35 ± 18°; 83% of patients had hostile necks. Over 18 ± 4 months of clinical follow-up, six patients (6%) underwent aneurysm-related reinterventions. There were no aneurysm ruptures. Over 13 ± 2 months of imaging follow-up, freedom from type Ia endoleak was 95% in the Primary Arm and 77% in the Revision Arm (P = .006). Aneurysm sacs regressed > 5 mm within one year in 45% of the Primary cases and in 25% of the Revisions. Aneurysm expansion > 5 mm occurred in one revision patient.

Conclusion: Despite a high frequency of hostile neck anatomy, proximal neck complications were relatively infrequent after EndoAnchor use.