Autologous great saphenous vein tailored graft to replace an infected prosthetic graft in the groin.

Abstract We propose a technique using the autologous great saphenous vein (GSV) to replace an infected prosthetic limb graft at the groin. The whole GSV is incised longitudinally and divided into two approximately equal segments, which are sewn side-to-side. The longitudinal edges of the resulting GSV are then joined and anastomosed side-to-side to form a conduit, whose caliber is twice the original vein’s diameter. We have used this technique to replace one limb of a prosthetic aortofemoral bypass infected at the groin. After 5 years, the new venous conduit is patent, with no recurrent infection, dilation or aneurysmal degeneration. If validated by further experiences, this might be an attractive alternative to restoring flow through clean tissue planes using extra-anatomic bypass or the femoral vein in the infected fields.