How to perform a direct axillary artery cannulation
A variety of cannulation strategies have been used for cardiac surgery interventions throughout the years. In the last 2 decades, a number of studies reported the excellent outcomes of the use of the axillary artery compared to other arteries. Thanks to antegrade flow, the risk of embolization is reduced. Moreover, it facilitates cerebral perfusion during circulatory arrest, and it is rarely involved in the dissection process.
The axillary artery can also be used effectively for venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO), as an approach for a transcatheter aortic valve implant (TAVI) and, in redo patients, for initiation of cardiopulmonary bypass via peripheral cannulation before a resternotomy. If the surgeons are routinely prepared for this procedure, it can be performed rapidly to expose the femoral artery.
For these reasons, we present our method for performing a safe and easy direct cannulation of the axillary artery.
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