Poor mid-term functional patency and post-operative outcomes in diabetic patients who undergo arteriovenous graft creation.

Introduction: Diabetes mellitus is a leading cause of renal failure in the US and has been associated with higher mortality when compared to nondiabetic patients. This remains true despite initiation of renal replacement therapy. As such, we were interested in identifying any potential differences in access durability and postoperative outcomes in diabetic patients who receive arteriovenous fistulas versus grafts for hemodialysis.

Methods: Diabetic patients undergoing their first arteriovenous (AV) access creation surgery in the Vascular Quality Initiative from January 2011 to January 2022 were included in our study. After exclusions, the study included two groups: those receiving AV fistulas and those receiving AV grafts for hemodialysis. Demographic characteristics were summarized and compared between these two groups using chi-square analysis or unpaired t-test. After propensity score matching was conducted, the effect of procedure type on functional patency, along with secondary outcomes including wound infection were assessed using chi-square analysis.

Results: A total of 20,159 diabetic patients who used their hemodialysis access were included in our study; 16,205 received AV fistulas while 3954 received AV grafts. Patients receiving AV grafts were more likely to be older, female, and have higher pre-operative catheter usage. After propensity score matching, patients who received AV grafts had a shorter time-to-use their conduit (50 vs 166 days, p < 0.0001), however, patients who received AV fistulas were more likely to have longer functional patency use for hemodialysis when compared to those who received AV grafts (mean survival time: 3.3 vs 2.9 years, p < 0.0001). These results were consistent between diabetics with insulin-dependent or insulin-independent diabetes.

Conclusion: Patients diagnosed with diabetes mellitus had an increased risk for significantly inferior clinical outcomes related to newly created AV grafts, including lower rates of mid-term functional patency and higher rates of worse post-operative outcomes when compared to diabetics who received AV fistulas.