Abstract
The introduction of endovascular aneurysm repair has led to a dramatic decline in open aneurysm repair. The aim of this report was to evaluate Korean national trends for the treatment of aneurysms. A serial, cross-sectional study of time trends of patients who underwent aneurysm repair between 2004 and 2013 was conducted. Data from the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service were used to evaluate the trends of aneurysm repair in the Korean population and to analyze the trends of open and endovascular aneurysm repair among Medicare beneficiaries. A linear-by-linear association was performed to determine alterations in the rates at which these aneurysm repair techniques were performed. A total of 32,130 patients underwent aneurysm repair between 2004 and 2013. The proportion of patients who underwent open repair decreased from 94.0% in 2004 to 54.9% in 2013; whereas the proportion of patients who underwent endovascular repair increased from 6.0% in 2004 to 45.1% in 2013. During the study period, the number of patients undergoing endovascular repair of aortic aneurysms significantly increased from 82 to 1,396 (relative risk, 16.17; 95% confidence interval: 12.94-20.21). Endovascular repair of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs)overtook open repair between 2010 and 2011. The frequency of open aneurysm repair increased 1.2-fold, with an overall downward trend. The prevalence of endovascular repair markedly increased 15.3-fold. These findings indicated that, in Korea, the endovascular repair of AAAs overtook open repair as the most common technique between 2010 and 2011.