112 Microangiography: An Alternative Tool for Assessing Severe Frostbite Injury

Abstract Introduction Assessment of frostbite injury typically relies on angiography or nuclear medicine to detect perfusion deficits prior to thrombolytic therapy. However, many centers lack rapid access to these modalities. The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential of a novel imaging method, microangiography, in the assessment of severe frostbite injury. Methods Patients with severe frostbite were included if they received a post-thrombolytic Technetium-99 bone scan, a Technetium-99 bone scan without thrombolytic therapy, or microangiograpy study to affected limb(s): Tc99 scan alone (N=64), microangiography alone (N=21) and both Tc99 and microangiography (N=22). All imaging modalities were compared post-thrombolytic therapy (when applicable). Perfusion deficits and amputation levels were scored using the Hennepin Frostbite Score. Results The majority of patients received thrombolytic therapy (77%) and the average time to thrombolytics was 6.7 hours. Tc99 scans showed good correlation with amputation level (r=0.785, P