Plasma levels of matrix metalloproteinase-9: a possible diagnostic marker of successful endovascular aneurysm repair

ObjectiveThe aim of the study was evaluating the diagnostic value of plasma matrix metalloproteinase- (MMP)-2 and -9 and tissue inhibitor of MMP-1 (TIMP-1) for endoleak detection after endovascular aneurysm repair (EVAR).ReportConsecutive EVAR patients (n = 17) with endoleak and matched controls without endoleak (n = 20) were prospectively enrolled. Increased levels of MMP-9 were observed in patients with endoleak (P < 0.001). Regression analysis showed no significant influence of age, sex or abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) size. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve of plasma MMP-9 levels showed that a cut-off value of 55.18 ng ml^?1 resulted in 100% sensitivity and 96% specificity with an AUC value of 0.988 (P < 0.001) to detect endoleak.ConclusionsPlasma MMP-9 levels appear to discriminate between patients with and without an endoleak with high sensitivity and specificity.