Frozen saphenous vein allografts for constructing vascular access for hemodialysis.

Frozen saphenous vein allografts were used in seven patients to construct vascular access for hemodialysis. In five patients the allografts connected the brachial artery to the axillary vein, and in two, the radial artery to the basilic vein. Five allografts functioned for periods varying from 6 to 20 months, one is still functioning after 3 years, and one graft occluded immediately following surgery. The availability of this biological material, the ease of its preparation, the very low cost, and the satisfactory graft survival, call for further evaluation of this method for complex vascular access problems in patients on chronic hemodialysis.