Lee KS, et al. - Patients requiring hemodialysis for end stage renal failure essentially require creation of good long-term arteriovenous access. However, infection can complicate arteriovenous grafts or fistulae, for which emergency surgery may be required. Researchers here evaluate the outcomes of brachial artery ligation (BAL) that has been performed for infected arteriovenous grafts or fistulae via performing a systematic review. Five studies with a total of 125 patients were included. Findings suggest that patients with an infected arteriovenous fistulae or grafts can safely undergo distal BAL with low risk of upper limb ischemia, postoperative neurological deficit and recurrent infection.