Ghaffarian AA, et al. - In this study, researchers performed an evaluation of outcomes after open thrombectomy of upper arm and forearm Arteriovenous (AV) fistulas compared with AV grafts. Data suggested that in up to 70% of cases, AV fistula thrombectomy was successful, with significantly improved risk-adjusted 1-year primary and secondary patency rates for upper arm fistulas compared with grafts. However, the risk of access failure was observed to be high after thrombectomy, efforts to salvage upper arm AV fistulas were effective in most patients and should be undertaken when feasible.