[Laser-assisted angioplasty in the treatment of obliterations of the iliac-femoral axis]. / L'angioplastica laser-assistita nel trattamento delle obliterazioni dell'asse iliaco-femorale.

In the last years, intraluminal techniques and instrumentations grown from the primitive concept of balloon angioplasty, have made an incredible leap among these techniques, Laser assisted balloon angioplasty plays, in selected cases, an important role in the treatment of vascular occlusive disease. The focus of this report will be to present the preliminary experience of the authors about the use of this technique, in the treatment of 18 patients with atherosclerotic occlusive iliac-femoro-popliteal disease. In spite of short number of cases; they try to focalize indications, limits and principal complications of the technique.

[Traumatic duodenal lesions]. / Lesioni duodenali traumatiche.

The authors refer their experience about five cases of traumatic duodenal lesions. They confirm the casual relationship between delayed diagnosis, often due to inaccurate clinical-radiological evaluation, and prognosis. They emphasize the opportunity to perform a simple suture and decompression by nasogastric tube, to selected cases.

Extraperitoneal aorticobifemoral grafts.

Out of 436 patients operated on using aorticobifemoral grafting, 60 cases (mean age 66) had an extra-peritoneal approach to the abdominal aorta. 28 patients underwent aorticobifemoral revascularization, three of them had, in addition visceral artery grafts. In the 60 cases, perioperative mortality was 1.7%. The extra-peritoneal approach to the abdominal aorta is safer than the intraperitoneal approach, because it reduces the risk of shock connected with the large laparotomy. It is emphasized that, by using an extraperitoneal approach, a greater number of elderly patients can be considered suitable for aorticobifemoral grafts.