Combined percutaneous transluminal angioplasty, iliac stent deployment, and femorofemoral bypass for bilateral aortoiliac occlusive disease.

BACKGROUND: We examine the technique of combining percutaneous transluminal angioplasty and secondary intravascular stent deployment with femorofemoral bypass graft in patients with bilateral aortoiliac occlusive disease. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective review. RESULTS: During the 5-year period from June 1988 to October 1993, 18 patients with iliac occlusion and a hemodynamically significant contralateral iliac stenosis were treated using a combination of endovascular and open surgical techniques. Patients (13 men and 5 women) ranged in age from 50 to 78 years (mean, 64 years). Thirteen patients (72 percent) were treated for claudication, and 5 patients (28 percent) for rest pain or ulceration. Residual intra-arterial pressure gradients following percutaneous transluminal angioplasty or significant postpercutaneous transluminal angioplasty dissection were the indications for stent deployment in 15 and 3 patients, respectively. No operative deaths occurred, but 3 patients (16 percent) had early complications. Primary patency, as determined by life table analysis, was 100 percent, 79 percent, 62 percent, and 51 percent at 1, 2, 3, and 5 years, respectively. Secondary patency at 1, 2, 3, and 5 years was 100 percent, 93 percent, 75 percent, and 63 percent, respectively, with a mean follow-up of 41 months. CONCLUSIONS: The combination of percutaneous transluminal angioplasty with primary or secondary stent deployment and femorofemoral bypass can be a useful option for treating iliac occlusion and contralateral iliac stenosis of less than 3 cm in length when the severity of the comorbid illnesses, advanced age, or the presence of prohibitive intra-abdominal pathology makes the avoidance of an abdominal incision desirable.

Stenting for occlusion of the subclavian arteries. Technical aspects and follow-up results.

We report the results of stenting in 17 patients who underwent treatment for total occlusions in the subclavian arteries between July 1991 and December 1995. Fourteen of the lesions were located in the left side; 15 patients had a subclavian steal syndrome. The indications for treatment were vertebrobasilar insufficiency (n = 7); arm claudication (n = 5); vertebrobasilar insufficiency and upper-limb ischemia (n = 3); protection of a left internal mammary artery coronary bypass (n = 1); and an isolated subclavian steal syndrome (n = 1). A total of 23 stents were implanted in 17 patients; in 1 patient, 2 stents migrated during deployment, resulting in a 94% procedural success rate. One case of axillary thrombosis was successfully treated with local thrombolysis and balloon angioplasty. There were no postprocedural neurologic complications or deaths. Follow-up over a mean duration of 19.4 months (range, 4 to 56 months) revealed 1 asymptomatic restenosis at 5 months in a patient with 3 stents. Life-table analysis showed an 81% cumulative patency rate at 6 months. We conclude that stenting for occlusion of the subclavian arteries appears feasible and safe; however, further evaluation in a larger group of patients is needed to confirm these results.

Intraluminal Palmaz stent implantation for treatment of recurrent carotid artery occlusive disease: a plan for the future.

While carotid endarterectomy (CEA) has been used commonly and with great effectiveness for de novo carotid occlusive lesions, its success in cases of recurrent disease has been attenuated by a higher incidence of complications and lower durability. Although interventional techniques have been introduced cautiously into the cerebrovascular system, balloon dilation for both primary and recurrent carotid atherosclerotic disease has been successful in establishing an adequate lumen without an increase in embolic complications over surgery. Because the likelihood exists that postdilation restenosis may be as common in the carotid arteries as it is in other vascular segments, the use of intraluminal stenting may mitigate this long-term complication, a benefit that has been demonstrated in other high flow vessels such as the aorta and iliac arteries. To begin an investigation of this hypothesis, we treated a 69-year-old symptomatic man who required a third intervention for recurrent carotid disease. A > 90% stenosis of the distal third of his right common carotid artery was successfully dilated, and a Palmaz stent was deployed without incident. The patient experienced no complications to the percutaneous procedure, and at 15 months posttreatment, he is well and asymptomatic. Although greater clinical experience must be accumulated with this new approach, intraluminal stenting following balloon dilation for recurrent carotid disease may surpass redo CEA in long-term patency and may entail fewer procedural complications.