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.