Endovascular Treatment of No-Stent Zones… Quo Vadis?

Endovascular treatment of peripheral artery disease has recently become more important due to its minimally invasive nature. Elderly patients as well as fragile patients, like diabetics and those with end-stage renal disease, can benefit from this low-morbidity/-mortality treatment. Very successful results have been achieved with percutaneous balloon angioplasty and stenting in the superficial femoral and iliac arteries. In some areas, however, such as the common femoral artery and the popliteal artery, vascular physicians remain somewhat reluctant to use endovascular strategies. Common femoral endarterectomy, the most often used technique for treatment of common femoral artery lesions, has shown very good long-term results, but is associated with relatively high complication rates, such as superficial and deep wound problems and lymph leakage. This article describes less-invasive endovascular alternatives, such as atherectomy, drug-coated balloons and stenting, and their results. The popliteal artery is also difficult to treat in an endovascular manner due to biomechanical forces during bending and stretching of the knee or leg. Thus, we also describe currently available minimally invasive treatment options for the popliteal artery.