Covered stents in aortoiliac occlusive disease
Arterial occlusive disease of the abdominal aorta or iliac arteries may lead to intermittent claudication or critical limb ischemia. Current treatment consist of open surgical repair by means of aorto-bi-iliac or aorto-bifemoral bypass grafting. These surgical procedures show a 12% complication rate and 4% mortality. In the past decades less invasive techniques have been developed, including percutaneous balloon angioplasty (Dotter) and stent placement. The development of stents covered with polytetrafluoroethylene may improve results by preventing in-stent restenosis.This thesis presents the results of using covered stents. We developed a new treatment modality for complex occlusive disease at the aortic bifurcation, the so-called CERAB technique. This technique provides an alternative for surgical bypass procedures. We showed the technique to be safe, feasible and it has good short term results. Long term results are to be awaited.