[Arterial diseases and their surgical treatment]

The paper is based on the analysis of 926 operations for atherosclerotic lesions of the abdominal aorta and arteries of the lower extremities, of 125 operations for abdominal aortic aneurysms, of 77 operations for chronic disorders in visceral circulation, of 405 operations for renovascular hypertension, of over 300 interventions for pathology of the aortic arch branches, of over 100 operations for non-specific aortitis, and of 506 operations for coarctation of the aorta. Emphasis is made on the diagnosis of these lesions in the course of a clinical examination of the patients. The successs of treatment largely depends on early referral of the patients to specialized surgical instituions for operative management, as well as on correct primary diagnosis of the vascular lesion by general practitioners.