[Self-expanding endoprostheses. Applications in iliac and femoro-popliteal arteries]

Vascular endoprosthesis are aimed at optimizing the results of angioplasty. They are metallic cylinders, most often meshed, laid against the wall of the vessel and progressively incorporated into the intima by endothelial coverage. Experimental studies show that this incorporation occurs within a few weeks. The prosthesis are either self-expanding or mounted on a dilatation balloon. Their aim is to restore a good-quality caliber by smoothing the parietal irregularities that were frequently encountered after dilatation. They are a true parietal prop, inserted into the arterial lumen through a percutaneous approach. The middle-term results of iliac and femoropopliteal implants are very encouraging, and they suggest that this technique may be a very useful complement to transluminal angioplasty in cases of poor results or recurrence. The insertion of an endoprosthesis also allows to extend the indications of transluminal angioplasty to cases that had been regarded as hardly favorable so far: long, irregular stenosis, iliac obliteration, etc.