[Indications for the implantation of vascular endoprostheses (stents)]

Percutaneous endoprostheses were recently introduced as an adjunctive therapy for arterial occlusive disease. Clinical experience in 137 patients showed encouraging technical success in the follow-up results in patients with iliac lesions. A low patency rate in femoral arteries, however, restricts stent implantation to selected cases. So far, indications for lesions located elsewhere have not yet been fully accepted. Because long-term follow-up data are not yet available, stent placement should be applied to a subset of lesions that are not amenable to balloon angioplasty alone.