[Intraluminal Palmaz stent implantation. The first clinical case report on a balloon-expanded vascular prosthesis]

A 74-year-old patient suffering from severe iliac artery stenosis and claudication was chosen to be the first candidate in the world to receive the Palmaz stent, a balloon-expandable intraluminal stent. This procedure was done in the Department of Radiology, University of Freiburg, FRG. The intervention and postprocedural course were uneventful. His walking distance improved from less than 100 m to unlimited walking capacity. The intra-arterial pressure gradient and ankle-arm pressure ratio also returned to normal.