[Semiselective renal and lumbar angiography: experimental and clinical evaluation of this new angiographic method]

In conventional aortography, all branches of the aorta may be visible, making interpretation difficult. By a new angiographic method, only the dorsal and lateral branches of the aorta are made visible, without the appearance of ventral branches such as the celiac, superior mesenteric, and inferior mesenteric arteries. The contrast medium is injected slowly through a closed-end catheter with side holes arranged on one side only. The best conditions for such angiography were as follows: a catheter with five side holes (the two proximal holes were small) with neighboring holes 3 cm apart, injection of 12 ml of contrast medium at the rate of 4 ml/second, and the catheter placed next to the dorsal wall of the aorta. The catheter could be held in this position when the aorta was curved provided that the head of the catheter was spiral and the next portion was convex. In clinical angiography, 24 patients suspected to have retroperitoneal or spinal disease were examined. The dorsal branches of the aorta were seen but the ventral branches were not seen in 19 of the patients. This method was superior to conventional aortography for the evaluation of lumbar arteries and the main trunks of renal arteries. In nine patients, the evaluation of abnormal findings such as feeding arteries was easier by this method than by conventional aortography.