title: Angioplasty of degenerated saphenous vein grafts--role of covered stents.
abstract: To study the safety and efficacy of covered stents in angioplasty of saphenous vein grafts a retrospective study was carried out among 12 consecutive cases admitted at the cardiology unit of Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences during last 3 years. Angioplasty of saphenous vein grafts is a challenging task due to the different nature of the disease in vein grafts compared to the native coronary arteries. The lesions in vein grafts are more often diffuse and have considerable loose atherothrombotic material that is prone for distal embolisation, resulting in slow flow/no reflow and myocardial damage. Use of covered stents for saphenous vein grafts appears to be feasible and safe.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences, Hyderabad 500082.
authors.forename: K Sarat
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Chandra
authors.forename: Ritesh
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kumar
authors.forename: S Jai
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Shankar
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D017130:Angioplasty; D019917:Blood Vessel Prosthesis Implantation / Q000379:methods*; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017202:Myocardial Ischemia / Q000209:etiology / Q000601:surgery*; D012086:Reoperation; D012501:Saphenous Vein / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery / Q000637:transplantation*; D015607:Stents