Venous Autografts in Femoropopliteal Arterioplasty

Although the causes of the generally disappointing late results of grafting operations in the treatment of femoropopliteal occlusive disease are complex,1the unsatisfactory behavior of plastic arterial substitutes in this anatomical region is one of the important contributory factors. In an attempt to improve our femoropopliteal grafting technique, 30 months ago we turned to the use of autogenous veins as implant material in a manner similar to that originally described by Kunlin,2and more recently advocated by Linton.3The purpose of this communication is to describe briefly the technical aspects of the operation and to assess its value on grounds of the clinical, angiographic, and pathologic observations gathered in 52 cases. Case Material During the past ten years, our indications for the surgical correction of femoropopliteal occlusive lesions have grown progressively narrower. At the time, about three years ago when our trial with venous autografts began, our