Comparison of Atherectomy to Balloon Angioplasty and Stenting for Isolated Femoropopliteal Revascularization

Abstract Introduction The use of atherectomy for lower extremity revascularization is increasing despite concerning reports about its long-term safety and effectiveness. This study compares the outcomes of atherectomy to percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) and stenting for treatment of isolated femoropopliteal disease. Methods All patients undergoing endovascular treatment of isolated femoropopliteal lesions in the Vascular Quality Initiative (2009-2018) were identified. Patients with concomitant open surgery, acute limb ischemia, or iliac or tibial intervention were excluded. Patients were divided into 3 treatment groups: atherectomy with or without PTA, PTA alone and stenting alone. Propensity matching was performed based on age, gender, race, ambulatory-status, diabetes, smoking, hypertension, coronary artery disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, congestive heart failure, dialysis, prior inflow bypass and intervention, prior major ipsilateral amputation, indication, length of treated lesion, American Society of Anesthesiologists class, and TASC II classification. The perioperative and one-year outcomes of the matched groups were compared. Results A total of 10,007 atherectomy, 22,000 PTA and 27,579 stenting of isolated femoropopliteal disease were identified. After matching, there were 6,372 procedures in atherectomy and PTA groups respectively. Atherectomy was associated with higher likelihood of technical success (98.3% vs 97.5%; P In the second analysis, after matching, there were 6,877 procedures in the atherectomy and stenting groups respectively. Atherectomy was associated with lower rate of dissection (3.7% vs 8.2% Conclusion Atherectomy does not seem to confer any significant additional clinical benefit compared to balloon angioplasty or stenting. Further research is needed to justify its additional cost over other endovascular modalities.