Directional Atherectomy With Antirestenotic Therapy vs Drug-Coated Balloon Angioplasty Alone for Common Femoral Artery Atherosclerotic Disease

Abstract

Purpose: To report an experience using directional atherectomy (DA) with antirestenotic therapy (DAART) in the form of drug-coated balloon (DCB) angioplasty vs DCB angioplasty alone in common femoral artery (CFA) occlusive lesions. Methods: A retrospective review was conducted of 47 consecutive patients (mean age 71 years; 26 men) treated between October 2011 and July 2016 using either DCB angioplasty alone (n=26) or DAART (n=21) for CFA lesions. The majority of patients had lifestyle-limiting claudication (14 DCB and 15 DAART). Mean lesion length (39±14 mm DCB and 34±16 mm DAART) and vessel calcification (17/26 DCB and 11/21 DAART) were comparable between the groups. There were 4 chronic total occlusions, all in the DAART group. The main outcome measure was primary patency. Key secondary outcomes were technical success, secondary patency, and freedom from clinically-driven target lesion revascularization (TLR). Results: Technical success rates were 89% following DCB angioplasty and 95% for DAART (p=0.41). The 88% 12-month primary patency and 89% freedom from TLR for DAART were higher than the 68% and 75% estimates following DCB angioplasty alone, but neither difference was statistically significant. However, the secondary patency estimate at 12 months was significantly higher in the DAART group (100% vs 81% for DCB, p=0.03). Bailout stenting (1 DCB vs 1 DAART), vessel perforation (1 DCB vs 0 DAART), access site complications (4 DCB vs 3 DAART), and distal embolization (0 DCB vs 1 DAART) were comparable, whereas DCB angioplasty had more non-flow-limiting dissections (8 vs 1 for DAART, p=0.02). Conclusion: Preparation of the atherosclerotic CFA with directional atherectomy was not associated with statistically significantly higher primary patency or freedom from TLR compared to DCB angioplasty alone at 12 months. Nonetheless, both modalities had promising outcomes in a primarily surgically treated vascular territory.