Complications of the balloon assisted percutaneous transluminal angioplasty

Percutaneous Transluminal Angioplasty (PTA), has become a widely used technique in the management of atherosclerotic and nonatherosclerotic stenoses or occlusions in almost all arterial segments. The long term success rate and the complication rate of the PTA have been reported to be equal to surgical intervention in selected indications. Despite the enormous literature on PTA, little attention has been given to the detailed identification of the etiology, the risk factors and the accepted range of the complications. The aims of this literature study are (a) to evaluate the safety of the balloon assisted PTA in the treatment of stenosed and occluded arterial lesions, (b) to provide detailed information on the etiology of complications, (c) to discuss the indications for the appropriate use of this procedure and (d) to identify the accepted complication rate.