Abstract
A brief history of laser angioplasty and currently available techniques of laser angioplasty were reviewed. Percutaneous transluminal laser angioplasty (PTLA) is an alternative or adjunct treatment to reconstructive surgery for the occlusive arterial disease in selected cases, PTA has been a major adjunct to surgery in the treatment of ASO, but some cases are impossible to treat with PTA because of unsuccessful passage of the guidewire or balloon catheter through the tight stenosis or occlusion of the diseased artery. The cumulative patency rate of PTLA for 63 lesions treated in Dokkyo University Koshigaya Hospital and Hirosaki University Hospital and long-term follow-up for 6 years since 1985 are introduced, and the results seem to support the superiority of PTLA to PTA, although further studies are needed. The 5-yea cumulative patency rate was 88.4% in total cases, 88.7%in iliac artery region, 86.1% in femoro-popliteal artery region and 100% in the infra-genicular artery region.
