Are Covered Renal Stents Protective Against Late Renal Artery Stenosis or Occlusion?
Amit Kumar, MD, Roy K. Greenberg, MD, Catherine Francis, Vikram S. Kashyap, MD, Kate Pfaff, Leslie Geiger, RN, Ethan Katz Vascular Surgery, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH Objective: Several studies have assessed the safety and efficacy of renal stenting to treat renovascular hypertension or insufficiency. Restenosis rates have ranged from 10-16%, with most events occurring within 2 years of treatment. The aim of this study was to compare renal specific outcomes between patients treated with covered versus uncovered renal stents. Methods: Patients were enrolled in a prospective non-randomized study between 2001-2006 evaluating endovascular stent-grafts for treatment of juxtarenal (JAA) or thoracoabdominal (TAA) aortic aneurysms. Patients were treated with aortic devices coupled with uncovered (JAA) or ePTFE covered (TAA) balloon expandable renal stents, mostly 7 mm in size. Patients were followed at 1, 6, 12, 24, and 36 months post procedure with the status of each renal art
