The logical desire to avoid major cutaneous incisions and surgical dis
section in the treatment of vascular occlusive disease has, in recent
years, led to a surge of new therapeutic options whereby access to the
diseased blood vessel is obtained via a distant site and treatment is
effected from within the vessel. Such endoluminal treatment modalitie
s include thrombolysis, balloon angioplasty, atherectomy, stenting, an
d stent grafting. For the purpose of this surgically oriented article,
the latter two techniques are discussed.