Annals of vascular surgery
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study Comparative Study
External support of a polytetrafluoroethylene graft improves patency for bypass to below-knee arteries.
Patency and limb salvage after synthetic bypass to the arteries below the knee are inferior to that which can be achieved with autologous vein. The use of external support of synthetic polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) grafts to the below-knee position has been suggested to improve patency and limb salvage, a problem analyzed in this randomized clinical trial. We examined whether external graft support improves patency and/or limb salvage in patients undergoing reconstruction with synthetic PTFE grafts to the below-knee arteries. ⋯ External support to a PTFE graft used for bypass to below-knee arteries improves primary and secondary patency but not limb salvage.