The specificities of the common femoral artery anatomy, calcification and endovascular treatment.

Abstract

Atherosclerotic lesions of the femoral artery bifurcation are one of the most complex lesion subsets commonly encountered in peripheral artery disease. Common femoral endarterectomy remains the standard of care in this location due to the bulky, eccentric, heavily calcified nature of the plaques, the frequent involvement of the femoral bifurcation, and the risk of compromising future femoral approaches. Recent studies have reported high rates of technical success and low rates of complications with endovascular treatment of the femoral artery bifurcation. This is related to improvements of endovascular equipment and the technical skills of operators. The aim of this manuscript was to provide a comprehensive review of the peculiarities of common femoral artery anatomy, calcification and treatment.