Midterm Results of Drug-Coated Balloon and Bare Metal Stent in the Treatment of TASCII C/D Femoropopliteal Artery Occlusive Disease: A Retrospective Multicenter Study

Purpose: This study aimed to compare midterm efficacy between drug-coated balloon (DCB) and bare metal stent (BMS) in the treatment of TASCII C/D femoropopliteal artery lesions.Methods: The clinical data of patients with TASCII C/D femoropopliteal artery disease admitted to 3 vascular surgery centers from January 2018 to January 2021 were retrospectively analyzed. Patients were divided into DCB group and BMS group. The DCB group was further subdivided into DCB alone subgroup and DCB+BMS subgroup. Study primary outcomes were freedom from clinical-driven target lesion reintervention (FCD-TLR) at 24 months postprocedure. Secondary outcomes included ankle brachial index (ABI), Rutherford classification, major amputation rate, and mortality.Results: A total of 410 consecutive patients were enrolled. At 24 months follow-up, in DCB group (114 patients) relative to BMS group (296 patients), FCD-TLR (86.00% vs 71.91%, p=0.039), and ABI (0.53 +/- 0.11 vs 0.47 +/- 0.19, p=0.007) were higher; mean Rutherford class was lower (1.57 +/- 0.68 vs 3.31 +/- 1.39, p=0.000); and major amputation rate (0.87% vs 4.05%, p>0.05) and all-cause mortality (8.92% vs 6.41%, p>0.05) were statistically similar. In DCB alone, subgroup relative to DCB+BMS subgroup, FCD-TLR (90.00% vs 85.00%, p>0.05), major amputation rate (0 vs 1.08%, p>0.05), and all-cause mortality rate (9.09% vs 8.69%, p>0.05) were statistically similar, while FCD-TLR was higher in the DCB+BMS subgroup (90.00% vs 71.91%, p=0.045).Conclusion: At midterm follow-up of patients treated for TASCII C/D femoropopliteal artery disease, use of DCB or of DCB combined with rescue BMS appeared similarly efficacious, and yielded more favorable outcomes than use of BMS.