Endovascular treatment of chronic mesenteric ischemia.

Endovascular procedure is frequently used as an alternative to surgical bypass in aortic atherosclerotic lesions. Two rare cases of chronic mesenteric ischemia treated with a stent implantation are reported. The patients were a 72-year-old woman and a 57-year-old woman. They presented with severe abdominal pain after meals, repeatedly. Angiography revealed severe stenosis and occlusion of the super mesenteric artery (SMA). Endovascular treatment was initially and technically successful in both patients. A Palmaz stent was deployed in the ostium lesion of the SMA for both cases. Completion angiography showed successful recanalization of the SMA without any complication and with satisfactory distal flow. The patients' symptoms were alleviated. They remained asymptomatic after stent implantation. Primary stenting may be considered a viable alternative to conventional surgery in carefully selected patients with chronic mesenteric ischemia due to SMA stenosis.