[Local catheter-mediated lysis of the femoral artery: rt-PA versus urokinase].

Percutaneous, catheter-mediated lysis was performed on 56 patients with acute to subacute thrombosis of the superficial femoral artery (Fontaine stage IIb to IV). One half of the patients received rt-PA, the other half urokinase. The clinical parameters of the two groups of patients were largely the same. The therapeutical results were, at about the same treatment costs, better in the rt-PA patients group, in particular with regard to the considerably shorter average treatment period, which lasted on the average for 2 hours in the rt-PA group, vs. 6 hours in the urokinase group. The recanalisation rate was also higher in the rt-PA group (86%) vs. 75% in the urokinase group.