This buildup - called plaque - narrows your arteries, often reducing or blocking the flow of blood. PAD is most commonly seen in the legs, but also can be present in the arteries that carry blood from your heart to your head, arms, kidneys, and stomach. Nearly everyone who has PAD - even those who do not have leg symptoms - suffers from an inability to walk as fast or as far as they could before PAD In all, PAD affects 8 to 12 million people in the United States, especially those over 50.

Arteriograms

An arteriogram is an imaging test that uses x-rays and a contrast agent (sometimes referred to as "dye") to see inside arteries. It can be used to view arteries in the heart, brain, kidney, and many other parts of the body.

Angioplasty, Stenting, and Atherectomy

Blocked or narrowed blood vessels can be a serious result of PAD. Our physicians use angioplasty to help open these narrowed arteries. This technique uses a very small balloon attached to a thin catheter, which is inserted into a blood vessel through a small nick in the skin. The catheter is threaded under x-ray guidance to the site of the blockage, and the balloon is inflated to open the artery. Sometimes, a small metal scaffold, called a stent, is inserted to keep the blood vessel open.

Atherectomy is a minimally-invasive method for removing atherosclerotic plaque from an artery. Unlike angioplasty and stents which push plaque into the vessel wall, atherectomy involves removing the plaque burden within the vessel. Some key differences between atherectomy and angioplasty and stenting are less vessel trauma, no foreign object (stent) left in the body, and all future options for the treated site left open.