Sustained elevation of circulating vascular endothelial growth factor after percutaneous angioplasty for peripheral arterial diseases.

Whether percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) for peripheral arterial diseases (PAD) can modify circulating vasogenic factors remains unclear. The present study consisted of 27 patients with symptomatic peripheral arterial diseases undergoing percutaneous angioplasty for 33 culprit vessels. Levels of four vasogenic growth factors, including vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), and insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I), were measured at baseline and after interventions. As a result, circulating levels of vascular endothelial growth factor but not other factors were elevated at 2 weeks and at least for 3 months post procedure. Thus, percutaneous angioplasty may extend its role from local revascularization to systemic angiogenesis through upregulating circulating vascular endothelial growth factor levels. However, whether this phenomenon translates into clinical benefits awaits further investigation.