Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty. Radiological-pathological correlation.

Radiological and pathological assessment of the degree and extent of arterial injury caused by balloon angioplasty was performed in 20 renal arteries obtained at autopsy. Intact arteries were studied angiographically before and after dilatation and then examined histologically. Both normal and diseased arteries were subjected to varying degrees of dilatation. Damage ranged from minimal intimal disruption to major tears of the muscular media. Equivalent dilatory force created greater damage in the distal (muscular) than in the proximal (elastic) portion of the renal artery. There was no evidence of plaque remodeling or compression.