Radiation exposure and contrast toxicity

Endovascular repair of aortoiliac aneurysms has gained widespread acceptance and the number of investigational devices as well as devices approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for this procedure is growing. Other endovascular procedures for the treatment of such entities as aortoiliac occlusive disease and renal artery stenosis are also being employed more frequently. It has been estimated that the vast majority of abdominal aortic aneurysms are amenable to treatment with an endovascular graft and that, in the near future, 40-70% of all vascular interventions will be performed by an endovascular method, including an increasing number of peripheral and cerebrovascular interventions (1). These procedures require the use of digital cine-fluoroscopy, which exposes both the patient and staff to ionizing radiation.