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February 26, 2004
Cryoplasty: Using Sub-Zero Cold to
Open Blocked Arteries
HUP Introduces Cryoplasty Procedure
to Philadelphia
(Philadelphia, PA) -- Yesterday, physicians at the Hospital
of the University of Pennsylvania (HUP) performed
the city’s first cryoplasty procedure on a 73-year-old
male with a severely blocked artery in the right leg.
Like angioplasty, cryoplasty restores blood flow by
carefully positioning a tiny balloon inside the vessel,
at the site of the blockage, and then slowly inflating
the balloon to expand the diameter of the vessel. Unlike
usual angioplasty, however -- which uses a saline-contrast
solution to inflate the balloon -- cryoplasty uses nitrous
oxide, which cools to a temperature of –10 degrees
Celsius.
The sheer coldness of nitrous oxide appears to limit
restenosis (late re-narrowing of the artery) by reducing
tearing and subsequent inflammation of the affected
vessel. In traditional angioplasty, balloon inflation
causes uncontrolled tearing of the vessel wall, and
triggers inflammation and consequent local scar-tissue
formation. Nitrous oxide, on the other hand, is associated
with more controlled tearing and little or no inflammation.
It appears to do so, in part, by selectively destroying
the cells involved in scar formation (endothelial and
smooth-muscle cells). “Cryoplasty is a new tool
for opening blocked arteries, and it appears to be a
very promising approach in the treatment of peripheral
vascular disease,” said interventional cardiologist
Herbert Aronow, MD, MPH, who, as Director
of HUP’s Peripheral Intervention Program in Cardiovascular
Medicine, led today’s cryoplasty procedure. “Preliminary
data suggest that cryoplasty may be superior to traditional
angioplasty or stenting.”
Indeed, in a study of 91 patients treated with cryoplasty
for leg-artery blockages – which was presented
at the International Symposium of Endovascular Therapy
last month -- 75 patients, or 85%, showed no signs of
restenosis nine months after treatment. This compares
favorably to traditional angioplasty and stenting series
where the rates of restenosis have ranged from 40-50%.
More than 12 million Americans suffer from peripheral
vascular disease (PVD), also known as atherosclerosis
of the blood vessels of the arms, legs, and other branches
of the aorta. “As many as one in three of those
patients have pain so severe that it affects their quality-of-life
and limits their functional status,” explains
Aronow, who is also an Assistant Professor of Medicine
in Penn’s School of Medicine
and Director of the Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory
at the Philadelphia Veterans Administration Medical
Center. “Cryoplasty appears to be a significant
advance in the treatment of this painful, debilitating
disease.”
The cryoplasty performed today at the Hospital of the
University of Pennsylvania utilized the PolarCath™
System, manufactured by Boston Scientific, Inc., of
Boston, MA.
For
a printer friendly version of this release, click
here.
# # #
Editor’s Note: Dr.
Aronow has no financial interest in Boston Scientific,
Inc.
PENN Medicine is a $2.2 billion enterprise
dedicated to the related missions of medical education,
biomedical research, and high-quality patient care.
PENN Medicine consists of the University of Pennsylvania
School of Medicine (founded in 1765 as the nation’s
first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania
Health System (created in 1993 as the nation’s
first integrated academic health system).
Penn’s School of Medicine is ranked #2 in
the nation for receipt of NIH research funds; and ranked
#4 in the nation in U.S. News & World Report’s
most recent ranking of top research-oriented medical
schools. Supporting 1,400 fulltime faculty and 700 students,
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Penn Health System consists of four hospitals (including
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consistently rated one of the nation’s “Honor
Roll” hospitals by U.S. News & World Report),
a faculty practice plan, a primary-care provider network,
three multispecialty satellite facilities, and home
health care and hospice.
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