Objective: Stenting is the preferred treatment for iliac vein lesions. For the treatment of occlusions in the junction of the iliac vein and the inferior vena cava (IVC), the stent needs to be positioned in the IVC to cover the lesion. However, the pathological changes in the contralateral iliac vein due to stent coverage on its ostium remain unclear. We observed the patency of the contralateral iliac vein via animal experiments.
Methods: The stents were placed in the left iliac vein and extended into the IVC in 8 beagle dogs. Doppler ultrasonography, angiography, and histopathological examination were used to assess the patency and histopathological changes in the contralateral iliac vein.
Results: Angiography showed patency of the contralateral iliac vein and no sign of thrombosis or stenosis. Twelve months after stenting, Doppler ultrasonography showed a stenotic change in the ostium of the contralateral iliac vein. The histopathological examination showed that the stent strut at the ostium of the contralateral iliac vein was mostly covered by the intima, and the cross-sectional stenosis rate was greater than 60%.
Conclusions: The coverage of the iliac vein stent on the ostium of the contralateral iliac vein does not cause complete occlusion of the contralateral vein but can cause significant stenosis at the ostium of the contralateral iliac vein, which is considered to be a potential risk factor for thrombosis.
Keywords: bare stent; iliac vein; intimal hyperplasia; pathology.