[A glance into history of angiology in central Europe].

The question is: What is angiology? It is the branch of medical science studying blood and lymph vessels and their disorders. With the development of techniques, diagnostic and therapeutic methods and with the increasing morbidity and mortality on vascular diseases angiology became in the last decades an important specialization of medicine.

[Clinical diagnosis, special characteristics and therapy of Buerger's disease].

Some authors still doubt that the Buerger's disease is an independent disease entity and differs principally from obliterating atherosclerosis. This is why the author draws attention to many specific characteristics of this disease and differences which distinguish it from atherosclerosis of peripheral arteries. After some introductory notes the author presents that the prevalence of thrombangiitis in Europe ranges from 0.

[Modern therapeutic trends in the conservative treatment of ischemic disease of the lower extremities].

The author reviews contemporary knowledge of the pathogenesis of ischaemia of the lower extremities. As to therapeutic provision which influence in a favourable way pathological processes associated with the development of ischaemia an important place is held by pentoxiphylline (Trental) which reduces the pathologically raised adhesiveness and activity of leucocytes causing an excessive immune response; it reduces the viscosity of blood and procoagulation activity.

Midodrine, a new therapeutic agent: recent experience.

Midodrine, marketed as Gutron by Hafslund Nycomed, was given at a dose of 2.5 mg three times daily always half an hour after the main meal for a period of 84 days to 8 women in the age of 25.42 years--average 34.

[Thrombosis in the bifurcation of the abdominal aorta through the eyes of a neurologist].

We described a case of the malign course of the abdominal aorta bifurcation in a 75-year old woman with the case history of a successfully removed neurinom of the eleventh thoracic root on the left side. Despite a timely diagnosis with the recurrence of a spinal tumor being ruled out and followed by the streptokinase therapy, the course of the disease was lethal. Another six lethal cases of the thrombosis of the abdominal aorta studied retrospectively proved the necessity to improve both the diagnostics and the therapy of this disease.

Significance of pedal arch for femoropopliteal vein bypass patency.

There are different opinions about the usefulness of preoperative arteriography. Therefore we resolved to show its importance for the distal runoff evaluation as well as for the indication and results of femoropopliteal vein bypasses. There were controlled 149 patients 1-5 years after femoropopliteal vein bypass implantations.

Some interrelations between blood pressure parameters and claudication distances.

Sixty males and 2 females with the mean age of 58.1 years ranging from 39 to 80 years with atherosclerotic lesions of the arteries of lower extremities were studied. The claudication distance was subdivided into two segments: the first included the distance up to the onset of pain and the second one when the patients had to stop walking because of the severity of pain.

The effect of physical activity on the incidence of circulating platelet aggregates in healthy persons. The significance for antiaggregating therapy.

In 23 healthy persons active in sports are tested circulating thrombocyte aggregates in venous blood. Their incidence is expressed as thrombocyte index (TI). In this group there is TI 0.

[The significance of rehabilitation in angiology].

The author draws attention to the important position of different types of rehabilitation in the treatment of arterial, venous and lymphatic diseases. He mentions also different methodical procedures in the listed diseases. He emphasizes that rehabilitation, in particular intensive interval training, remains the main therapy of ischaemic disease of the lower extremities.

[What is the relation between pressure parameters and claudication distance?].

The authors examined the relationship between the ankle pressure, or pressure gradient on the one hand, and the walking distance and different actions, i.e. equalting and standing on tip toes, on the other hand.

[Long-term results after implantation of the femoro-popliteal vein graft in relation to preoperative values of the ankle pressure index and peroperative flow].

The authors investigated the importance of ankle pressure indices (aPi), peroperative blood flow and angiographic findings on peripheral arteries for the long-term patency of F-P venous bypasses. They found that neither the preoperative value of aPi nor the size of the peroperative flow through the bypass has an impact on the long-term patency of the reconstruction. As a result of general factors which lead to progression of the atherothrombosis in the arterial circulation in the implanted bypass, obstructions of the reconstruction occur even in patients with high preoperative aPi values and with a major preoperative flow, with patent peripheral arteries at the time of operation.

[The place of postoperative angiography after vascular reconstruction].

In 284 patients after angioplasty of the aortoiliac vessels postoperative angiography discovered complications in 63 cases (22%), most frequently in case of prostheses at the bifurcation. Late thrombosis was the prime complication. In 221 patients with reconstructions in the femoropopliteal region complications were found in 24.

Smoking as a risk factor for the development of arterial occlusive disease.

There was examined a total of 982 males with arterial occlusive disease (908 males with atherosclerosis obliterans, 59 with thromboangitis obliterans and 15 males with this disease of uncertain aetiology), 30 females with atherosclerosis obliterans, 411 control males and 50 control females. Among the controls there were significantly more frequently non-smokers and occasional smokers (the latter, however, having atherosclerosis obliterans--with the exception of females, and males having thromboangitis obliterans). In the complex of occlusive disease there were, on the other hand, more frequently present regular smokers smoking 31-40 years (in thromboangiitics for a period up to 10 years), smoking proportionally throughout the day and having their starting age of smoking before their 20th year of life.