[Kidney angioplasty. Long-term clinical and angiographic results apropos of 50 patients].

In order to evaluate the long-term results of renal angioplasty with a follow-up of at least 3 years, we reviewed the first 50 patients who were treated by this technique for renovascular hypertension. The 42 patients (85 p. 100) in whom the angioplasty was technically successful were followed up both clinically and radiologically, using intravenous digital angiography. The clinical follow-up lasted 52 months on average (range: 8 to 96 months) and reached 3 years or more in 37 patients (4 patients died and 1 was lost sight of). The hypertension returned in 19 of the 42 patients (45 p. 100), the relapse occurring after 24 months in 8 cases. Thirteen of these patients accepted a control angiography which showed restenosis in 11 cases. At the end of the follow-up period, and after a second dilatation in some cases, 30 (60 p. 100) of the 50 patients were found to have benefited from the angioplasty (20 p. 100 were cured and 40 p. 100 were improved). 80 p. 100 of the patients whose renal artery stenosis was due to fibromuscular dysplasia (n = 10) were cured or improved, as were 66 p. 100 of the patients with "localized atheroma" (n = 12), but patients with severe and diffuse atheromatous lesions (n = 28) did not respond so well (7 p. 100 cured, 43 p. 100 improved), and all the major complications of the procedure occurred in this group. The radiological follow-up was performed in 36 patients over a mean period of 31 months (range: 1 to 96 months).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)