Comparison of drug-coated balloon and conventional balloon in autologous arteriovenous fistula stenosis

This study compares the effects of drug-coated balloon (DCB) and conventional balloon (CB) in arteriovenous fistula (AVF) stenosis. We retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 149 patients with AVF stenosis admitted to our hospital between June 2021 and October 2023 in this retrospective study. Among them, 73 and 76 patients were treated with CB (CB group) and DCB (DCB group), respectively. The treatment outcomes, peak flow velocity at the stenosis site, dialysis blood flow rate, vessel diameter, biochemical index levels, and incidence of complications were compared between the 2 groups. The success rate of surgery in the DCB group and the patency rate of AVF were higher than those in the CB group (97.37% vs 89.04%, 86.84% vs 71.23%, respectively; P < .05), and the length of hospital stay was longer in the DCB group than in the CB group (P < .05). After surgery, the peak flow velocity at the site of fistula stenosis in the DCB group was lower than that in the CB group, whereas the dialysis blood flow and vascular diameter were greater than those in the CB group (P < .05). After surgery, serum levels of angiotensin II, vascular endothelial growth factor-A, monocyte chemotactic protein-1, and ceramide were lower in the DCB group than in the CB group (P < .05). The incidence of complications in the DCB group was lower than that in the CB group (2.63% vs 10.96%; P < .05). Compared with CB, DCB has higher benefits in treating AVF stenosis.