STUDY DESIGN. From June 2003 to August 2004, we screened consecutive patients referred for endovascular treatment of the SFA due to intermittent claudication or chronic critical limb ischemia for enrollment in a randomized single-institution trial. Patients who were potential candidates for percutaneous intervention were discussed twice weekly in a consensus meeting of angiologists, vascular surgeons and interventional radiologists prior to being considered for trial enrollment. The protocol was approved by the institutional ethics committee, and patients provided written informed consent.