Leg-saving vein bypass shows promise for worst-case artery disease

NCT ID NCT03321552

What the study statuses mean

This study's is highlighted.

Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed This study
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026

Summary

This study tested a new procedure called percutaneous deep vein arterialization in 34 people with critical limb ischemia, a severe form of blocked leg arteries. The procedure uses a device to create a bypass using a vein, aiming to improve blood flow and prevent amputation. The main goal was to see if it could help people avoid death or major amputation.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
LimFlow System (a device to create an arterio-venous fistula in the leg)
What this could lead to
If it works, this could offer a way to save the leg from amputation in people with severe blocked leg arteries who have no other options.
What could go wrong
This is a small, early study with only 34 people, so results may not apply to everyone. The procedure carries risks like infection, bleeding, or the fistula not staying open.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

34 people

The number who actually took part.

Started

Dec 2017

Finished

Jan 2025

Lead sponsor

A company

The lead sponsor is a pharmaceutical, biotech, or medical-device company.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

21 to 95 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Not accepted

This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: * Subject must be \> 21 and \< 95 years of age * Clinical diagnosis of symptomatic critical limb ischemia, defined as Rutherford category 5 or 6 * Assessment that no conventional surgical or endovascular treatment is possible * Proximally, the target in-flow artery at the cross-over point must be treatable with a 3.5 - 4.0 mm stent after pre-treatment (by visual estimate), and be \<50% stenosed * Subject is willing and has adequate support to comply with protocol requirements, including medication regimen and follow-up visits Exclusion Criteria: * Concomitant hepatic insufficiency, deep venous thrombus in target limb, uncorrected coagulation disorders, or current immunodeficiency disorder * Prior vein stripping surgery and/or vessel harvesting for CABG in the limb intended for study * Life expectancy less than 12 months * Patient currently taking coumarin/warfarin which, in the opinion of the attending physician, interferes with the patient's treatment * Any significant medical condition which, in the attending physician's opinion, may interfere with the patient's optimal treatment * Patient currently participating in another investigational drug or device study that has not completed the primary endpoint or that clinically interferes with the endpoints of this treatment * Patient unable to give consent * Pregnant or breastfeeding women * Documented myocardial infarction or stroke within previous 90 days * Patients suffering from renal insufficiency (GFR value less than 30 ml/min/1.73 m²) who are not on hemodialysis * Patients with vasculitis and/or untreated popliteal aneurysms * Patients with acute limb ischemia * Prior peripheral arterial bypass procedure above or below the knee which could inhibit proximal inflow to the stent graft * Lower extremity venous disease with significant edema in the target limb that may inhibit the procedure and/or jeopardize wound healing, in the investigator's opinion * Known or suspected systemic or severe infection (e.g., WIfI foot Infection grade of 3) * Known or suspected allergies or contraindications to stainless steel, nickel, or contrast agent that cannot be adequately pre-treated, or patients who cannot receive anticoagulation or antiplatelet aggregation therapy * Severe heart failure, which in the opinion of the investigator may compromise subject's ability to safely undergo a percutaneous procedure (e.g., known ejection fraction of \< 40%, NYHA Classification III-IV)

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

Chronic Limb-Threatening Ischemia limb ischemia

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Auckland City Hospital

    Auckland, New Zealand

  • Changi General Hospital

    Singapore, 529889, Singapore

  • Jeroen Bosch Ziekenhuis

    's-Hertogenbosch, 5200 ME, Netherlands

  • Klinikum Arnsberg GmbH

    Arnsberg, North Rhine-Westphalia, 59755, Germany

  • Noordwest Ziekenhuisgroep

    Alkmaar, 1815 JD, Netherlands

  • SRH Klinikum Karlsbad-Langensteinbach

    Karlsbad, Baden-Wurttemberg, 76307, Germany

  • St. Antonius Hospital

    Nieuwegein, 3430 EM, Netherlands

  • St. Franziskus-Hospital GmbH

    Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia, 48145, Germany

  • Tan Tock Seng Hospital

    Singapore, 308433, Singapore

  • Universitätsklinikum Graz

    Graz, 8036, Austria

  • Universitätsklinikum Heidelberg

    Heidelberg, Baden-Wurttemberg, 69120, Germany

  • Universitätsklinikum Leipzig

    Leipzig, Saxony, 4103, Germany

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