Delivering Durability and Value
Ted Gifford, MD
Hartford HealthCare
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The Serranator is ideal because it often allows me to treat a long lesion with a single balloon while achieving uniform luminal diameter and luminal gain across the entire segment.
Many people initially perceive the Serranator as just another specialty or scoring balloon. The message I emphasize, and what my partners have observed, is that it’s not—it’s a purpose-built technology designed specifically to address difficult and controlled plaque rupture.
This technology allows us to achieve plaque modification at diameters that improve flow down to the foot. In modern vascular surgery, the concept of value is critical. For me, value means safely and effectively treating a patient as efficiently as possible. If I can get a patient in and out in under an hour with a safe, durable procedure that minimizes the need for retreatment, that’s an ideal outcome.
In femoropopliteal disease, this has traditionally meant plain balloon angioplasty, but as we know, its durability is limited. The above-the-knee Serranator adds the ability to remodel plaque effectively and then deliver drug to that remodeled area quickly, allowing patients to go home safely while reducing the need for retreatment.
The serrations are particularly important for controlled plaque rupture. For drug delivery to be effective, we need deep penetration into the vessel media. Achieving this requires precise, controlled plaque rupture that avoids dissection—and Serranator technology is designed to do exactly that.
