Clinical Information

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Society for Vascular Surgery®

Popliteal cystic disease - surgical findings

James S.T. Yao


Occlusion of the popliteal artery caused by adventitial cystic disease is rare and accounts for only 0.1% of arterial occlusive disease. It occurs in young adults, mostly male, with intermittent claudication as the initial presenting symptom. Treatment is surgical excision with preservation of the artery. The popliteal artery is best exposed by a posterior approach.

Figure 1: Shows the typical cystic appearance of the popliteal artery. This is characterized by the transparent appearance at the wall of the artery.

Figure 2: Evacuation with removal of the cystic wall often demonstrates thick gelatinous fluid. If there is no visible damage of the artery, excision of the wall of the cyst is all that is needed to restore circulation.
 
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