Surgery usually becomes an option when the patient can no longer function normally, when just getting around the house becomes impossible.
Surgery is also a necessity if gangrene sets in the limb.
These are much less invasive than surgery. Because they are less invasive, they can be employed early in the course of the disease. Under X-ray guidance, the catheter is threaded to the site of the blocked artery. The balloon is then inflated to open the artery. A stent, a small mesh tube, can be inserted into the newly opened artery to aid in keeping the artery open.