Background. Cardiovascular diseases occupy a leading place in the structure of morbidity in Russia and other developed countries of the world. Objective. To study the efficiency of using enhanced external counterpulsation in the comprehensive rehabilitation treatment of patients with stages I—IIB obliterating atherosclerosis of the lower extremities (OALE). Subjects and methods. A total of 68 patients aged 50 to 78 years with stages I—IIb oale in the presence of clinical symptomatology of arterial insufficiency were examined and treated. According to the method of treatment, the patients were divided into two groups: 1) 32 people received a standard drug therapy (a control group). 2) 36 patients had an enhanced external counterpulsation therapy cycle during the standard therapy (a study group). The frequency of characteristic complaints, pain-free walking distance, peripheral hemodynamics, and the ankle-brachial index (abi) were assessed. Results. Posttreatment leg pain on walking persisted in 11 (30.6%) and 25 (78.1%) patients in the study group and in the control one, respectively; there were leg cramps in 9 (25.0%) and 14 (43.8%) people and cold feet in 5 (13.9%) and 25 (78.1%) patients, respectively (p<0.05). In the study group, the considerable increase in pain-free walking distance as compared to baseline values averaged 250±31.2 m (p<0.05), while that in the control group was only 64.5±25.1 m (p>0.05). The posttreatment increase in the leg and foot rheographic indices averaged 23.9 and 23.2%, respectively, in the study group and 11.9 and 12.3%, respectively, in the control group. The increases in abi in the anterior and posterior tibial arteries were 31.4 and 35.2%, respectively, in the study group (p<0.05), and 16.0 and 13.0%, respectively, in the control group (p>0.05). Conclusion. The findings suggest that the use of enhanced external counterpulsation in the combination therapy of patients with stages I—IIb oale is a clinically effective and safe treatment.