The present invention relates to a composition comprising erythropoietin (EPO) as an active ingredient for aiding surgical procedures for treating ischemic vascular diseases. The present invention also relates to a method for treating ischemic vascular diseases using a combination of the composition and the invasive procedure for sufficient disruption of the physical barriers for new neovascularization. The composition for aiding surgical or invasive procedures according to the present invention would be beneficial for the success rate and safety issue of a variety of surgical procedures such as minimally invasive operations performed on a patient suffering from a variety of cerebral ischemic vascular diseases including ischemic stroke and moyamoya disease, and can be widely used in the treatment of a variety of ischemic vasculopathies in cardiac or peripheral artery system.
