Clinical and procedure characteristics in patients treated with polytetrafluoroethylene-covered stents after coronary perforation: a CIRC-8U multicenter registry and literature review.

This study aimed at identifying the clinical characteristics and in-hospital outcomes of patients treated with polytetrafluorethylene (PTFE)-covered stents after coronary interventions in a multicenter registry. Subjects with coronary artery perforation were selected from 31,262 consecutive patients who underwent coronary interventions in the hospital registries. Subjects were divided into two groups: those with a PTFE-covered stent implantation and those without a PTFE-covered stent implantation. Clinical characteristics and in-hospital outcomes were compared between the two groups. Data for 82 consecutive coronary perforations (15 PTFE-covered stents and 67 non-PTFE-covered stents) were extracted from each hospital registry. The PTFE-covered stent group had a higher prevalence of perforations due to pre-dilatation before stenting or post-dilatation after stenting (80% vs. 10.4%; p < 0.001), more Ellis classification III perforations (66.6% vs. 28.4%; p = 0.019), longer perforation to hemostasis time (74 min vs. 10 min; p < 0.001), lower hemostatic success rates (73.3% vs. 94.0%; p = 0.015), and higher in-hospital mortality (26.7% vs. 6.0%; p = 0.015) than the non-PTFE-covered stent group. Although the prevalence of intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) usage was high during coronary interventions (86.7%), IVUS was performed in less than half the cases just before coronary perforations (47%) in the PTFE-covered stent group. Patients requiring PTFE-covered stents are more likely to be observed after balloon dilatation before or after stenting and have a poor prognosis. Careful coronary intervention is needed when IVUS image acquisition is not achieved in addition to proper evaluation of IVUS. Furthermore, if coronary artery perforation occurs, it is important to determine the need for a prompt PTFE-covered stent.

Patency of Saphenous Vein Grafts Using the PAS-Port System During Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery.

BACKGROUND: Several proximal anastomosis devices have been developed to shorten the time required for a proximal anastomosis and to avoid aortic cross-/side-clamping during coronary artery bypass grafting. This study retrospectively examined the patency of saphenous vein grafts (SVGs) using the PAS-Port System (Cardia Inc, Redwood City, CA). METHODS: From 2004 to 2014, 451 patients underwent coronary artery bypass graft operations requiring at least 1 proximal anastomosis using a PAS-Port device. A total of 802 PAS-Port devices were used, and 95.0% (762 of 802) were implanted successfully. Among the successfully implanted anastomoses, 76.8% (585 of 762) were evaluated using coronary angiography or multidimensional computed tomography, or both. The evaluations were performed between postoperative days 4 and 3,182 (mean, 319 ± 624 days). The early (1 to 365 days) and the midterm to long-term (more than 366 days) occlusion rates were examined. A complete postoperative clinical course was recorded for 70.7% of the patients. RESULTS: Overall, 93.8% (549 of 585) of the device-dependent SVGs were patent. The patency rates of device-dependent SVGs that were 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 years old were 90.1% ± 1.8%, 87.1% ± 2.3%, 86.1% ± 2.5%, 82.9% ± 3.3%, 80.6% ± 3.9%, 77.2% ± 5.0%, 77.2% ± 5.0%, and 70.2% ± 8.1%, respectively. The longest follow-up period was 3,182 days (8.7 years). The occlusion rate for device-dependent SVGs tended to decrease as the number of patients accumulated. CONCLUSIONS: The PAS-Port system provided acceptable SVG patency and clinical outcome for the early and midterm to long-term. There may be a learning curve for the use of PAS-Port device that affects the device-dependent SVG patency.

Clinical impact of non-culprit lesions on 1-year mortality in very elderly patients with acute coronary syndrome.

Preventive percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for non-culprit lesions after primary PCI remains controversial in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). We analyzed whether PCI for non-culprit lesions would be associated with a better long-term prognosis in very elderly (≥85 years) patients. This study included 91 consecutive patients with ACS (mean age, 88.2 ± 3.0, 52 % male). We investigated the association of residual lesions with 1-year mortality. Culprit lesions affected the left anterior descending artery (LAD) in 50 patients, the left circumflex artery (LCx) in 29, and the right coronary artery (RCA) in 31. Residual lesions affected LAD in 20 cases, LCx in 22, and RCA in 21 patients. Residual lesions in LAD were associated with a higher 1-year mortality (p = 0.013), whereas residual lesions in LCx or RCA were not (p = 0.547 and 0.473, respectively). A Cox regression model demonstrated that patients with residual lesions in LAD had an increased risk of 1-year mortality compared with those without residual lesions (hazard ratio, 2.39; 95 % confidence interval, 1.16-4.96; p = 0.019). Therefore, the option to not treat residual lesions in LAD of patients with PCI may be associated with a higher 1-year mortality. Further studies are needed to confirm these findings.

Barthel Index as a Predictor of 1-Year Mortality in Very Elderly Patients Who Underwent Percutaneous Coronary Intervention for Acute Coronary Syndrome: Better Activities of Daily Living, Longer Life.

BACKGROUND: Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is safe and effective in very elderly patients, defined as those who are age ≥85 years, with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). However, the prognostic factors remain unknown. The association between activities of daily living (ADL) and the prognosis after PCI has not yet been investigated. HYPOTHESIS: Better ADL is associated with better 1-year prognosis. METHODS: This retrospective study included 91 consecutive very elderly patients with ACS. We calculated the Barthel Index (BI) as an indicator for ADL. Patients were classified into 2 groups according to BI: high BI (≥85) and low BI (<85). The BI was assessed both on admission (pre-BI) and at discharge (post-BI). RESULTS: In the 91 patients (mean age, 88.2 ± 3.0 years, 52% male), 1-year mortality was 33%. The Cox regression model demonstrated that low pre-BI was not a risk factor for 1-year mortality (hazard ratio: 0.73, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.30-1.78, P = 0.490). However, post-BI was significantly associated with 1-year mortality (hazard ratio: 0.25, 95% CI: 0.11-0.57, P = 0.001). The 1-year mortality of the high and the low post-BI group was estimated as 21% (95% CI: 12%-35%) and 62% (95% CI: 42%-82%), respectively. A 5-unit decrease in post-BI was related to a 1.10-fold increased risk for 1-year mortality (95% CI: 1.05-1.15, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Activities of daily living at discharge, although not before admission, may be a useful predictor for 1-year mortality in very elderly patients undergoing PCI for ACS.

Left ventricular dysfunction due to diffuse multiple vessel coronary artery spasm can be concealed in dilated cardiomyopathy.

AIMS: Many patients with idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) have been diagnosed on the basis of the exclusion of significant coronary stenosis and the presence of left ventricular (LV) dysfunction. In the present study, we investigated the possibility that coronary multispasm is one of the mechanisms leading to diffuse idiopathic DCM-like LV dysfunction. METHODS AND RESULTS: Forty-two patients with severely depressed LV function but without significant coronary stenosis were enrolled (baseline LV ejection fraction, 33 ± 11%). An acetylcholine (ACh) provocation test was performed at the time of coronary angiography. In patients with a positive ACh provocation test (n = 20), coronary angiography revealed multivessel diffuse coronary spasm with marked electrocardiogram changes. In patients with a negative ACh provocation test (n = 22), significant findings compatible with idiopathic DCM were more frequently observed on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or in LV biopsies compared with the ACh-positive group (MRI, 73% vs. 12%; and LV biopsy, 71% vs. 0%, respectively; P < 0.01). In the ACh-positive group, LV function significantly improved after the administration of calcium channel blockers (LV ejection fraction, 34 ± 12% vs. 54 ± 10%; and brain natriuretic peptide, 803 ± 482 pg/mL vs. 69 ± 84 pg/mL, at baseline and 1 year, respectively; P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Our results raise the possibility that patients with LV dysfunction due to repeated coronary multispasm are being diagnosed as idiopathic DCM, and that calcium channel blockers may prove to be a promising therapeutic strategy in those patients.

The T wave inversion score is useful for evaluating the time-course of acute pulmonary embolism.

BACKGROUND: The 12-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) has relatively poor specificity for identifying acute pulmonary embolism (APE). The aim of this study was to investigate ECG abnormalities according to 2 different criteria and their usefulness for assessing changes in APE. METHODS AND RESULTS: Fifty-two APE patients underwent ECG examinations in the acute and chronic phases. ECG abnormalities were assessed according to Stein's criteria (QRS complex abnormalities and T wave inversion in any lead except aV(L), III, aV(R), or V1) and Kosuge's criteria (T wave inversion in any lead except aV(R) or aV(L)). Many patients had electrocardiographic abnormalities in the acute phase, but no specific abnormalities were found. According to Kosuge's criteria, the frequency of T wave inversion was higher than that of abnormal QRS complexes and T wave inversion according to Stein's criteria (P < 0.01). In 20 cases with preclinical ECG records, the time-course of changes in the T wave inversion score (total numbers of T wave inversions per patient) was examined. The peak T wave inversion score was noted at 3 days after onset (P < 0.01). CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that the T wave inversion score, calculated according to Kosuge's criteria, is useful for predicting the time-course of APE.