[Coronary spastic angina refractory to optimal medical therapy treated by angioplasty and stenting. A case report and review of literature]. / Angor spastique réfractaire au traitement médical traité par angioplastie avec mise en place d'un stent. A propos d'un cas et revue de la littérature.

Medical treatment of coronary spastic angina is based classically on the association of calcium channel blockers with nitrate derivatives. Some clinical forms of spastic angina remain refractory to these medications and can thus lead to serious complications (sudden cardiac death secondary to ventricular rhythm disturbance, myocardial infarction...). When the coronary spasm is focal, percutaneous coronary angioplasty with deployment of a stent can offer an interesting therapeutic alternative. We report in this article the case of a patient who had a focal spasm of the right coronary artery, which became refractory to optimal medical treatment. This patient was well improved by percutaneous angioplasty with deployment of a stent in the spastic segment of the right coronary artery. We propose also a review of the literature of the treatment of this pathology, which still remains not well codified.

[Rotational coronary angiography]. / Angiographie coronaire rotationnelle.

CONTEXT: Rotational angiography (RA) is a radiological technique that provides multiple views of a vessel for a single injection of contrast. Its significance in the field of coronary angiography is poorly known at present. This study aimed to compare the radiation dose as well as the volume of contrast used during RA compared to standard angiography (SA), and to evaluate its diagnostic precision. METHOD: 78 patients sent for diagnostic coronary angiography were explored using the radial approach. The patients were randomised between RA (3 acquisitions for the left coronary and 1 for the right coronary) or SA. Once a decision to undertake angioplasty had been made following the angiography (RA or SA), the initial study was complemented using the alternative technique (SA or RA) before the angioplasty procedure was performed at a later stage. The severity of the lesions as shown by RA and SA was compared by four experienced coronary angiography operators. RESULTS: 65 patients (mean age 61+/-10 years--mean BMI 26+/-4 Kg/m2) underwent complete RA+SA investigation. The total x-ray dose used during ciné-angiography, the dose received by the patient, and the volume of contrast were significantly reduced in the RA group compared to the SA group (-25%; -36%; -33% respectively). An evaluation of the severity of the stenoses was performed on 168 arterial segments. There was a significant correlation between the two techniques (R=0.95--p<0.001) and the intra-observer variability was non significant (3.7+/-6.8%--p=NS). CONCLUSIONS: Rotational angiography allows the radiation dose and the volume of contrast to be reduced, while retaining a diagnostic precision similar to that of standard angiography.

Procedural characteristics of primary coronary angioplasty in diabetic patients with acute anterior myocardial infarction.

BACKGROUND: Mortality and morbidity rates are higher in diabetics compared to non-diabetics after acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Previous angiographic studies regarding primary angioplasty for the treatment of AMI found that angioplasty was similarly successful in diabetics and non-diabetics. However, it is noteworthy that patients of "real life" are often far from the population randomised in prospective protocols. The aim of this study was to examine the procedural characteristics of consecutive diabetic patients hospitalised for anterior AMI and treated with primary angioplasty as compared to non-diabetics. METHOD: We analysed 28 consecutive diabetics and 74 non-diabetics who underwent primary angioplasty for anterior AMI (< 12 h from the onset of symptoms) during 15 consecutive months between 2000 and 2001 in our institution, depending on the presence or absence of diabetes. RESULTS: Among analysed data, we found that in diabetics compared to non diabetics: (i) the delay before arrival in the cath-lab was significantly longer (5.5 +/- 2.7 vs 4.2 +/- 2.8 h); (ii) there was a less important collateral flow coming from the non-culprit arteries towards the culprit artery; (iii) there was a less important rate of recovery of a normal flow (TIMI 3) in the culprit artery after coronary angioplasty (67% vs 91%). CONCLUSION: Our study demonstrates that several procedural characteristics could explain the poorer prognosis of AMI treated by primary angioplasty in the diabetic population. The longer delay found in diabetics before arrival in hospital could probably be improved.

Inadvertent implantation of an ICD lead in the great cardiac vein.

We report an implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD) implanted with a single lead inadvertently introduced in the great cardiac vein. No venous lesion was caused by the shocks and the position of the lead remained stable. This case emphasizes the usefulness of different fluoroscopic views during ICD implantation.