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ObjectiveTo investigate percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) practice in an international cohort of patients with spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD). To explore factors associated with complications and study angiographic and longer term outcomes.MethodsSCAD patients (n=215, 94% female) who underwent PCI from three national cohort studies were investigated and compared with a matched cohort of conservatively managed SCAD patients (n=221).ResultsSCAD-PCI patients were high risk at presentation with only 8.8% undergoing PCI outside the context of ST-elevation myocardial infarction/cardiac arrest, thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) 0/1 flow or proximal dissections. PCI complications occurred in 38.6% (83/215), with 13.0% (28/215) serious complications. PCI-related complications were associated with more extensive dissections (multiple vs single American Heart Association coronary segments, OR 1.9 (95% CI: 1.06–3.39),p=0.030), more proximal dissections (proximal diameter per mm, OR 2.25 (1.38–3.67), p=0.001) and dissections with no contrast penetration of the false lumen (Yip-Saw 2 versus 1, OR 2.89 (1.12–7.43), p=0.028). SCAD-PCI involved long lengths of stent (median 46mm, IQR: 29–61mm). Despite these risks, SCAD-PCI led to angiographic improvements in those with reduced TIMI flow in 84.3% (118/140). Worsening TIMI flow was only seen in 7.0% (15/215) of SCAD-PCI patients. Post-PCI major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events (MACCE) and left ventricular function outcomes were favourable.ConclusionWhile a conservative approach to revascularisation is favoured, SCAD cases with higher risk presentations may require PCI. SCAD-PCI is associated with longer stent lengths and a higher risk of complications but leads to overall improvements in coronary flow and good medium-term outcomes in patients.

ObjectiveTo compare P2Y12 inhibitor monotherapy after 3-month dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) with 12-month DAPT according to the type of P2Y12 inhibitor in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).MethodsThe Smart Angioplasty Research Team: Comparison Between P2Y12 Antagonist Monotherapy vs Dual Antiplatelet Therapy in Patients Undergoing Implantation of Coronary Drug-Eluting Stents (SMART-CHOICE) randomised trial compared 3-month DAPT followed by P2Y12 inhibitor monotherapy with 12-month DAPT. In this trial, 2993 patients undergoing successful PCI with drug-eluting stent were enrolled in Korea. As a prespecified analysis, P2Y12 inhibitor monotherapy after 3-month DAPT versus 12-month DAPT were compared among patients receiving clopidogrel and those receiving potent P2Y12 inhibitor (ticagrelor or prasugrel), respectively. The primary endpoint was a composite of all-cause death, myocardial infarction or stroke at 12 months after the index procedure.ResultsAmong 2993 patients (mean age 64 years), 58.2% presented with acute coronary syndrome. Clopidogrel was prescribed in 2312 patients (77.2%) and a potent P2Y12 inhibitor in 681 (22.8%). There were no significant differences in the primary endpoint between the P2Y12 inhibitor monotherapy group and the DAPT group among patients receiving clopidogrel (3.0% vs 3.0%; HR: 1.02; 95% CI 0.64 to 1.65; p=0.93) as well as among patients receiving potent P2Y12 inhibitors (2.4% vs 0.7%; HR: 3.37; 95% CI 0.77 to 14.78; p=0.11; interaction p=0.1). Among patients receiving clopidogrel, P2Y12 inhibitor monotherapy compared with DAPT showed consistent treatment effects across various subgroups for the primary endpoint. Among patients receiving potent P2Y12 inhibitors, the rate of bleeding (Bleeding Academic Research Consortium types 2– 5) was significantly lower in the P2Y12 inhibitor monotherapy group than in the DAPT group (1.5% vs 5.0%; HR: 0.33; 95% CI 0.12 to 0.87; p=0.03).ConclusionsCompared with 12-month DAPT, clopidogrel monotherapy after 3-month DAPT showed comparable cardiovascular outcomes in patients undergoing PCI.Trial registration numberNCT02079194.

ObjectivesPersistently impaired culprit artery flow (MethodsIn T-TIME (trial of low-dose adjunctive alTeplase during primary PCI), patients ≤6 hours from onset of ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) were randomised to placebo, alteplase 10 mg or alteplase 20 mg, administered by infusion into the culprit artery, pre-stenting. In this prespecified, secondary analysis, coronary flow was assessed angiographically at the point immediately before drug administration. Microvascular obstruction, myocardial haemorrhage and infarct size were assessed by cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) at 2–7 days and 3 months.ResultsTIMI flow was assessed after first treatment (balloon angioplasty/aspiration thrombectomy), immediately pre-drug administration, in 421 participants (mean age 61±10 years, 85% male) and was 3, 2 or 1 in 267, 134 and 19 participants respectively. In patients with TIMI flow ≤2 pre-drug, there was higher incidence of microvascular obstruction with alteplase (alteplase 20 mg (53.1%) and 10 mg (59.5%) combined versus placebo (34.1%); OR=2.47 (95% CI 1.16 to 5.22, p=0.018) interaction p=0.005) and higher incidence of myocardial haemorrhage (alteplase 20 mg (53.1%) and 10 mg (57.9%) combined vs placebo (27.5%); OR=3.26 (95% CI 1.44 to 7.36, p=0.004) interaction p=0.001). These effects were not observed in participants with TIMI 3 flow pre-drug. There were no interactions between TIMI flow pre-drug, alteplase and 3-month CMR findings.ConclusionIn patients with impaired culprit artery flow (Trial registration numberNCT02257294.

Background and objectivesChronic pulmonic regurgitation (PR) following repair of congenital heart disease (CHD) impairs right ventricular function that impacts peak exercise cardiac index (pCI). We aimed to estimate in a non-invasive way pCI and peak oxygen consumption (pVO2) and to evaluate predictors of low pCI in patients with significant residual pulmonic regurgitation after CHD repair.MethodWe included 82 patients (median age 19 years (range 10–54 years)) with residual pulmonic regurgitation fraction >40%. All underwent cardiac MRI and cardiopulmonary testing with measurement of pCI by thoracic impedancemetry. Low pCI was defined 2.ResultsLow pCI was found in 18/82 patients. Peak indexed stroke volume (pSVi) tended to compensate chronotropic insufficiency only in patients with normal pCI (r=−0.31, p=0.01). Below 20 years of age, only 5/45 patients had low pCI but near-normal (≥6.5 L/min/m2). pVO2 (mL/kg/min) was correlated with pCI (r=0.58, p=0.0002) only in patients aged >20 years. Left ventricular stroke volume in MRI correlated with pSVi only in the group of patients with low pCI (r=0.54, p=0.02). No MRI measurements predicted low pCI. In multivariable analysis, only age predicted a low pCI (OR=1.082, 95% CI 1.035 to 1.131, p=0.001) with continuous increase of risk with age.ConclusionsIn patients with severe PR, pVO2 is a partial reflection of pCI. Risk of low pCI increases with age. No resting MRI measurement predicts low haemodynamic response to exercise. Probably more suitable to detect ventricular dysfunction, pCI measurement could be an additional parameter to take into account when considering pulmonic valve replacement.

AimsThere is a paucity of evidence supporting routine beta blocker (BB) use in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for acute coronary syndrome (ACS). The aim of this study was to evaluate BB use post PCI and its association with mortality. Furthermore, the study aimed to evaluate the association between BB and mortality in the subgroups of patients with left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) 50%.MethodsUsing a large PCI registry, data from patients with ACS between January 2005 and June 2017 who were alive at 30 days were analysed. Those patients taking BB at 30 days were compared with those who were not taking BB. The primary outcome was all-cause mortality. The mean follow-up was 5.3±3.5 years.ResultsOf the 17 562 patients, 83.3% were on BB. Mortality was lower in the BB group (13.1% vs 19.5%, p=0.0001). Multivariable Cox proportional hazards model showed that BB use was associated with lower overall mortality (adjusted HR 0.87, 95% CI 0.78 to 0.97, p=0.014). In the subgroup analysis, BB use was associated with reduced mortality in LVEF 50% (adjusted HR 1.03, 95% CI 0.87 to 1.21, p=0.74).ConclusionBB use remains high and is associated with reduced mortality. This reduction in mortality is primarily seen in those with reduced ejection fraction, but not in those with preserved ejection fraction.

BackgroundIn stable ischaemic heart disease (SIHD), measurement of fractional flow reserve (FFR) to guide selection of lesions for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) reduces death and myocardial infarction (MI) compared with angiographic guidance. However, it is unknown if the improved outcomes are due to avoidance of stenting of physiologically insignificant lesions or are a by-product of placing fewer stents.MethodsWe developed a Monte Carlo simulation using the PCI strata of the Bypass Angioplasty Revascularization Investigation 2 Diabetes study to investigate how random deferral of PCI impacts outcomes. To simulate deferral, a randomly selected group of patients randomised to PCI were removed and replaced by an equal number of randomly selected patients randomised to intensive medical therapy (IMT) using a random number generator in Python’s NumPy module. The primary endpoint was the rate of death or non-fatal MI at 1 year.ResultsDeath/MI at 1 year occurred in 8.3% of 798 patients in the PCI group and 5.1% of 807 patients in the IMT control group (p=0.02). Following 10 000 iterations of random replacement of 10%, 20%, 30% or 40% of PCI patients with randomly selected IMT patients, the rate of death/MI at 1 year progressively declined from 8.3% to 8.0%, 7.6%, 7.3% and 7.0%, respectively.ConclusionsIn this simulation model, random deferral of PCI procedures in SIHD progressively reduced death/MI as the percentage of procedures deferred increases. FFR-guided deferral of PCI may improve outcomes as a result of placing fewer stents and be unrelated to the haemodynamic severity of lesions.

Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) continues to advance at pace with an ever-broadening indication. In this article we will review the recent technological advances in PCI that have enabled more complex coronary disease to be treated. The choice of revascularisation strategy must take into account the evidence—just because we can treat by PCI does not necessarily mean we should. When PCI is indicated, a safe, precision PCI approach guided by physiology, imaging and optimal lesion preparation should be the goal to obtain complete revascularisation and a durable long-term result. When these standards are adhered to, the outcomes can be excellent, in even complex coronary disease. We provide contemporary trial evidence to justify PCI and treatment algorithms that ensure optimal revascularisation decision making to achieve the best patient outcomes.

IntroductionThere is conflicting evidence regarding the benefits of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients with grey zone fractional flow reserve (GZFFR artery) values (0.75–0.80). The prevalence of ischaemia is unknown. We wished to define the prevalence of ischaemia inGZFFR artery and assess whether PCI is superior to optimal medical therapy (OMT) for angina control.MethodsWe enrolled 104 patients with angina with 1:1 randomisation to PCI or OMT. The artery was interrogated with a Doppler flow/pressure wire. Patients underwent Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) with follow-up at 3 and 12 months. The primary outcome was angina status at 3 months using the Seattle Angina Questionnaire (SAQ).Results104 patients (age 60±9 years), 79 (76%) males and 79 (76%) Left Anterior Descending (LAD) stenoses were randomised. Coronary physiology and SAQ were similar. Of 98 patients with stress perfusion MRI data, 17 (17%) had abnormal perfusion (≥2 segments with ≥25% ischaemia or ≥1 segment with ≥50% ischaemia) in the targetGZFFR artery. Of 89 patients with invasive physiology data, 26 (28%) had coronary flow velocity reserve GZFFR artery. After 3 months of follow-up, compared with patients treated with OMT only, patients treated by PCI and OMT had greater improvements in SAQ angina frequency (21 (28) vs 10 (23); p=0.026) and quality of life (24 (26) vs 11 (24); p=0.008) though these differences were no longer significant at 12 months.ConclusionsNon-invasive evidence of major ischaemia is uncommon in patients withGZFFR artery. Compared with OMT alone, patients randomised to undergo PCI reported improved symptoms after 3 months but these differences were no longer significant after 12 months.Trial registration numberNCT02425969.

Despite significant advances in the treatment of ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), there remains a significant short-term and long-term increased mortality risk. Risk stratification to target those who may benefit from more intensive therapy postrevascularisation therefore remains an important goal. Risk stratification models in acute coronary syndrome (ACS) have been researched for many years, but few risk scores have been developed and validated specifically for the STEMI population. Only 27% of the cohort for the Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) score was derived from those undergoing percutaneous intervention (PCI), and the GRACE score performs less accurately in those undergoing PCI compared with medical therapy. Nevertheless European1 (but not American2) guidelines recommend its use for clinical risk stratification in the STEMI cohort. Risk scores derived specifically for STEMI include the Global Utilization of Streptokinase and Tissue plasminogen activator to treat Occluded arteries (GUSTO) risk score, which was developed in the era of thrombolysis, while risk scores assessing mortality in primary PCI patients include the Primary Angioplasty in Myocardial Infarction (PAMI) risk score, Controlled Abciximab and Device Investigation to Lower Late Angioplasty Complications (CADILLAC) risk score, Assessment of Pexelizumab in Acute Myocardial Infarction (APEX-AMI) score, Soroka Acute Myocardial Infarction (SAMI) score, and the Zwolle risk score. Coelho-Lima and colleagues3 examine the prognostic value of troponin specifically in the STEMI population, a group where troponin is not used to guide initial treatment. Their major findings are that admission troponin, but not troponin measured 12 hours post-reperfusion, was a significant independent predictor of both inpatient or overall mortality, with a median follow-up time of over 4 years. The authors are to be commended for this large retrospective study—in particular, the clinical …

The adverse consequences of stable coronary artery disease (CAD) are death, myocardial infarction (MI) and angina. Trials in stable CAD show that percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) does not reduce mortality. PCI does appear to reduce spontaneous MI rates but at the expense of causing some periprocedural MI. Therefore, the main purpose of PCI is to relieve angina. Indeed, patients and physicians often choose PCI rather than first attempting to control symptoms with anti-anginal medications as recommended by guidelines. Nevertheless, it is unclear how effective PCI is at relieving angina. This is because, whereas anti-anginal medications are universally required to be tested against placebo, there is no such requirement for procedural interventions such as PCI. The first placebo-controlled trial of PCI showed a surprisingly small effect size. This may be because it is overly simplistic to assume that the presence of a stenosis and inducible ischaemia in a patient means that the clinical chest pain they report is caused by ischaemia. In this article, we review the evidence base and argue that if we as a medical specialty wish to lead the science of procedures for symptom control, we should recognise the special merit of placebo-controlled experiments.

ObjectiveMyocardial ischaemia is a leading cause of acute heart failure (AHF). However, optimal revascularisation strategies in AHF are unclear. We aimed to compare two revascularisation strategies, coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), in patients with AHF.MethodsAmong 5625 consecutive patients enrolled prospectively in the Korean Acute Heart Failure registry from March 2011 to February 2014, 717 patients who received CABG or PCI during the index hospitalisation for AHF were included in this analysis. We compared adverse outcomes (death, rehospitalisation for HF aggravation or cardiovascular causes, ischaemic stroke and a composite outcome of death and rehospitalisation for HF aggravation or cardiovascular causes) with the use of propensity score matching.ResultsFor the propensity score-matched cohort with 190 patients, CABG had a lower risk of all-cause mortality than PCI (83 vs 147 deaths per 1000 patient-years; HR 0.57, 95% CI 0.34 to 0.96, p=0.033) during the median follow-up of 4 years. There was also a trend towards lower rates of rehospitalisation due to cardiovascular events or HF aggravation. Subgroup analysis revealed that the adverse outcomes were significantly lower in the CABG group than in PCI group, especially in patients with old age, three-vessel diseases, significant proximal left anterior descending artery disease and those without left main vessel disease or chronic total occlusion.ConclusionsCompared with PCI, CABG is associated with significant lower all-cause mortality in patients with AHF. Further studies should evaluate proper revascularisation strategies in AHF.Clinical trial registrationNCT01389843; Results.

Clinical introductionA man in his early 30s with remote history of a febrile rash as a toddler presented to the emergency room following an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest while riding his bicycle. He received bystander cardiopulmonary resuscitation and one shock from an automatic external defibrillator, successfully restoring sinus rhythm. On arrival, he was haemodynamically stable without ECG evidence of ST segment changes to suggest active ischaemia, and an initial troponin I was mildly elevated at 0.10 ng/mL (normal Figure 1(A) Right coronary artery angiogram in the left anterior oblique cranial projection. (B) Left coronary artery angiogram in the right anterior oblique caudal projection. (C) Left coronary artery angiogram in the right anterior oblique cranial projection. CAUD, caudal; CRAN, cranial; LAO, left anterior oblique; RAO, right anterior oblique.QuestionWhat is the next best step in the management of this patient at this time?Complete revascularisation via percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).Referral for coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG).Initiation of high-dose steroids.Initiation of dual-antiplatelet therapy without planned revascularisation.

Learning objectives In the 40 years since Gruntzig’s first angioplasty,1 percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has become one of the most frequently performed therapeutic interventions in medicine.2 Devices and techniques have evolved during this period and facilitated improved patient outcomes, so unlike Gruntzig it is no longer necessary to have a cardiac surgeon present for every procedure. However, these advancements have resulted in the treatment of increasingly complex patient populations, including acute coronary syndrome, chronic total occlusion (CTO), calcified coronary disease and cardiogenic shock. Consequently, despite improved device and procedural safety, complications associated with PCI continue to be encountered. It is of paramount importance that interventional cardiologists are equipped with the knowledge and skills required to rapidly recognise complications, and have strategies to overcome them, thereby minimising the risk of injury to their patients. It is important to recognise that all invasive vascular interventions are associated with a risk of bleeding and vascular injury; however, for the purpose of this review, we will focus only on complications relating specifically to coronary intervention. ### Traumatic coronary dissection Coronary dissection is a pathological separation of the layers of the vessel. Traumatic coronary dissection can be induced by the guide catheter, wire manipulation, equipment in the coronary artery (imaging probes, ‘mother-and-child catheters’) or excessive balloon and stent expansion. Guide catheter-induced dissection affects the ostioproximal segment of the vessel initially but may extend retrogradely into the aortic root or propagate down the coronary artery. Ostial disease and supportive guide catheters, particularly in patients with small aortic root dimensions, increase the risk of dissection. Careful attention should be paid to guide …

BackgroundIschaemic heart disease is the leading cause of in-hospital mortality in Sri Lanka. Acute Coronary Syndrome Sri Lanka Audit Project (ACSSLAP) is the first national clinical-audit project that evaluated patient characteristics, clinical outcomes and care provided by state-sector hospitals.MethodsACSSLAP prospectively evaluated acute care, in-hospital care and discharge plans provided by all state-sector hospitals managing patients with ACS. Data were collected from 30 consecutive patients from each hospital during 2–4 weeks window. Local and international recommendations were used as audit standards.ResultsData from 87/98 (88.7%) hospitals recruited 2177 patients, with 2116 confirmed as having ACS. Mean age was 61.4±11.8 years (range 20–95) and 58.7% (n=1242) were males. There were 813 (38.4%) patients with unstable angina, 695 (32.8%) with non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) and 608 (28.7%) with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). Both STEMI (69.9%) and NSTEMI (61.4%) were more in males (PConclusionsIn patients with ACS, aspirin, clopidogrel and statin use met audit standards in acute setting and on discharge. Vast majority of patients with STEMI underwent fibrinolyisis than PCI, due to limited resources. Primary PCI, planned coronary interventions and timely thrombolysis need improvement in Sri Lanka.

Approximately half of patients presenting to the hospital with an acutely occluded coronary artery that is causing ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) have significant stenosis of other coronary arteries.1 Observational studies have shown that patients with STEMI along with multivessel disease (MVD) fare worse than those with single vessel disease. Timely revascularisation of the culprit coronary artery is considered crucial for the treatment of STEMI. However, the management of other diseased, non-culprit coronary vascular territories has been an area of considerable debate. Recently published randomised clinical trials (RCTs) suggesting a beneficial effect from complete revascularisation have led to changes in guidelines, now supporting intervention of non-culprit vessels (class IIa or IIb recommendation).2 3 The goal of this Cochrane systematic review was to compare efficacy and safety of the culprit-only versus complete revascularisation strategies in patients with STEMI and MVD. Importantly, we also analysed comprehensively the quality of the evidence using the Cochrane standards. We searched for RCTs comparing complete revascularisation versus culprit-only percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in adult patients (≥18 years old) with STEMI and MVD in the Cochrane Central Register, MEDLINE, EMBASE, WHO ICTRP Portal and ClinicalTrials.gov since their inception up to January 2017.4 We extracted data on all-cause mortality, cardiovascular mortality, myocardial infarction, revascularisation and adverse events that included stroke, acute kidney injury and bleeding. The data were extracted on short-term (within the first 30 days after the index procedure) and long-term (1 year or greater after the index procedure) outcomes. Data were analysed as risk ratio (RR) with 95% CI, and we conducted analyses according to the statistical guidelines contained in the Cochrane Handbook for Systematic Reviews of Interventions.5 Furthermore, for trial sequential analysis (TSA),6 the required information size was calculated based on a 20% relative risk reduction (RRR) in the intervention group, a type …

ObjectivesPrasugrel and ticagrelor both reduce ischaemic endpoints in high-risk acute coronary syndromes, compared with clopidogrel. However, comparative outcomes of these two newer drugs in the context of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) remains unclear. We sought to examine this question using the British Cardiovascular Interventional Society national database in patients undergoing primary PCI for STEMI.MethodsData from January 2007 to December 2014 were used to compare use of P2Y12 antiplatelet drugs in primary PCI in >89 000 patients. Statistical modelling, involving propensity matching, multivariate logistic regression (MLR) and proportional hazards modelling, was used to study the association of different antiplatelet drug use with all-cause mortality.ResultsIn our main MLR analysis, prasugrel was associated with significantly lower mortality than clopidogrel at both 30 days (OR 0.87, 95% CI 0.78 to 0.97, P=0.014) and 1 year (OR 0.89, 95% CI 0.82 to 0.97, P=0.011) post PCI. Ticagrelor was not associated with any significant differences in mortality compared with clopidogrel at either 30 days (OR 1.07, 95% CI 0.95 to 1.21, P=0.237) or 1 year (OR 1.058, 95% CI 0.96 to 1.16, P=0.247). Finally, ticagrelor was associated with significantly higher mortality than prasugrel at both time points (30 days OR 1.22, 95% CI 1.03 to 1.44, P=0.020; 1 year OR 1.19 95% CI 1.04 to 1.35, P=0.01).ConclusionsIn a cohort of over 89 000 patients undergoing primary PCI for STEMI in the UK, prasugrel is associated with a lower 30-day and 1-year mortality than clopidogrel and ticagrelor. Given that an adequately powered comparative randomised trial is unlikely to be performed, these data may have implications for routine care.

Primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) is a cornerstone of treatment for acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Despite major achievements in the procedure itself and in the infrastructure allowing timely delivery of PPCI, a substantial proportion of patients will suffer significant myocardial injury despite successful treatment of the epicardial coronary artery. Microvascular obstruction (MVO), due to a combination of distal thrombotic embolisation, ischaemia reperfusion injury and related endothelial dysfunction, myocardial oedema and intramyocardial haemorrhage (IMH), is postulated as a mechanism for this residual myocardial injury. When measured by cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) early after AMI, MVO is predictive of subsequent longer-term outcomes. At the time of PPCI, potential predictors of MVO include AMI characteristics, such as anterior territory AMI, and procedurally assessed characteristics, the most common being reduced or slow intracoronary flow. Many approaches have been proposed to minimise the extent of MVO—thrombus aspiration prior to PCI, glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors and conventional dose fibrinolysis, with no therapy showing significant clinical efficacy once assessed in randomised trials. On the basis that MVO might be reduced by reducing the overall thrombus burden, low-dose fibrinolytic therapy has been proposed as a potential treatment in this setting. The T-TIME trial examined whether low-dose (one-fifth or one-tenth full dose) intracoronary alteplase would reduce MVO and IMH when administered during PPCI, after reperfusion of the infarct related artery, but before …

Learning objectives The synergistic effect of comorbidity, coronary artery lesion complexity and left ventricular (LV) systolic function can significantly increase the risk of adverse events at the time of myocardial revascularisation (figure 1). In patients with LV dysfunction and a large territory of ischaemia who have little reserve, further reductions in blood pressure can result in a spiral of haemodynamic compromise, culminating in cardiogenic shock or even death. In this article, we address factors that confer increased risk, current tools to quantify and guide revascularisation strategy in such patients; concluding with interventions to minimise risk including haemodynamic support devices, involvement of the heart team and technical considerations during procedural planning. Figure 1 Factors increasing the risk of myocardial revascularisation. LMS, left main stem; LV, left ventricle. ### Comorbidity An increasing number of revascularisation procedures are performed in patients over 70, despite poor representation in randomised controlled trials (RCT).1–3 Elderly patients are more likely to present with extensive coronary artery disease (CAD), higher lesion complexity and multiple comorbidities. Increasing age is associated with up to fourfold increased risk of death, myocardial infarction (MI), stroke, renal failure and bleeding, following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), in both the acute and elective setting.4 5 Older age is also a predictor of in-hospital mortality and stroke following coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery, with the worst outcomes in those following urgent and emergency surgery.3 6 7 There is often disparity between chronological and biological age, which is more difficult to quantify. ‘Frailty’, a syndrome of physical functional decline, malnourishment, cognitive impairment and reduced physical capacity to stressors, is itself associated with adverse outcomes.8 9 The Charlson comorbidity index attempts to address some of these additional factors and has been shown to predict 1-year mortality in cardiac …

Learning objectives Obstructive atheroma of the left main stem (LMS) is relatively unusual as it is present in only 4% of diagnostic coronary angiograms.1 Historically, disease of the LMS has been treated with particular respect as the LMS provides blood supply to at least two-thirds of the left ventricle,2 since prognosis after diagnosis of LMS obstruction is poor without treatment and because percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) to the LMS usually involves a major bifurcation with higher calcific and fibrotic components than atherosclerosis elsewhere in the coronary tree.3 4 These historical data and technical challenges resulted in coronary bypass grafting (CABG) being the standard treatment of LMS narrowing especially because of the excellent results achieved using the left internal mammary artery graft to the left anterior descending artery.5 Encouraging outcomes when treating the LMS with PCI in patients unsuitable for surgery and technical advances in the predictability of PCI outcome have generated interest and reconsideration of the relative merits of PCI and CABG. Four small preliminary studies6–9 were performed, but provocative data from the randomised Synergy between PCI with Taxus and Cardiac Surgery (SYNTAX) trial substudy9 provided sufficient circumstantial evidence for the initiation of two international multicentre randomised comparative trials of surgery versus PCI for LMS disease: Evaluation of Xience Versus CABG for Effectiveness of Left Main …

‘Time is muscle’. It has been almost 50 years since Professor Eugene Braunwald introduced the revolutionary hypothesis that the severity and the extent of myocardial injury resulting from coronary occlusion could be radically reduced by timely interventions.1 Since that time, research has focused on the identification of sources of delays, with the aim to optimise the delivery of care to patients suffering from acute myocardial infarction (AMI), thus minimising total ischaemic time from symptom onset to reperfusion therapy. This translated to guideline recommendations establishing several goals to be met in this context, such as optimal ‘time to diagnosis’ and ‘time to reperfusion’. Healthcare systems have been promptly reorganised over the last decades according to such endorsements, mainly by implementing networks between hospitals (‘hub’ and ‘spoke’) and the definition of geographical areas of responsibility, sharing protocols based on risk stratification and transportation by trained staff in appropriately equipped ambulances. While this strategy proved to be successful in ‘peaceful times’, resulting in significant outcome improvement in patients suffering from AMI, such organisation was never tested within a benchmark ‘crisis period’ that was supposed to severely overwhelm national health systems. The COVID-19 outbreak and the consequential measures of governments to contain the pandemic (ie, ‘national lockdowns’) put a strain on the established system of cardiovascular assistance, calling into question many assumptions of our ordinary clinical practice. In this issue of Heart , Kwok and collaborators2 reported a significant reduction in primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) following the national lockdown in England. This finding supports the pieces of evidence arising from previous studies about a relevant reduction in hospital admissions for cardiovascular issues, such as acute coronary syndromes (ACS) and heart failure, during the COVID-19 pandemic.3 …

In patients undergoing primary percutaneous intervention (PCI) for ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI), about 10% also have a chronic total occlusion (CTO) of a non-culprit coronary artery. It remains controversial whether PCI of the CTO vessel, in addition to the culprit vessel, improves clinical outcome. The results of the randomised Evaluating Xience and left ventricular function in PCI on occlusiOns afteR STEMI (EXPLORE) study of 302 STEMI patients with successful PCI of the culprit vessel are reported in this issue of Heart. 1 Overall, there was no difference in major adverse cardiac events (MACE) at a median follow-up of 3.9 years in those with or without PCI of the CTO vessel (13.5% vs 12.3%, HR 1.03, 95% CI 0.54 to 1.98; p=0.93, figure 1). Although all-cause mortality did not differ between groups, cardiac mortality was higher with CTO-PCI (6.0% vs 1.0%, p=0.02). More patients with CTO-PCI were free of angina at 1 year (6.0% vs 1.0%, p=0.02) but his difference was not sustained on longer term follow-up. Overall, CTO-PCI in the setting of STEMI was not associated with a reduction in MACE, improvement in ventricular function or sustained reduction in symptoms. Figure 1 Clinical effect of early CTO-PCI vs CTO-no PCI on MACE in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction with a concurrent CTO: long-term follow-up. Kaplan-Meier estimates of the cumulative event rate of the composite end point of MACE: cardiac death, CABG and MI. Analyses were performed on a intention-to-treat basis. CTO, chronic total …

Leaning objectives To date, there remains no universal definition for ‘elderly’, and indeed for some, biological age does not correspond with chronological age. However, most now consider elderly as those aged ≥80 years. Within the Western world, the general population is ageing; therefore, the proportion of octogenarians (defined as age >80 years) in the general population is expected to triple by the year 2050.1 Advanced age is associated with an increased incidence of coronary heart disease, with patients presenting with both stable and unstable (acute coronary syndromes (ACS)) symptoms.2 ,3 Hence, cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in older people, and increasingly, elderly patients are referred for revascularisation. As such, they represent an important high-risk subgroup of patients. Myocardial revascularisation is appropriate when the expected benefits, in terms of survival or health outcomes (symptoms, functional status and/or quality of life (QoL)), exceed the expected negative consequences of the procedure.4 However, revascularisation in this high-risk population is not without risk. It can often be a very difficult clinical decision whether or not an elderly patient should undergo attempted revascularisation, irrespective of the modality, whether that be by coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) or percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Many have significant comorbid pathology, and previous studies have shown that octogenarians experience increased in-hospital complications and mortality relative to younger patients.3 ,5 To date, many revascularisation trials have focused on a younger patient demographic, with octogenarians often under-represented, and with varying definitions. Therefore, the existing evidence and guidelines that exist are often extrapolated from trial based on a younger patient population into this rapidly growing …

Objective To evaluate the long-term follow-up of the unrestricted use of a biodegradable polymer-coated drug-eluting stent in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Methods The Nobori 2 study was a prospective, multicentre, observational registry evaluating the safety and the efficacy of the biodegradable polymer biolimus-eluting stent (BP-BES) among 3067 patients recruited at 125 international sites. The primary combined endpoint was a composite of cardiac death, myocardial infarction and target-lesion revascularisation (TLR). Results Five-year follow-up was available in 2738 (89.3%) patients. The combined endpoint occurred in 268 patients (10%, 95% CIs 8.9% to 11.3%) at 5 years, with 3.9% of events during the first year and 6.2% during years 1–5 of follow-up. Cumulative rates of TLR and definite/probable stent thrombosis were 5.3% (95% CI 4.5% to 6.3%) and 1.1% (95% CI 0.8% to 1.6%), respectively. Between 1 and 5 years, TLR and very late stent thrombosis rates were 3.5% (95% CI 2.8% to 4.4%) and 0.6% (95% CI 0.3% to 1.1%), respectively. Previous PCI (HR, 2.05, 95% CI 1.68 to 2.50), moderate-to-severe renal disease (HR, 1.89, 95% CI 1.30 to 2.74) and peripheral vascular disease (HR, 1.86, 95% CI 1.38 to 2.52) were the three most powerful independent predictors of the combined endpoint at 5 years. Conclusions The final 5-year follow-up of the Nobori 2 registry demonstrates the safety and effectiveness of the BP-BES in an unselected, broadly inclusive cohort of PCI patients, highlighting the excellent performance of this coronary stent technology after polymer biodegradation. Trial registration number ISRCTN81649913; Results.

Fractional flow reserve (FFR) has been suggested to have value in acute coronary syndromes (ACSs). The clinical and prognostic value of ischaemia reduction assessed by post-percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) FFR has not been studied in this population.Consecutive stable ischaemic heart disease (SIHD) (N=390) and patients with ACS (N=189) who had pre-PCI FFR and post-PCI FFR were followed for 2.4±1.5 years. Primary endpoint was major adverse cardiac events (MACE) (composite of myocardial infarction, target vessel revascularisation and death).In patients with ACS, PCI led to significant improvement in FFR from 0.62±0.15 to post-PCI FFR 0.88±0.08 (p0.0001). Post-PCI FFR identified 29 patients (15%) who had persistently low FFR0.80 (0.75±0.06) despite angiographically optimal results prompting subsequent interventions improving repeat FFR (0.85±0.06; p0.0001). The difference in MACE events between patients with ACS and patients with SIHD varied according to the post-PCI FFR value (interaction p=0.044). Receiver operator curve analysis identified a final FFR cut-off of ≤0.91 as having the best predictive accuracy for MACE in the ACS study population (30% vs 19%; p=0.03). Patients with ACS achieving final FFR of0.91 had similar outcomes compared with patients who had SIHD (19% vs 16%; p=0.51). However, in patients with final FFR of ≤0.91 there was increased MACE versus patients with SIHD (30% vs 16%; p0.01).Post-PCI FFR is valuable in assessing the functional outcome of PCI in patients with ACS. Use of post-PCI FFR in patients with ACS allows for functional optimisation of PCI results and is predictive of long-term outcomes in patients with ACS.

Objective For percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) to the unprotected left main stem (UPLMS), there are limited long-term outcome data. We evaluated 5-year survival for UPLMS PCI cases taking into account background population mortality. Methods A population-based registry of 10 682 cases of chronic stable angina (CSA), non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndrome (NSTEACS), ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction with (STEMI+CS) and without cardiogenic shock (STEMI−CS) who received UPLMS PCI from 2005 to 2014 were matched by age, sex, year of procedure and country to death data for the UK populace of 56.6 million people. Relative survival and excess mortality were estimated. Results Over 26 105 person-years follow-up, crude 5-year relative survival was 93.8% for CSA, 73.1% for NSTEACS, 77.5% for STEMI−CS and 28.5% for STEMI+CS. The strongest predictor of excess mortality among CSA was renal failure (EMRR 6.73, 95% CI 4.06 to 11.15), and for NSTEACS and STEMI−CS was preprocedural ventilation (6.25, 5.05 to 7.75 and 6.92, 4.25 to 11.26, respectively). For STEMI+CS, the strongest predictor of excess mortality was preprocedural thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) 0 flow (2.78, 1.87 to 4.13), whereas multivessel PCI was associated with improved survival (0.74, 0.61 to 0.90). Conclusions Long-term survival following UPLMS PCI for CSA was high, approached that of the background populace and was significantly predicted by co-morbidity. For NSTEACS and STEMI−CS, the requirement for preprocedural ventilation was the strongest determinant of excess mortality. By contrast, among STEMI+CS, in whom survival was poor, the strongest determinant was preprocedural TIMI flow. Future cardiovascular cohort studies of long-term mortality should consider the impact of non-cardiovascular deaths.

To determine predictors of failure of transradial approach (TRA) in patients with ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), and develop a novel score specific for this population.Consecutive patients with STEMI undergoing primary PCI in a tertiary care high-volume radial centre were included. TRA-PCI failure was categorised as primary (primary transfemoral approach (TFA)) or crossover (from TRA to TFA). Multivariate analysis was performed to determine independent predictors of TRA-PCI failure, and an integer risk score was developed. Clinical outcomes up to 1 year were assessed.From January 2006 to January 2011, 2020 patients were studied. Primary TRA-PCI failure occurred in 111 (5%) patients and crossover to TFA in 44 (2.2%) patients. Independent predictors of TRA-PCI failure were: weight ≤65 kg (OR: 3.0; 95% CI 1.9 to 4.8, p0.0001), physician with ≤5% TFA conversion (OR: 0.45; 95% CI 0.2 to 0.9, p=0.033), and physician with ≥10% conversion to TFA (OR: 2.2; 95% CI 1.2 to 3.7, p=0.005), intra-aortic balloon pump (OR: 2.0; 95% CI 0.9 to 4.3, p=0.066), cardiogenic shock (OR: 2.8; 95% CI 1.4 to 5.6, p=0.0035), endotracheal intubation (OR: 107; 95% CI 42 to 339, p0.0001), creatinine133 μmol/L (OR: 3.6; 95% CI 1.9 to 6.8, p0.0001), age ≥75 (OR: 1.7; 95% CI 1.0 to 2.9, p=0.031), prior PCI (OR: 2.6; 95% CI 1.5 to 4.5, p=0.0009), hypertension (OR: 1.8; 95% CI 1.2 to 2.9, p=0.009). An integer risk score ranging from -1 to 12 was developed, and predicted TRA-PCI failure from 0% to 100% (c-statistic of 0.868; 95% CI 0.866 to 0.869). Mortality at 1 year remained significantly higher after TRA-PCI failure (adjusted OR 2.2; 95% CI 1.2 to 3.9, p=0.011).In a high-volume radial centre, the incidence of TRA-PCI failure is low and can be accurately predicted using a 9-variables risk score. Since outcomes after TRA-PCI failure remained inferior, further effort to maximise the use of radial approach for primary PCI should be investigated.

Introduction Out of hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) represents a common presentation to both the emergency department and the catheter lab. Understanding of the factors associated with poor outcome in this patient group is limited; thus management decisions are challenging. The aim of this analysis was to retrospectively review clinical records for OHCA patients undergoing catheter lab procedures to determine factors associated with poor outcome. Methods Data on patients undergoing coronary angiography and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) between January 2009 and May 2015 at a tertiary cardiac centre were retrospectively reviewed. A keyword search was performed on all records to identify relevant procedures and these results were manually reviewed by two authors to confirm they were OHCA cases. Cases were excluded if they initially presented to a different hospital and were later transferred for investigation. Procedure details, discharge summaries, blood results and mortality data were reviewed. Results 27 578 angiogram or PCI procedures were carried out between January 2009 and May 2015; 242 (0.9%) of these were patients presenting with OHCA. Forty-two patients (17.3%) died within 30 days of presentation. Demographic details of this population are shown in Table 1. Univariate analysis revealed that blood gas pH and lactate were strongly correlated with 30 day mortality (p Conclusion OHCA constituted 0.9% of activity during the period of review. There were significant correlations between 30 day mortality and several biochemical and clinical markers available at presentation. The use of these markers may be of use in triaging patients who are likely to benefit from interventional procedures.

Forty years since Andreas Gruentzig performed the first percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), the rationale for revascularisation in stable coronary artery disease (CAD) continues to evolve. The cardiology community has shifted from revascularisation of all anatomically obstructive lesions towards deferring and medically managing stenoses with preserved flow as measured by fractional flow reserve (FFR). Clinical trials have established the role of FFR in contemporary therapeutic decision making, with FFR-guided revascularisation associated with a reduction in the incidence of myocardial infarction, improved angina relief compared with optimal medical therapy (OMT) and reduced healthcare costs.1 2 ​Decision making in modern medicine is often driven by binary cut-offs, a strategy that has both strengths and limitations. On one hand, a binary cut-off can facilitate decision making and ease of interpretation, and therefore encourages the use of intracoronary physiology in clinical practice. In contrast, the use of a rigid cut-off does not account for the biological and measurement variability of FFR, thereby introducing a degree of inaccuracy around the diagnostic threshold. Initially an FFR value of 99% positive predictive value for inducible myocardial ischaemia across multiple non-invasive modalities.3 4 Given the observation that in a small proportion of lesions an FFR between 0.75 and 0.80 was associated with flow-limiting stenosis, the FFR threshold to guide revascularisation in the FAME trials was increased to 0.80 to improve its sensitivity in detecting ischaemia at the cost of specificity.2 Accordingly, an FFR grey zone for values between 0.75 and 0.80 was recommended in which decision making should be based on clinical judgement and the presence of additional information.1 Yet using binary cut-off values in interpreting FFR goes beyond diagnostic accuracy and has implications for its prognostic value. Previous …

Objective The effects of ticagrelor in the subpopulation of patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) were consistent with those observed in the overall Platelet Inhibition and Patient Outcomes (PLATO) study. However, this subgroup included patients initially or ultimately treated conservatively. The aim of this study is to compare treatment using ticagrelor with treatment using clopidogrel in patients with STEMI undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Methods This post-hoc subgroup analysis compared ticagrelor with clopidogrel in 4949 PLATO patients with STEMI that were treated with primary PCI within 12 h of admission. The primary endpoint was cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction or stroke. The safety endpoint consisted of any major bleeding. Secondary endpoints included stent thrombosis. The analysis was not adequately powered to establish significance of any treatment effects. Results During a median of 286 days, the primary endpoint occurred in 7.9% of ticagrelor-treated patients versus 8.6% of clopidogrel-treated patients (HR 0.91, 95% CI 0.75 to 1.12, p=0.38). Major bleeding occurred in 6.7% in ticagrelor-treated patients versus 6.8% of clopidogrel-treated patients (HR 0.97, 95% CI 0.77 to 1.22, p=0.79). No interactions were observed for the treatment effect of ticagrelor versus clopidogrel on the primary efficacy (p=0.40) and primary safety endpoints (p=0.15) as compared with the full PLATO population. Treatment with ticagrelor versus clopidogrel reduced the occurrence of definite stent thrombosis (HR 0.58, 95% CI 0.37 to 0.89, p=0.013). Conclusions In the subset of patients with STEMI treated with primary PCI, ticagrelor compared with clopidogrel was safe, and efficacy outcomes were consistent with the overall PLATO trial. Trial registration number NCT00391872; Results.

Objectives Primary percutaneous coronary intervention (P-PCI) is the preferred reperfusion option in ST-elevation myocardial infarction, but its benefits become attenuated as time to its potential delivery becomes prolonged. Based on the STrategic Reperfusion Early After Myocardial Infarction trial, we assessed the impact of increasing time delay on outcomes in patients randomised to a pharmacoinvasive strategy (PI) or P-PCI. Methods Thirty-day clinical outcomes were examined according to PCI-related delay (P-RD). Data from hospitals that enrolled >10 randomised patients were used and P-RD categorised as ≤55 min, >55–97 min and >97 min. Results Composite of death/congestive heart failure/cardiogenic shock/myocardial infarction in PI and P-PCI arms occurred in 10.6% versus 10.3% (≤55 min, p=0.910); 13.9% versus 17.9% (>55–97 min, p=0.148) and 13.5% versus 16.2% (>97 min, p=0.470), respectively. While there was no worsening of outcomes for PI across the P-RD spectrum, this occurred in the P-PCI arm (p(trend)=0.038). For P-RD ≤55 min, fewer events tended to occur with P-PCI than PI. Conversely, as P-RD increased to >55 min, PI-assigned patients had better outcomes than P-PCI, suggesting an event-free advantage with PI as P-RD increased (p(interaction)=0.094). Analysing P-RD continuously showed that for every 10-min increment there was an increasing trend towards benefit among PI-assigned patients (p(interaction)=0.073). Conclusions As P-RD increased, PI outcomes became superior to P-PCI when P-RD is prolonged and exceeds guideline-mandated times. In such circumstances, a PI strategy may provide an alternative reperfusion option. Adverse time delays for delivery of P-PCI should be considered when evaluating reperfusion strategies. Trial registration number NCT00623623.

Primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI) is the reperfusion treatment of choice for acute ST-elevation myocardial infarction with studies having demonstrated improved outcomes with PPCI over thrombolysis. Its use has increased substantially over the last decade, overtaking thrombolytic therapy in many countries. This has been paralleled with advances in adjunctive technology and pharmacological therapy to further improve outcome, but challenges remain for PPCI practitioners. The evidence behind PPCI is reviewed at every stage of the patient's journey.

Objective To evaluate the proportion of patients hospitalised with acute coronary syndrome (ACS) in Australia and New Zealand who received optimal inpatient preventive care and to identify factors associated with preventive care. Methods All patients hospitalised bi-nationally with ACS were identified between 14–27 May 2012. Optimal in-hospital preventive care was defined as having received lifestyle advice, referral to rehabilitation, and prescription of secondary prevention pharmacotherapies. Multilevel multivariable logistic regression was used to determine factors associated with receipt of optimal preventive care. Results For the 2299 ACS survivors, mean (SD) age was 69 (13) years, 46% were referred to rehabilitation, 65% were discharged on sufficient preventive medications, and 27% received optimal preventive care. Diagnosis of ST elevation myocardial infarction (OR: 2.64 [95% CI: 1.88–3.71]; p

To investigate the relation of residual worst lead ST segment elevation (WL-STE) after ST segment myocardial infarction (STEMI) with infarct size and microvascular injury assessed by cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging.WL-STE in patients with acute reperfused STEMI has been shown to identify high risk patients for major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE). However, the relation of WL-STE with myocardial damage is unknown.In this multicentre study we analysed ECG data 90 min after primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in 763 STEMI patients. WL-STE was defined as the absolute magnitude of STE in the most affected lead on the post-PCI ECG. Patients were categorised into three groups (1 mm, 1-2 mm, and ≥2 mm). CMR was performed within 1 week after infarction for comprehensive assessment of myocardial damage using a standardised protocol. The primary clinical endpoint was MACE defined as death, reinfarction, and new congestive heart failure within 12 months after infarction.WL-STE1 mm, 1-2 mm, and ≥2 mm was present in 155 (20%), 328 (43%), and 280 (37%) patients, respectively. Myocardial damage determined by CMR demonstrated a graded relationship of infarct size (median (IQR) 13.3 (6.2-20.3)%LV vs 13.7 (7.6-21.3)%LV vs 22.5 (15.6-31.2)%LV, p0.001), the myocardial salvage index (60.8 (37.0-84.5) vs 55.0 (36.6-73.9) vs 42.7 (26.2-58.2), p0.001), and microvascular obstruction (0.0 (0.0-0.9)%LV vs 0.0 (0-1.0)%LV vs 1.2 (0.0-3.6)%LV, p0.001) across the three groups. WL-STE ≥2 mm was strongly associated with MACE 12 month after infarction (HR 1.93, 95% CI 1.11 to 3.37; p=0.02).This largest CMR study to date correlating post-PCI WL-STE with markers of myocardial damage demonstrates that WL-STE is significantly associated with infarct size, myocardial salvage, microvascular obstruction, and MACE in a high risk STEMI population.NCT00712101.

Objective: European ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) guidelines recommend prehospital diagnosis to facilitate early reperfusion in patients with STEMI, and they provide recommendations regarding optimal system delay (time from first medical contact (FMC) to the primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI)). There are limited data on achievable system delays in an optimal STEMI system of care using prehospital diagnosis to triage patients with STEMI directly to percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) centres. We examined the proportion of tentative prehospital STEMI diagnoses established by telemedicine confirmed on hospital arrival, and we determined system delay in patients diagnosed before hospital arrival and triaged directly to the catheterisation laboratory. Methods: Design: Population-based follow-up study. Setting: Central Denmark Region. Participants: 15 992 patients diagnosed using telemedicine. Results: During the study period, a tentative diagnosis of STEMI was established in 1061 patients, of whom 919 were triaged directly to the PCI centre. In 771 (84%) patients, a diagnosis of STEMI was confirmed. Patients transported

ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) is a medical emergency, resulting from blockade of one or several conduit arteries supplying the myocardium. Early and rapid intervention limits ischaemic time, tissue damage and infarct size and is a major determinant of patient prognosis. In principle, restoration of oxygenated blood flow via percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and stent placement should limit the damage to the affected myocardium. However, ischaemia-reperfusion injury after restoration of flow can account for 50% of infarct size. Multiple factors reportedly affect the extent of injury including types of occlusion, failed reperfusion of tissues resulting from haemorrhage, thrombosis, microvascular obstruction (MVO) and cellular generation of free radicals. Recently, a number of proposed therapeutic modalities have been the subject of clinical trials. These include ischaemic preconditioning/postconditioning therapies, cooling strategies and pharmacological interventions. While some studies have reported patient benefits and improved outcomes, these are controversial, with larger studies generally reflecting no overall patient benefit.1 Thus, at present, there are currently no clinically available tools that are specifically indicated to reduce ischaemic-reperfusion injury in patients. In their recent phase 2 clinical trial, Engstrom et al report on the outcomes of the trial of a novel peptide therapeutic, danegaptide, aimed at limiting ischaemia-reperfusion injury in patients with STEMI.2 Danegaptide (ZP1609) is an analogue of rotigaptide (ZP123), Gap-134 and of the antiarrhythmic peptide (AAP10) first identified as a naturally occurring peptide in bovine serum.3 The various iterations of this peptide (AAP10→rotagaptide→danegaptide) have increased in vivo peptide stability and efficacy. Both AAP10 and rotigaptide have been demonstrated in multiple preclinical studies to limit ischaemia-induced cardiac damage and arrhythmias. Similar studies have demonstrated effects for danegaptide in reducing ischaemia-induced infarct size in canine and porcine models.4 5 Patients with clinical …

Although chronic total occlusions (CTOs) are a common coronary angiographic finding, with an incidence reaching >25%, a disproportionately smaller portion of patients are treated with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), comprising 8% of the overall PCI volume.1 There appear to be at least two important issues that are associated with the existing discrepancy between the occurrence of CTO and the rate of CTO PCI in contemporary clinical practice. First, percutaneous CTO recanalisation is often considered to be technically difficult, resource-demanding and time-demanding, with a complication rate exceeding that of a non-CTO PCI. However, recent advances in the interventional technique, both antegrade and retrograde, including the hybrid algorithm, have resulted in >90% procedural success rates, while being associated with a low occurrence of major complications, such as cardiac tamponade, myocardial infarction and death (all well below 1%).1 Second, the evidence base regarding clinical benefits of CTO PCI over medical therapy has largely been confined to observational data, stemming mainly from retrospective comparisons of clinical outcomes in patients with successful versus failed CTO PCI,1 whereas randomised studies evaluating the effects of PCI versus medical therapy for CTO have been scarce. Notwithstanding the currently insufficient randomised evidence base, the clinical appeal of CTO PCI seems to, at least in part, rest on the notion of achieving percutaneous complete revascularisation in patients with significant coronary artery disease as incomplete revascularisation has been linked to impaired prognosis.2 In their Heart manuscript, Elias et al 3 present long-term data of the hitherto only randomised controlled trial evaluating the effects of CTO PCI versus conservative management, published in a peer-review journal. Moreover, this was the first study to randomly investigate the value of PCI for a non-culprit CTO, …

In 1998 the British Cardiovascular Intervention Society (BCIS) started to collect data as a survey. This process has developed so that since 2004, almost all centres performing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in the UK have recorded data about every PCI procedure performed and uploaded them to central servers for analysis and reporting.1 The data are currently collected on behalf of BCIS by the National Institute of Cardiovascular Outcomes Research (NICOR), hosted at Barts Health National Health Service (NHS) Trust, funded by government via the Health Quality Improvement Partnership. NICOR has harmonised the data collection and analysis across six cardiac domains. PCI is overseen by a …

Objective The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the feasibility of a combined cooling strategy started out of hospital as an adjunctive to percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in the treatment of ST-elevation acute coronary syndrome (STE-ACS). Design Non-randomised, single-centre feasibility trial. Setting Department of emergency medicine of a tertiary-care facility, Medical University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria. In cooperation with the Municipal ambulance service of the city of Vienna. Patients Consecutive patients with STE-ACS presenting to the emergency medical service within 6 h after symptom onset. Interventions Cooling was initiated with surface cooling pads in the out-of-hospital setting, followed by the administration of 1000–2000 mL of cold saline at hospital arrival and completed by endovascular cooling in the catheterisation laboratory. Main outcome measures Feasibility of lowering core temperature below 35.0°C prior to immediately performed revascularisation. Safety and tolerability of the cooling procedure. Results In enrolled 19 patients (one woman, median age 51 years (IQR 45–59)), symptom onset to first medical contact (FMC) was 45 min (IQR 31–85). A core temperature below 35.0°C at reperfusion of the culprit lesion was achieved in 11 patients (78%) within 100 min (IQR 90–111) after FMC without any cooling-related serious adverse event. Temperature could be lowered from baseline 36.4°C (IQR 36.2–36.5°C) to 34.4°C (IQR 34.1–35.0°C) at the time of reperfusion. Conclusions With limitations an immediate out-of-hospital therapeutic hypothermia strategy was feasible and safe in patients with STE-ACS undergoing primary PCI. Clinical trial registration http://www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT01864343; clinical trials unique identifier: NCT01864343

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the instantaneous wave-free ratio (iFR) can detect improvement in stenosis significance after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and compare this with fractional flow reserve (FFR) and whole cycle Pd/Pa. DESIGN: A prospective observational study was undertaken in elective patients scheduled for PCI with FFR ≤ 0.80. Intracoronary pressures were measured at rest and during adenosine-mediated vasodilatation, before and after PCI. iFR, Pd/Pa and FFR values were calculated using the validated fully automated algorithms. SETTING: Coronary catheter laboratories in two UK centres and one in the USA. PATIENTS: 120 coronary stenoses in 112 patients were assessed. The mean age was 63 ± 10 years, while 84% were male; 39% smokers; 33% with diabetes. Mean diameter stenosis was 68 ± 16% by quantitative coronary angiography. RESULTS: Pre-PCI, mean FFR was 0.66 ± 0.14, mean iFR was 0.75 ± 0.21 and mean Pd/Pa 0.83 ± 0.16. PCI increased all indices significantly (FFR 0.89 ± 0.07, p

Chronic total occlusion (CTO) remains a challenging lesion subset when considering percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Until recently, CTO lesions were associated with relatively low procedural success rates ranging between 60–70% despite evidence of considerable case selection1 ,2 However, the emergence of new techniques and technologies is revolutionising the field, such that procedural success rates in excess of 90% have been described by specialist operators.3 While it has long been appreciated that CTO revascularisation can improve symptoms,4 there is an increasing body of evidence to suggest prognostic benefit may follow.5 In this issue of Heart , Michael et al describe outcomes following CTO PCI among patients with previous coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG).6 They demonstrate that prior CABG remains a challenge in CTO PCI, with lower procedural success rates than CTO lesions in previously ungrafted patients. However, the most powerful aspect of their data is that the reporting US centres are consistently achieving high rates of procedural success (85%) despite treating increasingly complex patients. In their cohort 37% of patients had undergone prior CABG, a substantially greater proportion than any other reported registry. This suggests greater patient selection among previous registries, where CTO patients with more complex disease may have been excluded from revascularisation, a situation likely to reflect real world clinical practice. Patients who have symptoms, significant ischaemia, and/or myocardial viability may often be excluded from revascularisation on the basis of feasibility of percutaneous revascularisation —that is, anatomy rather than clinical need. Although chronic occlusions may be present in up to 35% of patients undergoing coronary angiography,7 CTO PCI accounts for only around 5% of all elective PCI procedures.8 Many patients with single vessel de novo CTO are not offered revascularisation at all. Among patients with multivessel disease undergoing PCI, the …

Objective Determine whether remote ischaemic postconditioning (RIP) protects against percutaneous coronary intervention-related myocardial infarction (PCI-MI). Design Single-centre, randomised, blinded to the researchers, clinical trial. ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT 01113008). Setting Tertiary hospital centre. Patients 232 patients underwent elective PCI for stable or unstable angina. Interventions Patients were randomised to RIP (induction of three 5-min cycles of ischaemia in the arm after the PCI) versus placebo. Main outcome measures The primary outcome measure was the peak 24-h troponin I level. PCI-MI was defined by an elevation of troponin values >3 or >5 of the 99th percentile according to the classical or the new definition. The secondary outcome measure was hospital admission, PCI for stable angina or acute coronary syndrome and mortality after 1 year of follow-up. The use of RIP in diabetic patients was specifically studied. Results The mean age was 64.6 years, and 42% were diabetic. The peak troponin in the RIP patients was 0.476 vs 0.478 ng/mL (p=0.99). PCI-MI occurred in 36% of the RIP patients versus 30.8% in the placebo group (p=0.378). Diabetic RIP patients had more PCI-MI (new definition): OR 2.7; 95% CI 1.10 to 6.92; p=0.027. The secondary outcome measure was seen in 11.7% of the RIP patients versus 10.8% in the placebo group (p=0.907). Conclusions RIP did not reduce the damage associated with elective PCI or cardiovascular events during the follow-up. The diabetic population who underwent RIP had more PCI-MI.

Aims: The NCDR CathPCI Registry collects detailed clinical, process-of-care and outcomes data for patients undergoing coronary angiography and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in the USA. The registry contributes to quality of care by providing data feedback on a wide range of performance metrics to participating centres and by facilitating local and national quality improvement efforts. Interventions: No treatments are mandated, participating centres receive routine quality-of-care and outcomes performance feedback reports and access to a quality dashboard for personalized performance reports. Population: Patients undergoing cardiac catheterization and PCI are retrospectively identified. No informed consent is required, as data are anonymised. From inception in 1998, more than 12 million records have been submitted from 1577 participating US centres. Baseline data: Approximately 250 fields encompassing patient demographics, medical history and risk factors, hospital presentation, initial cardiac status, procedural details, medications, laboratory values, and in-hospital outcomes. Linkages with outside sources of data have permitted longitudinal outcomes assessment in some cases. Centre personnel enter the data into the registry, in some cases facilitated by software vendors. There are non-financial incentives for centre participation. Data completeness is noteworthy with most fields missing at rates less than 5%. A comprehensive data quality program is employed to enhance data validity. Endpoints: Main outcome measures include quality process metrics and in-hospital patient outcomes. Data are available for research by application to: http://www.ncdr.com

Objectives To evaluate to what extent treatment decisions for patients with stable angina pectoris can be made based on hybrid myocardial perfusion single-photon emission CT (SPECT) and CT coronary angiography (CCTA). It has been shown that hybrid SPECT/CCTA has good performance in the diagnosis of significant coronary artery disease (CAD). The question remains whether these imaging results lead to similar treatment decisions as compared to standalone SPECT and invasive coronary angiography (CA). Methods We prospectively included 107 patients (mean age 62.8±10.0 years, 69% male) with stable anginal complaints and an intermediate to high pre-test likelihood for CAD. Hybrid SPECT/CCTA was performed prior to CA in all patients. The study outcome was the treatment decision categorised as: no revascularisation, percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) or coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). Treatment decisions were made by two interventional cardiologists and one cardiothoracic surgeon in two steps: first, based on the results of hybrid SPECT/CCTA; second, based on SPECT and CA. Results Revascularisation (PCI or CABG) was indicated in 54 (50%) patients based on SPECT and CA. Percentage agreement of treatment decisions in all patients based on hybrid SPECT/CCTA versus SPECT and CA on the necessity of revascularisation was 92%. Percentage agreement of treatment decisions in patients with matched, unmatched and normal hybrid SPECT/CCTA findings was 95%, 84% and 100%, respectively. Conclusions Panel evaluation shows that patients could be accurately indicated for and deferred from revascularisation based on hybrid SPECT/CCTA.

The treatment of acute ST elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) has greatly improved in the last three decades, especially after the introduction of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). However, primary PCI is available in selected centres only, thus necessitating transportation of the STEMI patient. Improvement in the logistics of care for these patients is associated with significant improvement of patient outcome. Both the American Heart Association (AHA) and the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) STEMI guidelines recommend pre-hospital infarct diagnosis as a class I recommendation.w1 w2 Despite this, the large majority of STEMI patients are only diagnosed after arrival in the hospital.1 Therefore, great care should be taken in the initial diagnosis, risk assessment and triage, subsequent transfer and the distance of transportation as well as pre- and in-hospital time delays in these patients. STEMI patients can be diagnosed in the pre-hospital phase in two ways. The first option is diagnosis in the ambulance via an emergency medical services (EMS) call (118 or 911) by the patient or by a general practitioner. The second option is diagnosis at a referral non-PCI centre after self-referral of the patient or when no pre-hospital ECG is performed by EMS in the ambulance. Pre-hospital diagnosis in the ambulance gives the best outcomes for STEMI patients, since pre-hospital treatment can be started directly in the ambulance after diagnosis and triage.2 ,3 Subsequently, these patients are directly transferred in an ambulance from the pick-up place to the nearest PCI centre with 24/7 service, bypassing the emergency departments of the nearby referral non-PCI centres. The second option, diagnosis at a non-PCI centre, also occurs often, especially in rural areas. These patients are transported to a PCI centre, following diagnosis and triage of STEMI, preferably …

Background Readmission following an acute coronary syndrome (ACS) is frequent in our community. Patient specific factors identifying those at risk of readmission are poorly described. Methods Data were analysed from 5219 patients with an ACS enrolled in the Australian and New Zealand population of the Global Registry of Acute Coronary Events (GRACE) between 1999 and 2007. Patients who were readmitted for cardiovascular disease within 6 months of discharge were identified; regression analysis was used to predict independent patient factors associated with readmission 1 month and 1–6 months after discharge. Results 1048 patients (20.1%) were readmitted within 6 months, with a significant proportion (n=434, 41.4%) of readmissions occurring within 30 days of discharge. Readmission within 6 months was associated with a higher incidence of unscheduled cardiac catheterisation (HR 25.64, 95% CI 18.41 to 35.71), unscheduled percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) (HR 15.78, 95% CI 10.56 to 23.59), stroke (HR 1.92, 95% CI 1.08 to 3.43), and death (HR 2.40, 95% CI 1.66 to 3.49). Recurrent ischemia in hospital and a diagnosis of S-T elevation myocardial infarction during the index admission were associated with the strongest risk of early rehospitalisation, while revascularisation by PCI or coronary artery bypass surgery (CABG) was associated with lowest risk of early readmission. A history of heart failure, prior myocardial infarction or angina was associated with a greater likelihood of later rehospitalisation, whereas revascularisation by CABG was associated with the lowest risk of later rehospitalisation. Conclusions Several patient and clinical factors identify patients at higher risk of readmission. Identifying these factors and escalating in-hospital and post-discharge care for these higher risk patients may prevent readmission and improve outcome.

Objective To test the effect of a loss-of-function variation of the cytochrome P450 (CYP) 3A5 on drug–drug interaction between amlodipine and clopidogrel. Amlodipine is a well-known inhibitor of CYP 3A4, an isoenzyme of CYP3A that activates clopidogrel. However, controversy exists regarding whether amlodipine adversely affects clopidogrel response and clinical outcome after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). In the presence of CYP3A4 inhibitors such as amlodipine, the genetic variation of CYP3A5, the isoenzyme responsible for the backup CYP3A activity, may play an important role in clopidogrel activation. Design Post hoc analysis of a prospectively enrolled cohort. Patients Patients enrolled in the CROSS-VERIFY cohort from June 2006 to June 2010, with successful genotyping of CYP3A5. Main outcome measures The pharmacodynamic analysis end point was clopidogrel on-treatment platelet reactivity (OPR) and the clinical analysis end point was the composite of cardiac death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, ischaemic stroke and stent thrombosis at 12 months post-PCI. Results 1258 patients had successful genotyping and were categorised as CYP3A5 non-expressers (749 patients) and expressers (509 patients) according to the CYP3A5 genotype. Amlodipine users showed higher OPR versus non-users only in CYP3A5 non-expressers (249±83 vs 228±84 P2Y12 reaction units, p=0.013). These findings was corroborated by clinical outcomes, in which amlodipine users had a higher incidence of events compared with non-users only in CYP3A5 non-expressers (4.6% vs 0.6%, HR 7.731, CI 2.042 to 29.264, p=0.004). Conclusions Treatment with amlodipine is associated with increased clopidogrel OPR and increased risk of thrombotic events after PCI, which is dependent on the CYP3A5 genetic status.

Background Mortality derived from ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) has decreased due to primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Paradoxically, the incidence of heart failure secondary to left ventricular remodelling (LVR) is on the rise due to the survival derived from reperfusion strategies. The aim of this study was to assess the prognostic value for LVR of biomarkers involved in several pathophysiological mechanisms activated during STEMI treated with primary PCI. Methods 112 patients with STEMI undergoing primary PCI were evaluated. LVR was defined as a ≥20% increase in the left ventricular end-diastolic volume at 6-month follow-up assessed using echocardiogram as compared with that at discharge. Blood samples were obtained for glucose, N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide, troponin T (TnT), matrix metalloproteinase 9, procollagen type-I N-terminal propeptide and high-sensitivity C reactive protein (hs-CRP). Results 24 patients (21%) developed LVR. Higher levels of maximum TnT, and matrix metalloproteinase 9 and hs-CRP at discharge, were detected as independent risk factors for LVR (OR 1.310, p=0.03; OR 1001, p=0.04; OR 1.040, p=0.04, respectively). Both TnT and hs-CRP showed significant ability to distinguish patients who developed LVR from those who did not, being the values that yielded the greatest sensitivity and specificity as follows: TnT 7.0 μg/l (73%, 84%), hs-CRP 30 mg/l (59%, 85%). Conclusions Myocardial necrosis, as measured by released TnT, and inflammation state evident due to circulating levels of CRP are factors that may play a major role in the development of LVR following STEMI treated with primary PCI.

Objectives There are limited data on long-term outcomes (ie, beyond 4 years) for patients with unprotected left main bifurcation disease who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) or coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) in the drug-eluting stent (DES) era. This study therefore compared the treatment effects of PCI and CABG in unprotected left main bifurcation disease. Methods 865 patients with unprotected left main bifurcation disease treated with either PCI using DES (n=556) or CABG (n=309) were evaluated between May 2003 and December 2009. PCI-treated patients were further categorised into simple stenting (n=360) or complex stenting (n=196). Results Median follow-up was 4.2 years (IQR 2.9–5.2 years). After adjusting covariates with multivariate Cox hazard regression model and inverse probability of treatment weighting, the long-term cumulative rates of death (HR 0.95; 95% CI 0.62 to 1.45) or composite of death, Q-wave myocardial infarction, or stroke (HR 0.97, 95% CI 0.64 to 1.48) were not significantly different for patients undergoing PCI or CABG except for target-vessel revascularisation (TVR) (HR 4.42, 95% CI 2.39 to 8.18). The complex stenting group had similar long-term clinical outcomes compared with the simple stenting group except for TVR (HR 1.94, 95% CI 1.22 to 3.10). In further analysis with propensity score matching, overall findings were consistent. Conclusions In patients with unprotected left main bifurcation disease, PCI using DES provides similar long-term (up to 5.2 years) clinical outcomes except for TVR compared with CABG. Complex and simple stenting yielded similar outcomes except for a higher TVR rate in complex stenting.

Introduction Readmission following a percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedure is undesirable, being associated with patient morbidity and financial penalties. US data suggest 30 day readmission rates of approximately 10%, however little data is available within the UK. Reductions in the length of stay following PCI potentially increase the likelihood of early readmission. This study reviewed readmission’s following PCI undertaken in a non-surgical PCI centre in the UK. Methods Hospital admission databases were reviewed for all patients who had undergone a PCI at the centre. All patients who were readmitted to the Trust within 30 days of their PCI were identified, and a retrospective analysis was then undertaken of their hospital records. Results The data set comprised of 3754 patients who had all undergone at least one PCI procedure over the past 6 years. Of these, 409 patients (10.9%) were readmitted within 30 days. A significantly greater proportion of readmission’s within 30 days had an index PCI for acute coronary syndrome (ACS, 63.8% vs. 49.6%, p The average duration of time between the index PCI and readmission was 11.6 days, with a trend towards earlier presentation in those patients representing with a cardiac diagnosis (10.8 days vs. 12.2 days, p=0.09). Non-cardiac diagnoses were the greatest contributing diagnosis for all readmission’s, with non-cardiac chest pain, gastrointestinal reflux disease and bony injuries (as others) the commonest final diagnosis. Cardiac readmission’s accounted for 41.4% of all cases with angina and ACS the final diagnosis in 65.4% of patients. 61 patients (14.4%) had a repeat angiogram, with 31 leading to no change in treatment. 18 patients underwent an admission which led to a non-target vessel revascularisation, and 12 patients a target vessel revascularisation. The commonest treatments were no change in medication (41.4%), changes to non-cardiac medication (11.4%) and changes to anti-anginal medication (11.2%). Cardiac readmission’s had a greater rate of mortality at twelve months (2.9% vs. 0.8%, p=0.29). Conclusion Cardiac readmission’s continue to occur after 10% of percutaneous coronary intervention procedures. Whilst the prognosis is good, measures to reduce these rates are required.

Background The smoker9s paradox, where smokers have better survival after acute myocardial infarction, was predominantly observed in the thrombolytic era. Evidence for the smoker9s paradox in the current era of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) therapy is limited and inconsistent. Furthermore, there is no data regarding gender differences relating to this phenomenon. Methods Data were collected for all patients with acute STEMI undergoing primary PCI at South Yorkshire Cardiothoracic Centre, UK between 2009 and 2014. Cox regression analysis was used to assess differences in survival (at 30 days, 1 year, and 3 years) by smoking status and gender after adjustment for confounding factors. Results There were 2726 STEMI patients (26.4% female) during the study period. Male patients were younger than females (61.0±12.1 vs 65.5±13.1 years, p=0.02). Smoking prevalence was similar in both genders (males 48.3%, females 48.0%), but a greater proportion of females had never smoked (27.8% vs 21.0%, p=0.01). Male current smokers had a significantly worse 3 year mortality than never smokers (HR 1.51, 95% CI 1.04–2.21, p=0.03). In female patients smoking status had no significant effect on survival (p=0.58), which could potentially be due to the modest number (n=723) of female patients in this study. Overall survival was similar in both males and females (p=0.72). Conclusions There was no evidence of a smoker9s paradox in STEMI patients followed up to 3 years in either males or females.