Search

Carotid occlusive disease is the most common determinant of thromboembolic stroke. However, limited insights in vivo into the pathophysiology and pathology of carotid plaques are available. We designed a prospective multicenter registry to appraise the safety and feasibility of intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) and IVUS-virtual histology (IVUS-VH) imaging before and immediately after carotid stenting.Symptomatic and asymptomatic patients scheduled for carotid stenting were included. IVUS-VH pullbacks were performed before and after stenting. Angiographic, IVUS and IVUS-VH analyses were performed. The primary objective was to appraise feasibility and safety of IVUS-VH, and secondary objectives were to correlate plaque composition and plaque type derived from IVUS-VH with acute and 30-day complications.A total of 119 patients were enrolled. IVUS-VH could be performed in all cases (100%), with additional runs after completion of the stenting procedure in 85%. Most plaques were stable by IVUS-VH, with vulnerable ones at minimum lumen area in 7%. Conversely, vulnerable plaques were significantly more common elsewhere in the internal carotid artery (ICA, 24% of patients, p0.001). Acute and 30-day adverse events were uncommon (2 strokes, 1 transient ischemic attack), with no significant association between these and IVUS-VH features.IVUS and IVUS-VH examinations during carotid interventions are feasible and safe, and provide important insights on qualitative and quantitative compositions of carotid plaques. Whether carotid IVUS-VH can predict clinical events remains uncertain, awaiting long-term follow-up of the VICTORY study and additional clinical trials.

Background: Few data are available on diabetic patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in the context of unprotected left main coronary artery (ULMCA) disease. The main goal of this study was to present the long-term relative benefits of using drug-eluting stent (DES) instead of bare-metal stent (BMS) for diabetic patients submitted to percutaneous ULMCA treatment in a large real world multicenter registry. Methods: The GISE-SICI registry is a retrospective, observational multicenter registry promoted by the Italian Society of Invasive Cardiology in which 19 high-volume participating centers enrolled 1,453 consecutive patients who underwent PCI on ULMCA between January 2002 and December 2006. From the registry, a total of 398 consecutive patients with diabetes mellitus who underwent DES (n = 321) or BMS (n = 77) implantation were analyzed, with extensive multivariable adjustments. Results: At 3-years, use of DES in diabetic patients resulted in no significant differences with respect to death (HR 0.56, 95% CIs 0.24–1.28), myocardial infarction (HR 0.82, 95% CIs 0.21–3.26), and the composite end-point of death or myocardial infarction (HR 0.56, 95% CIs 0.27–1.20). Conversely, DES were associated with significant reduction of target lesion revascularization (TLR, HR 0.33; 95% CIs 0.14–0.80, P = 0.001) rates. Conclusions: Patients presenting with ULMCA disease in the context of diabetes mellitus who are treated with stent-supported PCI have a significant reduction in the rate of TLR with no increased risk of death or myocardial infarction. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

Data are limited about the relative efficacy of drug-eluting stents (DESs) versus bare-metal stents (BMSs) for the treatment of unprotected left main coronary artery (ULMCA) stenosis. The survey promoted by the Italian Society of Invasive Cardiology on ULMCA stenosis was an observational study involving 19 high-volume Italian centers of patients with ULMCA stenosis treated using percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). From January 2002 to December 2006, of 1,453 patients identified with ULMCA stenosis treated with PCI, 1,111 were treated with DESs and 342 were treated with BMSs. During a 2-year follow-up, risk-adjusted survival free from cardiac death was significantly higher in patients treated with DESs than in those treated with BMSs. The propensity-adjusted hazard ratio for risk of 2-year cardiac mortality after DES versus BMS implantation was 0.49 (95% confidence interval 0.32 to 0.77). The benefit of DESs in reducing cardiac mortality was obtained in the period from 3 to 6 months and maintained up to 2 years. In conclusion, for patients with ULMCA stenosis undergoing PCI, DES implantation was associated with higher adjusted rates of 2-year survival free from cardiac death. The benefit of DESs in reducing cardiac mortality was obtained in the period in which clinical manifestations of restenosis usually peak.

Antegrade femoral artery access is commonly used for percutaneous transluminal revascularization of ipsilateral lower limbs in patients with critical limb ischemia. While hemostasis at the end of the procedure can be achieved by manual compression, this may lead to an increase in local vascular complications. Femoral artery closure devices, such as the Angioseal collagen plug and anchor device, have been approved and shown of benefit after retrograde femoral artery catheterization. To date, there are however no data on the use of such arteriotomy closure device after antegrade femoral access. We hereby report a case series of five patients in whom Angioseal was successfully used after antegrade femoral puncture and below-the-knee percutaneous transluminal angioplasty. In all cases the device enabled immediate and complete hemostasis without major complications, despite the intense antithrombotic regimen, including heparin, aspirin, and clopidogrel in all patients, as well as glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors (in two patients) and fibrinolytic therapy (in one).

To test the vascular wall response to an expanded polytetrafluoroethylene-covered stent, compared with conventional stenting, up to 6 months after deployment in the vascular district of a swine model.Fourteen minipigs underwent implantation of expanded polytetrafluoroethylene-covered stents (CS) and bare stents (BS) in five peripheral arteries. Animals were killed at different time points (from 1 to 180 days). Histopathologic assessment by morphologic and morphometric analysis and by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to assess the incorporation characteristics and re-endothelialization extent of the two types of stents.A total of 70 stents (14 CS and 14 BS in the renal arteries; 28 CS in the iliac arteries, and 14 CS in the aorta) were implanted. Microscopic examination confirmed the absence of occlusive thrombi in both the CS and BS groups. Microthrombi were observed in 10 of 13 CS (77% of cases) and in four of four BS (100% of cases, p0.05). Inflammation was mild in 69% of segments in which a CS was implanted and in 74% of segments in which a BS was implanted (p = NS), while a severe inflammatory reaction was observed in 6% of CS segments and in 8% of BS segments (p = NS). No differences were detected at the long-term analysis between neointimal thickness in CS compared with BS segments (0.46 +/- 0.18 mm vs 0.42 +/- 0.26 mm at 90 days and 0.36 +/- 0.08 mm vs 0.35 +/- 0.04 mm at 180 days; p = NS, respectively). At SEM analysis, re-endothelization was evident 15 days after the implant in both CS and BS starting from the stent edges.CS implantation did not elicit a more severe thrombotic deposition compared with that of BS. A similar inflammatory reaction of the arterial wall was present in the two stent groups 3 and 6 months following the implant. In addition, CS implantation did not stimulate excessive neointimal formation when compared with BS.

An 81-year-old woman with severe aortic valve (AV) stenosis symptomatic for effort angina pectoris on exertion (New York Heart Association functional class III) underwent an “AV decalcification procedure” without prosthetic valve implantation. Pre-operative coronary angiography had revealed a