Increased in-hospital complication risk in women undergoing chronic total occlusion recanalization

Abstract

Abstract Introduction Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for chronic total occlusion (CTO) is a complex procedure that requires advanced operator skills and dedicated devices. Despite increasing success rates of up to 95% in experienced centers, in-hospital complications associated with CTO PCI remain high, and predictors of short-term outcomes and complications are yet scarce. Female sex is often observed to be correlated with in-hospital complications in complex interventions, but current evidence related to CTO PCI is ambiguous and inconclusive. Our aim was to investigate the potential impact of sex on individual and composite in-hospital complications associated with CTO PCI. Methods We prospectively included patients undergoing CTO PCI at our university-affiliated tertiary care center over four years (2018-2021). In this analysis, we compared comprehensive baseline characteristics and angiographic parameters between men and women and estimated their correlation with a composite endpoint of in-hospital complications using adjusted logistic regression analysis. We presented group differences related to individual component in-hospital complications. Results Out of 271 patients undergoing antegrade or retrograde CTO PCI, 222 (81.9%) were men, and 49 (18.9%) were women. Compared with men, women were older (67 ±11 vs. 72±12 years, P=.005) and had less prior PCI (65.8% vs. 44.9%, P=.006). Both groups had comparable angiographic complexity. Overall MACCE was 2.6%, and any in-hospital complication occurred in 8 women (16.3%) and 15 men (6.8%). Univariate analysis showed that sex, J-CTO score, and proximal cap ambiguity were correlated with the primary composite endpoint. By adjusted multivariate analysis, sex was independently associated with any in-hospital complication (OR=.334; CI .129 to .864; P=.024). The results were numerically driven by major bleeding, acute kidney injury, and MACCE. Conclusion Our findings suggest that women undergoing CTO PCI are at an increased risk of any in-hospital complication, regardless of clinical severity. Further studies are needed to confirm this finding and explain potential gender disparities in patients undergoing CTO PCI.Clinical and angiography characteristicsIn-hospital complications