Intracoronary Stent Placement Research Articles

Coronary Syndromes and High-Altitude Exposure—A Comprehensive Review

The aim of this review is to identify a preventive strategy in order to minimize the risk of adverse events in patients with coronary syndromes and acute exposure to high-altitude. For this purpose we searched the electronic database of PubMed, EMBASE, and Web of Science for studies published in the last 30 years in this field. The conclusions of this review are: patients with stable coronary artery disease on optimal treatment and in a good physical condition can tolerate traveling to high altitude up to 3500 m; on the other hand, patients with unstable angina or recent myocardial infarction no older than 6 months should take less interest in hiking or any activity involving high altitude. Air-traveling is contraindicated for patients with myocardial infarction within previous 2 weeks, angioplasty or intracoronary stent placement within previous 2 weeks, and unstable angina or coronary artery bypass grafting within previous 3 weeks. The main trigger for sudden cardiac death is the lack of gradual acclimatization to high-altitude and to the exercise activity, and the most important risk factor is prior myocardial infarction.

The Role of Oxidants in Percutaneous Coronary Intervention-Induced Endothelial Dysfunction: Can We Harness Redox Signaling to Improve Clinical Outcomes?

Significance: Coronary artery disease (CAD) is commonly treated using percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI). However, PCI with stent placement damages the endothelium, and failure to restore endothelial function may result in PCI failure with poor patient outcomes. Recent Advances: Oxidative signaling is central to maintaining endothelial function. Potentiation of oxidant production, as observed post-PCI, results in endothelial dysfunction (ED). This review delves into our current understanding of the physiological role that endothelial-derived oxidants play within the vasculature and the effects of altered redox signaling during dysfunction. We then examine the impact of PCI and intracoronary stent placement on oxidant production in the endothelium, which can culminate in stent failure. Finally, we explore how recent advances in PCI and stent technologies aim to mitigate PCI-induced oxidative damage and improve clinical outcomes. Critical Issues: Current PCI technologies exacerbate cellular oxidant levels, driving ED. If left uncontrolled, oxidative signaling leads to increased intravascular inflammation, restenosis, and neoatherosclerosis. Future Directions: Through the development of novel biomaterials and therapeutics, we can limit PCI-induced oxidant production, allowing for the restoration of a healthy endothelium and preventing CAD recurrence.

Dexmedetomidine and the Combination of Benzodiazepine and Fentanyl in Elective Endovacular Stenting of the Coronary Arteries. Comparative Analysis

The optimal method of anesthetic management in percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) is procedural analgosedation that in most cases is provided by the combination of benzodiazepine and an opioid analgesic. However, there are no protocols and recommendations for its implementation at this time.The objective: to choose an adequate and safe method of analgosedation for elective endovascular stenting of coronary arteries.Subjects and Methods. A randomized study was conducted from September 2021 to January 2022. The group where analgosedation with fentanyl and sibazon was used included 33 patients. 30 patients were enrolled in the group of analgosedation with dexmedetomidine. A comparison was made in terms of the level of sedation (RASS scale), hemodynamic parameters, blood oxygen saturation (SpO2), the incidence of anginal pain at the stage of stenting and the need for additional analgesia, and the level of serum troponin T.Results. Dexmedetomidine significantly induces a deeper level of sedation (RASS -2) compared to the combination of benzodiazepine and fentanyl (RASS -1) at the stage of intracoronary stent placement (p < 0.001). In the group of analgosedation with dexmedetomidine, there was a statistically significant decrease in blood pressure and heart rate versus the group of analgosedation with fentanyl and sibazon (p < 0.05). Analgesia with narcotic analgesics was required 9.1 times lower (p =0.028) at the stage of installation of intracoronary stents in the group of dexmedetomidine analgosedation versus the group of fentanyl and sibazon analgosedation (OR 0.11; 95% CI 0.13–0.92).Conclusion. Anesthesia for elective percutaneous coronary interventions with dexmedetomidine may be more adequate and safer than the combination of a benzodiazepine and an opioid analgesic. At the stage of coronary artery stenting, dexmedetomidine provides deeper sedation, significant prevention of the development of anginal pain, a pronounced hypotensive and negative chronotropic effect compared to analgosedation with fentanyl and sibazon.

The History of Primary Angioplasty and Stenting for Acute Myocardial Infarction.

The evolution of the management of acute myocardial infarction (MI) has been one of the crowning achievements of modern medicine. At the turn of the twentieth century, MI was an often-fatal condition. Prolonged bed rest served as the principal treatment modality. Over the past century, insights into the pathophysiology of MI revolutionized approaches to management, with the sequential use of surgical coronary artery revascularization, thrombolytic therapy, and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with primary coronary angioplasty, and placement of intracoronary stents. The benefits of prompt revascularization inspired systems of care to provide rapid access to PCI. This review provides a historical context for our current approach to primary PCI for acute MI.

0173: Is oral anticoagulation needed in patients with atrial fibrillation, stent implantation and low-moderate risk of stroke?

Thromboprophylaxis for patients with coronary artery disease and atrial fibrillation (AF) is an issue when patients undergo intracoronary stent placement and several recent guidelines propose slightly different management. All patients with AF and stent implantation seen between 2000 and 2010 in 3 academic hospitals were identified in a database and followed up for mortality, stroke and bleeding events. Among all patients seen between 2000-2010, 343 had AF, coronary stent placement and CHADS2 score=0 or 1. In these patients, OAC was prescribed on an individual basis for 144 patients (42%) and no OAC in the remaining 199 patients (58%). During a 1-year follow-up, 17 strokes/thromboembolic events (5.0%), 29 major bleedings (8.5%) and 30 deaths (8.7%) were recorded. Patients under OAC had a non significant lower risk of stroke than those not treated with OAC (2.8% vs 6.5%, p=0.14), a non significant higher risk of bleeding (11.8% vs 6.0%, p=0.08) and a lower all-cause mortality (4.9% vs 11.6%, p=0.03). In one of the largest series of AF patients with coronary stent implantation and a CHADS2 score =0-1, prescription of oral anticoagulation was associated with a trend towards lower risk of stroke and higher risk of bleeding, and with a significantly lower mortality.

Clopidogrel-Induced Recurrent Polyarthritis.

Clopidogrel is an oral thienopyridine and together with aspirin is a component of dual antiplatelet therapy for the prevention of stent thrombosis after intracoronary stent placement. The common adverse effects from its use are an increased risk of bleeding, neutropenia, and rash. Arthralgia and backache are also known to occur with its use. There have been case reports linking arthritis with the use of clopidogrel. We describe the case of a 64-year-old man who reported symptoms of fever and joint pains following initiation of therapy with clopidogrel. Acute-phase reactants were elevated. Laboratory and radiologic testing were unremarkable. Incidentally, he reported experiencing a similar arthritis after he received a loading dose of clopidogrel prior to a diagnostic coronary angiography in the past. The symptoms improved dramatically on discontinuation of clopidogrel. There was no recurrence of symptoms with prasugrel. This describes possibly the second incidence of recurrent arthritis with clopidogrel therapy.

Perioperative Antiplatelet Management in Patients with Coronary Artery Stenting

Coronary artery disease is the primary cause of mortality in men and women in the United States. Transcatheter coronary intervention is the mainstay of treatment for patients with acute coronary artery disease presentations and patients with stable disease. Although percutaneous intervention initially only included balloon angioplasty, it now typically involves the placement of intracoronary stents. To overcome the limitations of bare-metal stents, namely in-stent restenosis, stents have been developed that remove pharmaceuticals that reduce neointimal hyperplasia and in-stent restenosis. However, these pharmaceutical agents also delay stent endothelialization, posing a prolonged risk of in situ thrombosis. Placement of an intracoronary stent (eg, bare-metal or drug-eluting stent) requires dual antiplatelet therapy to prevent the potentially life-threatening complication of stent thrombosis. The optimal duration of dual antiplatelet therapy following stent placement is unknown. This article discusses the factors to be considered when deciding when dual antiplatelet therapy can be safely discontinued. Unfortunately, in the hospital setting, this decision to interrupt dual antiplatelet therapy frequently must be made shortly after stent placement because of unanticipated surgical procedures or other unforeseen complications. The decision of when dual antiplatelet therapy can be safely interrupted needs to be individualized for each patient and involves factoring in the type of stent; the location and complexity of the lesion stented; post-stent lesion characteristics; the amount of time since stent placement; and the antiplatelet regimen currently in use, along with its implication for bleeding during the proposed procedure. Having a protocol in place, such as the protocol described in this article, can help guide this decision-making process and avoid confusion and potential error.

Proximal atherosclerotic lesion as a cause of very late stent thrombosis

Very late stent thrombosis is defined as in-stent thrombosis occurring after 1 year of an intra-coronary artery stent placement. Drug eluting stents have lately been criticized for increased reports of very late stent thrombosis. The exact cause of these very late stent thromboses is not clearly understood. Virchow’s triad describes the three main factors of thrombus formation to be stasis of blood flow, endothelial injury and hypercoagulability. Based on Virchow’s triad, we propose the cause of very late stent thrombosis to be formation of a de novo atherosclerotic lesion in the proximal segment of a stented artery. The de novo atherosclerotic lesion narrows the vessel lumen and causes stasis of blood flow in the distal stent. The de novo lesion can also cause myocardial ischemia creating a prothrombotic environment in the stented region. Stasis of blood flow and prothrombotic environment in the stented region can lead to the formation of very late stent thrombosis. Since atherosclerosis is a dynamic aging process in humans, we propose de novo proximal lesions in the coronary arteries can predispose to very late stent thrombosis.

Individualised Assessment of Response to Clopidogrel in Patients Presenting with Acute Coronary Syndromes: A Role for Short Thrombelastography?

There is considerable interindividual variation in response to the antiplatelet agent clopidogrel. Hyporesponse predicts negative outcomes in patients presenting with a variety of ischemic cardiac conditions and following intracoronary stent placement. Many tests of clopidogrel activity are time consuming and complex. Short thromboelastography (s-TEG) allows rapid measurement of platelet clopidogrel response. We initiated this study to investigate the utility of s-TEG in assessing the response to clopidogrel in patients presenting with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) and to compare these results with established clopidogrel monitoring techniques. Patients admitted with unstable angina (UA) or Non ST elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) undergoing coronary angiography were recruited. After routine loading with clopidogrel, all patients were tested with s-TEG and Accumetrics Verify-Now rapid platelet function analyzer (VN-RPFA). We used the modified TEG technique of measuring area under the curve at 15 min (AUC15), which allows a rapid estimation of antiplatelet response. Vasodilator-stimulated phosphoprotein phosphorylation (VASP) was also tested in a subgroup of patients. Clinical follow-up was obtained at 1 year. s-TEG results were correlated with VN-RPFA and VASP findings. A total of 49 patients (33 male, mean age 63) were recruited and tested with s-TEG and VN-RPFA and a total of 39 patients were also assessed with VASP. s-TEG readings correlated well with VN-RPFA (r(2)= 0.54, P < 0.0001) and VASP (r(2)= 0.26, P= 0.001). s-TEG provides timely results which compare to current tests of clopidogrel activity. This technique can also be used to measure a variety of other clotting parameters and as such could develop into a valuable near patient test for the interventional cardiologist.

Revascularization for Coronary Artery Disease: Stents Versus Bypass Surgery

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is one manifestation of ischemic heart disease, which is the leading cause of mortality in the world. In addition to preventive medical therapy and lifestyle changes, consideration of revascularization of obstructed arteries to reduce ischemia, alleviate angina, and improve quality of life is a mainstay of current practice. However, the benefits of different methods of revascularization in particular patient populations are debated. Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI), which involves placement of intracoronary stents in most patients, is a less invasive procedure than coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. Although it is generally accepted that patients with single-vessel obstructive CAD are best treated with PCI, patients with multivessel CAD have a higher ischemia burden, a greater risk for developing recurrent ischemic events, and a higher mortality. It is in this patient population where the debate over revascularization with stents versus surgery continues.

Myocardial Bridging

According to postmortem studies, coronary atherosclerosis can be substantial and reach a high prevalence of advanced lesions, including atheroma and fibroatheroma in young adults.1,2 Risk factors associated with coronary atherosclerosis such as dyslipidemia, smoking, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension have been identified. The development of atherosclerosis seems to be related to the magnitude and duration of exposure.3 Although research concentrates on identifying genetic markers in genome-wide association studies, there is still a lack of knowledge about the individual risk of developing coronary atherosclerosis.4 When atherosclerosis presents as acute coronary syndromes, mortality may be high.5 Plaque rupture and erosion have been identified as major underlying pathological-anatomic characteristics,6 but some suspect other mechanisms.7 In this issue of Circulation , Ishikawa et al8 present evidence that myocardial bridging may play a role as a congenital anatomic risk factor for coronary atherosclerosis and myocardial infarction. Article see p 376 Myocardial bridging results when myocardial tissue covers part of the left anterior descending coronary artery, resulting in a tunneled arterial segment, which can be regarded as a congenital variant.9–11 The prevalence is reported to be >50% at autopsy.12 Clinically, the diagnosis of myocardial bridging is established by coronary angiography demonstrating a systolic compression, described as a “milking effect,”13 but it was present in only <5% of cases recently in a large number of Chinese patients.14 When nitroglycerin was used as …

Twenty-two years angiographic and clinical follow-up of the first patient treated with intracoronary stent placement for acute vessel closure following percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty

We report here the longest follow-up of a patient treated with intracoronary stent placement for acute vessel closure following conventional balloon angioplasty. The patient is a 52-year-old lady who developed abrupt left anterior descending coronary artery (LAD) closure shortly after double vessel percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for symptomatic stenoses to the right coronary artery (RCA) and LAD on 13 June …

Implementing Consultant Recommendations in Percutaneous Coronary Interventions: Look before you Leap

Purpose To determine if hospital consultant recommendations were clinically applicable to the cardiac catheterization laboratory and to compare medication usage in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) to those goals. Methods The medical records of 96 adults on whom PCI had been performed over a 6-month period were reviewed retrospectively. Only PCIs that included intracoronary stent placement were considered. The primary end point was to determine if abciximab usage was 15% or less in all PCI cases. Secondary end points evaluated the use of abciximab, eptifibatide, and bivalirudin based on the acuity of the clinical syndrome. Results Abciximab, eptifibatide, and bivalirudin monotherapy were used in 16.7%, 40.6%, and 42.7% of all cases, respectively. The total consumption of abciximab exceeded the primary end point by 1.7%. Eptifibatide usage was 71% of all glycoprotein (GP) IIb/IIIa inhibitors, less than the 85% target proposed by the hospital consultants. Bivalirudin monotherapy surpassed eptifibatide as the antithrombotic of choice across all PCI cases. The use of provisional GP IIb/IIIa inhibitors in conjunction with bivalirudin was 8.3%, more than the 5% target specified by the consultants. Emergent PCIs comprised 41% of all cases sampled. Conclusion This 6-month retrospective survey demonstrated that the use of abciximab exceeded the percentage recommended by consultants. However, given the large percentage of emergent PCIs during the time period and the literature supporting the use of abciximab in emergent PCIs, a change in GP IIb/IIIa inhibitor usage patterns was not considered necessary.

The Role of Tirofiban in the Management of Coronary Artery Disease

Glycoprotein IIb/IIIa receptor antagonists are potent antiplatelet agents by inhibiting the final common pathway of platelet aggregation. Tirofiban binds specifically to the glycoprotein IIb/IIIa receptor resulting in immediate and extensive inhibition of platelets. Studies have shown that intravenous administration of tirofiban in combination with aspirin and heparin reduces major adverse cardiac events in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention and in those patients with acute coronary syndromes. Large randomised trials using tirofiban demonstrate early clinical and long-term survival benefit in all patient subgroups including high-risk patients undergoing urgent percutaneous coronary intervention, patients undergoing elective intracoronary stent placement and in the medical management of acute coronary syndromes. The use of high-dose bolus tirofiban may provide additional protection in patients at highest risk, whereas the role of tirofiban in the facilitation of primary angioplasty is less well defined. Similar to the other glycoprotein IIb/IIIa receptor antagonists, tirofiban increases the risk of haemorrhagic complications. However, the risk of serious bleeding, including intracranial haemorrhage, remains low and tirofiban does not appear to increase the risk of thrombocytopenia. Overall, the use of tirofiban in coronary artery disease has been shown to be effective, has an acceptable safety profile and is potentially cost-effective.

Therapeutic Controversies: Aspirin, Clopidogrel, and Warfarin: Is the Combination Appropriate and Effective or Inappropriate and Too Dangerous?

To review the rationale, clinical practice guideline recommendations, and clinical trial data describing bleeding and clinical outcomes associated with the use of the combination of aspirin, a thienopyridine, and warfarin. An English-language literature search was conducted using MEDLINE (1966-March 2008) and the search terms aspirin, clopidogrel, ticlopidine, thienopyridine, warfarin, antiplatelet, anticoagulant, myocardial infarction, atrial fibrillation, and percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Additional references were identified by reviewing reference citations of articles retrieved. Applicable data were extracted from published reports and studies that included either clinical outcomes or adverse events. Clinical guidelines recommend the combination of antiplatelets and anticoagulants based largely on writing committee consensus. To date, only one randomized clinical trial has evaluated the safety and efficacy of adding warfarin to dual antiplatelet therapy (ie, triple antithrombotic therapy). Other published data are from case series, observational studies, and case-controlled studies primarily of patients undergoing PCI with intracoronary stent placement. Four of 12 studies reported no increased risk of major bleeding events. In the other 8 studies, a 3- to 6-fold increase in bleeding events was reported with triple antithrombotic therapy. Ischemic events were reported in only 6 of the studies. Only 2 studies observed an additional benefit in the reduction of ischemic events, and 1 study reported worsened ischemic outcomes with the triple antithrombotic regimen compared with dual antithrombotic therapy. Available guidelines pertaining to the concomitant administration of aspirin, a thienopyridine, and warfarin are based on limited trial data and consensus judgment. Overall, selection of triple antithrombotic therapy for patients with vascular disease is considered a matter of clinical judgment for an individual patient based on the prescriber's perceived balance between the patient's risk for recurrent ischemic events, expected duration of treatment, and patient's risk for bleeding.

A randomized comparison of sirolimus-eluting stent implantation with zotarolimus-eluting stent implantation for the treatment of total coronary occlusions: Rationale and design of the PRImary Stenting of Occluded Native coronary arteries III (PRISON III) study

Primary intracoronary drug-eluting stent placement after the successful crossing of total coronary occlusions decreases restenosis rate at long-term follow-up compared with bare-metal stent implantation. The PRISON II trial was the first randomized study to show the safety and efficacy of sirolimus-eluting stents in patients with totally occluded native coronary arteries. The sirolimus-eluting stent is superior to the bare-metal stent in treating patients with total coronary occlusions, with significant reduction in angiographic binary in-stent and in-segment restenosis resulting in significantly reduced need for target lesion and target vessel revascularization. Whether sirolimus-eluting stents are superior to other drug-eluting stents in total coronary occlusions is unknown. In this prospective, randomized trial, sirolimus-eluting stent implantation will be compared with zotarolimus-eluting stent implantation for the treatment of total coronary occlusions. A total of 300 patients will be followed for up to 5 years with angiographic follow-up at 8 months. Quantitative coronary analysis will be performed by an independent core laboratory. The primary end point will be in-segment late luminal loss at 8 months angiographic follow-up.

Duration of clopidogrel therapy after placement of drug-eluting intracoronary stent

Patients who undergo intracoronary stent placement during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) have reduced rates of restenosis and acute vessel closure compared with patients who undergo balloon angioplasty.[1][1] Drug-eluting stents (DESs), such as Cypher (Cordis Corp., Miami Lakes, FL) (

Development of Hypocomplementemic Urticarial Vasculitis Syndrome Following Intracoronary Stent Placement

Development of Hypocomplementemic Urticarial Vasculitis Syndrome Following Intracoronary Stent Placement

Clopidogrel

Clopidogrel (Plavix), Iscover) selectively and irreversibly inhibits adenosine diphosphate (ADP)-induced platelet aggregation. Long-term administration of clopidogrel was associated with a modest but statistically significant advantage over aspirin in reducing adverse cardiovascular outcomes in patients with established cardiovascular disease in the CAPRIE trial. In other large well designed multicentre trials, such as CURE, COMMIT and CLARITY-TIMI 28, the addition of clopidogrel to aspirin therapy improved outcomes in patients with acute coronary syndromes. However, some issues regarding the use of clopidogrel remain unresolved, such as the optimal loading dose in patients undergoing percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) and the optimal treatment duration following drug-eluting intracoronary stent placement. Results of several large randomised trials, therefore, have established clopidogrel as an effective and well tolerated antiplatelet agent for the secondary prevention of ischaemic events in patients with various cardiovascular conditions, including those with ischaemic stroke or acute coronary syndromes. In addition, treatment guidelines from the US and Europe acknowledge the importance of clopidogrel in contemporary cardiovascular medicine.

Acute coronary syndrome and myocardial infarction after orthopedic surgery in a patient with a recently placed drug-eluting stent

Providing anesthesia care for patients who have recently undergone intracoronary drug-eluting stent placement presents unique clinical challenges. It is currently recommended that these patients remain on antiplatelet therapy until reendothelialization of the vessel has occurred (ie, 3-6 months, depending on the eluting medication) to prevent stent restenosis. In the setting of urgent or emergent surgery, it may not be possible to wait until a full course of antiplatelet therapy has been completed. We report an unusual case of postoperative acute coronary syndrome in a gentleman who underwent intracoronary stenting 7 weeks before nonelective revision hip arthroplasty. To our knowledge, this is the first case in the anesthesia literature to report postoperative cardiac morbidity after recent drug-eluting stent deployment.