Treatment Of Calcified Lesions Research Articles

TCT-383 Mechanistic Effects of Coronary Hertz Contact Intravascular Lithotripsy on Treatment of Calcified Lesions: PINNACLE I OCT Substudy Procedural Imaging Outcomes

TCT-383 Mechanistic Effects of Coronary Hertz Contact Intravascular Lithotripsy on Treatment of Calcified Lesions: PINNACLE I OCT Substudy Procedural Imaging Outcomes

A Prospective, Multicenter, Real-World Registry of Coronary Lithotripsy in Calcified Coronary Arteries: The REPLICA-EPIC18 Study

BackgroundIntravascular lithotripsy (IVL) has demonstrated effectiveness in the treatment of calcified lesions in selected patients with stable coronary disease. ObjectivesThe authors sought to assess the performance of coronary IVL in calcified coronary lesions in a real-life, all comers, setting. MethodsThe REPLICA-EPIC18 study prospectively enrolled consecutive patients treated with IVL in 26 centers in Spain. An independent core laboratory performed the angiographic analysis and event adjudication. The primary effectiveness endpoint assessed procedural success (successful IVL delivery, final diameter stenosis <20%, and absence of in-hospital major adverse cardiovascular events [MACE]). The primary safety endpoint measured freedom from MACE at 30 days. A predefined substudy compared outcomes between acute coronary syndrome (ACS) and chronic coronary syndrome (CCS) patients. ResultsA total of 426 patients (456 lesions) were included, 63% of the patients presenting with ACS. IVL delivery was successful in 99% of cases. Before IVL, 49% of lesions were considered undilatable. The primary effectiveness endpoint was achieved in 66% of patients, with similar rates among CCS patients (68%) and ACS patients (65%). Likewise, there were no significant differences in angiographic success after IVL between CCS and ACS patients. The rate of MACE at 30 days (primary safety endpoint) was 3% (1% in CCS and 5% in ACS patients [P = 0.073]). ConclusionsCoronary IVL proved to be a feasible and safe procedure in a “real-life” setting, effectively facilitating stent implantation in severely calcified lesions. Patients with ACS on admission showed similar angiographic success rates but showed a trend toward higher 30-day MACE compared with patients with CCS. (REPLICA-EPIC18 study [Registry of Coronary Lithotripsy in Spain]; NCT04298307)

Treatment of Calcified Lesions Using a Dedicated Super-High Pressure Balloon: Multicenter Optical Coherence Tomography Registry

BackgroundCalcified lesions often lead to difficulty achieving optimal stent expansion. OPN non-compliant (NC) is a twin layer balloon with high rated burst pressure that may modify calcium effectively. MethodsRetrospective, multicenter registry in patients undergoing optical coherence tomography (OCT) guided intervention with OPN NC. Superficial calcification with > 180o arc and > 0.5 mm thickness, and/or nodular calcification with > 90o arc were included. OCT was performed in all cases before and after OPN NC, and after intervention. Primary efficacy endpoints were frequency of expansion (EXP) ≥80 % of the mean reference lumen area and mean final EXP by OCT, and secondary endpoints were calcium fractures (CF), and EXP ≥90 %. Results50 cases were included; 25 (50 %) superficial, and 25 (50 %) nodular. Calcium score of 4 in 42 (84 %) cases and 3 in 8 (16 %). OPN NC was used alone, or after other devices if further modification was needed, NC in 27 (54 %), cutting in 29 (58 %), scoring in 1 (2 %), IVL in 2 (4 %); or if non-crossable lesion, rotablation in 5 (10 %) cases. EXP ≥80 % was achieved in 40 (80 %) cases with mean final EXP post intervention of 85.7 % ± 8.9. CF were documented in 49 (98 %) cases; multiple in 37 (74 %). There were 1 flow limiting dissection requiring stent deployment and 3 non-cardiovascular related deaths in 6 months follow-up. No records of perforation, no-reflow or other major adverse events. ConclusionAmong patients with heavy calcified lesions undergoing OCT guided intervention with OPN NC, acceptable expansion was achieved in most cases without procedure related complications.

773 CONTRAST-ENHANCED EXCIMER LASER CORONARY ANGIOPLASTY IN THE TREATMENT OF HEAVILY CALCIFIED LESIONS: A STEPWISE APPROACH

Abstract Introduction The treatment of heavily calcified lesions is a challenge for the interventional cardiologist. The Excimer laser coronary atherectomy (ELCA) is a plaque modification tool and the main mechanism of action seems to be the photomechanical delivering acoustic pressure with a mechanical disruption of the plaque in front of the catheter tip. Objective To evaluate the effectiveness of the contrast-enhanced ELCA by a stepwise approach, with incremental frequency/fluency in the treatment of calcified lesions in different contexts. Methods We retrospectively enrolled consecutively all patients undergoing contrast-enhanced ELCA-assisted PCIs between 2018 and 2021 at the Cardiology Unit of “Umberto I” Hospital of Syracuse (Italy). The frequency/fluency ELCA profile used with a stepwise approach were 50/50, 60/60, 70/70 and 80/80. ELCA technical success was defined as the laser catheter crossing the entire length of the target lesion established by angiographic evidence of the catheter tip in the artery distal to the stenosis. Procedural success was defined as &amp;lt;30% residual stenosis after laser and adjunctive therapy. Clinical success requested procedural success with absence of major adverse cardiac events at hospital discharge. Major adverse cardiac events included death of all causes, myocardial infarction, need for target lesion revascularization, tamponade, and life-threatening arrhythmias. Results We enrolled 114 patients who underwent contrast-enhanced ELCA-assisted PCI. 58% of the patients had acute coronary syndrome and 42% had chronic coronary syndrome. The left anterior descending artery was the target vessel in 42.1% of cases, the right coronary artery in 26.3%, the circumflex in 10.5%, and the left main artery in 2.3%. The main indication for ELCA was intrastent restenosis (56.2%). The median stenosis was 90% (80% – 90%). The ELCA catheter tip was 0.9 mm and 1.4 mm was employed in the 89.5% and 10.5% of cases respectively. The most used frequency/fluency profile was 70/70 (39.5%) followed by 60/60 (31.6%), 50/50 (15.8%) and 80/80 (13.2%). Use of contrast-enhanced ELCA was associated with high technical success rate (97.4%), procedural success rate (93.7%), and clinical success rate (97.1%). Conclusions In Conclusion, the contrast-enhanced ELCA seems to be a safe and effective treatment for management of calcified lesions.

Clinical use of intracoronary imaging modalities in Poland. Expert opinion of the Association of Cardiovascular Interventions of the Polish Cardiac Society.

The article presents the most common, current indications for the use of intravascular invasive imag-ing diagnostic techniques, i.e. intravascular ultrasound and optical coherence tomography in Polish invasive cardiology centers. The application of the above-mentioned techniques in the diagnosis of stenosis of the left main coronary artery, optimization of stent implantation procedures, treatment of calcified lesions, and other clinically important issues are discussed.

Rotational atherectomy: In hospital results of a real life experience for the treatment of complex calcified coronary lesions

Severe coronary calcifications are an independent factor of poor prognosis. They are associated with high rates of short- and long-term complications. The main objective of our study was to report our experience in the use of rotational atherectomy (RA) in the treatment of calcified lesions in different sitting and to describe the intra-hospital results evaluating the safety of this technique in real life. We enrolled all consecutive patients with calcified coronary lesions who underwent RA between January 2018 and March 2020. Clinical, angiographic characteristic and in hospital results data were collected to evaluate the results and the safety of this technique in a real-life experience including bifurcation and left main lesions. A total of 96 patients with 116 coronary lesions were included in our study. RA procedures represent 1.78% of total percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI). The mean age was 75.6 ± 8.2 years, all patients had at least one cardiovascular risk factor. Angiographic characteristics analysis revealed that the left anterior descending artery (LAD) was the most treated artery (50.9%) and 78.1% of patients had multivessel disease. RA was performed in bifurcation lesions in 20.7% of cases and in the left main stenosis in 13.6% of cases. Half of our patients had a Syntax score I > 22. The most used burr was 1.5 mm (56.9%). The burr-to-artery ratio was 0.5 with an IQR of (0.42–0.56). Procedural success was obtained in 97.4% of cases. Regarding complications we noted 3 (2.6%) cases of slow flow/no reflow, 4 (3.4%) cases of coronary dissection, 1 stuck burr and no case of coronary perforation. RA in left main and bifurcations were not associated with an excess of complications compared with other lesions. RA is an effective tool and safe technique with a low rate of complications to treat challenging calcified coronary lesions even in left main and bifurcation lesions.

The rotational atherectomy with a guide extension catheter for calcified and tortuous lesions in left anterior descending artery: a case report

BackgroundThe interventional treatment of calcified lesions with severe tortuosity in the left anterior descending artery (LAD) was challenging and the report of rotational atherectomy with mother-and-child technique has been scarce.Case presentationAn 84-year-old woman was hospitalized for non-ST-segment acute coronary syndrome. Coronary angiography revealed a calcified nodule in the LAD. During rotational atherectomy of the calcified and tortuous lesion in the proximal LAD, eccentric cutting due to wire bias nearly caused perforation. The burr seemed to protrude from the contrast media during angiography. Intravascular ultrasound imaging revealed that extremely eccentric ablation almost reached the adventitia. We successfully ablated the distal calcified nodule by preventing proximal overcutting of the tortuous lesion with support from a guide extension catheter, i.e., the mother-and-child technique, followed by the deployment of the drug-eluting stent. The patient was discharged without chest symptoms and no symptom recurred during 12-month follow-up.ConclusionThis case demonstrated that safe ablation of a calcified nodule located distal to a tortuous and calcified lesion in the proximal LAD with the mother-and-child technique.

Improved crossability with novel cutting balloon versus scoring balloon in the treatment of calcified lesion.

Cutting balloons and scoring balloons are commonly used for the preparation of calcified lesion. However, problems with crossability occasionally limit the use of cutting balloons. We prospectively selected 173 calcified lesions treated using a novel cutting balloon (Wolverine™, C group). As control, we retrospectively analyzed 146 calcified lesions treated using a scoring balloon (Lacrosse NSE ALPHA™, S group). Either intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) or optical coherence tomography (OCT) was used by the operator's discretion. The primary outcome was delivery success, which was defined as successful passage to the target lesion immediately after IVUS or OCT evaluation. The secondary outcome was acute cross-sectional area (CSA) gain, which was defined as post-interventional minimum stent area minus pre-procedural minimum lumen area. A multivariate analysis evaluated the independent predictors for delivery success. The delivery success rate was significantly higher in the C group versus the S group (90.8% versus 79.5%, P = 0.006). However, the acute CSA gain was similar between the two groups (IVUS: 3.2 ± 1.8 mm2 versus 3.4 ± 1.9 mm2, P = 0.53; OCT: 3.6 ± 1.4 mm2 versus 4.1 ± 1.9 mm2, P = 0.11). Usage of cutting balloon was an independent predictor for delivery success even after the adjustment for the patient and lesion characteristics [odds ratio (OR): 2.72 (95% confidence interval 1.38-5.33), P = 0.004] as well as the procedural characteristics [OR: 2.34 (1.15-4.86), P = 0.018]. Novel cutting balloons demonstrated better crossability and similar acute CSA gain compared with scoring balloons in calcified lesion.

PTA and Stenting of Femoropopliteal Trunk With Cordis Smartflex Stent System: A Single-Center Experience.

The aim of this study is to describe our experience in the treatment of femoropopliteal occlusive disease with percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) followed by stenting with S.M.A.R.T. Flex vascular stent system. From June 2014 to October 2018, 80 patients were treated at our Institution for intermittent claudication, critical, or acute limb ischemia due to total occlusion or long diffused lesions of the femoropopliteal segment. Main study end points are primary patency, target lesion revascularization, and stent fractures; secondary end points are major amputation rate, procedure-related bleeding, incidence of intrastent restenosis, and primary assisted patency after reintervention. Mean follow-up time was 21 months (range 2-48 months). Primary patency rate was 80% (64 patients of 80), with mean covered lesion length of 8.2 cm. The deployment of a single stent was obtained for 57 (89%) patients, with a mean stent length of 9.86 cm. Of 80 patients, 2 (2.5%) had early stent occlusion within first 48 hours after the procedure, while 4 (5%) of 80 patients experienced stent occlusion within first 6 months. Of 80 patients, 6 (7.5%) had an intrastent restenosis detected at duplex ultrasound with a primary-assisted patency after simple re-PTA procedures of 83.3% at 12 months. In the literature, primary patency after PTA and stenting of the femoropopliteal trunk seems to be related to several variables, such as number of stents used, specific stent length, diameters, type and length of lesions, type of pathology (if acute or chronic), and number of preoperatory patent below-the-knee vessels. In this study, we try to analyze each single factor in order to understand their role in predisposing specific stent restenosis. S.M.A.R.T. Flex vascular stent system has shown good results in terms of primary patency in the treatment of calcified lesions both at SFA and at popliteal level. However, in our experience, stent patency seems to be significantly poorer in patients presenting with acute limb ischemia associated with chronic atherosclerotic disease as well as for lesions located in the mid-distal part of the popliteal artery and both when number of stents increases or number of runoff vessel decreases.

CRT-147 The Efficacy and Clinical Outcome of Rotational Atherectomy with Second Generation Drug-Eluting Stents

Treatment of calcified lesions with balloon angioplasty has been associated with a low success rate and high procedural complications. Rotational atherectomy (RA) improved acute results, but a high restenosis rate remained a problem. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to evaluate the clinical

Evaluation of a Dedicated Balloon Catheter for Infrapopliteal Difficult Calcified Lesions in Diabetic Patients With Critical Limb Ischemia

The purpose of this study was to assess the technical performance and immediate procedural outcome of a new balloon catheter in the treatment of calcified lesions in infrapopliteal arterial disease. Sixty-one patients (81 vessels) with infrapopliteal arterial disease were evaluated. Seventy-four of the 81 treated vessels had total occlusions. The ReeKross 18 peripheral transluminal angioplasty catheter (ClearStream, Wexford, Ireland) is an 0.018-inch guidewire system with 4F sheath compatibility and a rigid shaft intended for enhanced pushability. Only technical procedural outcomes were recorded. In 37 of 61 patients (50 infrapopliteal severely stenosed or occluded vessels), an attempt with a standard balloon was made before the ReeKross 18 was used. In 24 patients, the ReeKross 18 was used as the primary catheter in 23 cases involving crural arteries and in 8 cases involving the foot. The ReeKross 18 crossed the lesion in 55 of 59 (93.2%) patients and 72 of 77 (94.5%) vessels, respectively. Postdilatation results for the 51 patients (64 target lesions) in whom ReeKross 18 balloon dilation was achieved showed <30% residual stenosis in all but 4 patients (5 lesions). Of the patients treated with the ReeKross 18 as the primary catheter, the technical success rate (no adjunctive treatment/stent) was obtained in 20 of 24 (83.3%) patients (27 of 31 [87.1%] target lesions). In the treatment of difficult calcified lesions, the choice of a high-pushability angioplasty catheter, such as the ReeKross 18, warrants consideration.

Evaluation of a New Balloon Catheter for Difficult Calcified Lesions in Infrainguinal Arterial Disease: Outcome of a Multicenter Registry

The purpose of this study was to assess the technical performance and immediate procedure outcome of a new balloon catheter in the treatment of calcified lesions in infrainguinal arterial disease. Seventy-five patients with infrainguinal arterial disease were prospectively entered into the registry. The catheter (ReeKross Clearstream, Ireland) is a 5- to 6-Fr balloon catheter with a rigid shaft intended for enhanced pushability. Only technical procedural outcome was recorded. Treated calcified lesions (range: 5–30 cm), assessed angiographically, were located in the superficial femoral, popliteal, and crural arteries. In 67 patients the lesion was an occlusion. Guidewire passage occurred subintimally in 68 patients. In 24 patients a standard balloon catheter was chosen as first treatment catheter: 5 failed to cross the lesion, 8 balloons ruptured, and in 11 patients there was an inadequate dilatation result. In only one of the five patients did subsequent use of the ReeKross catheter also fail in lesion crossing. The ReeKross was successful as secondary catheter in the other 23 cases. In 50 patients the ReeKross was used as primary catheter. In total the ReeKross crossed the lesions in 74 patients. After passage and dilatation with this catheter in 73 patients (1 failed true-lumen reentry), 19 had >30% residual lesions, of which 11 were not treated and 8 were successfully stented. No ReeKross balloons ruptured. We conclude that in the treatment of difficult calcified lesions in arterial stenotic or occlusive disease, the choice of a high-pushability angioplasty catheter, with more calcification-resistant balloon characteristics, like the ReeKross, warrants consideration.