Drug-eluting balloons (DEB) with paclitaxel have shown efficacy and safety in the treatment of femoropopliteal disease. Sirolimus-eluting balloons (DEB S) are currently being introduced. This new drug acts during the cellular resting phase (G0) and is considered potentially more effective than paclitaxel, which is a cytostatic drug. However, there is no conclusive evidence in this...
BIONYX: Onyx vs. Orsiro At 5 Years
Onyx is a zotarolimus-eluting stent (ZES), designed with thin struts and a platinum core that enhances its radiological visibility. This can be beneficial in complex situations with limited visibility, such as in patients who are obese or present severe calcification, two particularly frequent characteristics in diabetic or elderly patients. The BIONYX study was a randomized...
Pre-Catheterization Fast
It has been generally established that coronary procedures with local anesthesia and moderate sedation minimally require a 6 hour fast for solids and 2 hours for liquids (according to SCAI guidelines 2021). However, complications requiring emergency orotracheal intubation are extremely rare. Prolonged fasting can have adverse effects such as hypoglycemia, insulin resistance, acute renal failure...
CART Technique for Chronic Total Occlusions
The retrograde technique has significantly improved the success of percutaneous treatment of chronic total occlusions (CTO). After crossing a collateral channel, creating a connection between the anterograde and retrograde systems is key. The most common technique for this is reverse controlled antegrade and retrograde subintimal tracking (reverse CART). This technique involves inflating a balloon over...
REPLICA-EPICA 18 Registry: Using IVL in Calcified Coronary Lesions
The presence of calcification in the coronary arteries (CAC) remains the main challenge in the percutaneous treatment of these lesions. Various studies have demonstrated the association of CAC with unfavorable long-term outcomes. Intravascular lithotripsy (IVL) has emerged as an effective tool for fracturing calcified plaques. Studies evaluating this strategy have shown high device success rates,...
Is Intravascular Lithotripsy Equally Effective in All Coronary Calcification Patterns?
Coronary calcifications pose a complex challenge with a high incidence (25% of all angioplasties), thus implying difficult management and adverse long-term outcomes, such as an increased risk of events, especially the need for repeat revascularization. The main mechanisms of long-term failure include stent underexpansion and, in particular, minimal post-deployment stent area. Intravascular lithotripsy (IVL) has...
Third Generation Balloon-Expandable and Self-Expanding Valves: TAVR Meta- Analysis
TAVR’s significant advance has driven the development of valve technology, which is currently in its third generation. Even though outcomes have improved, randomized studies are yet to compared balloon-expandable (BEV) vs self-expanding (SEV) valves in randomized studies, and we only have information from different analysis with contradicting conclusions. This was a meta-analysis of 16 studies...
EuroPCR 2024 | CALIPSO: CTO vs Angiography Guided Treatment of Calcified Lesions
The presence of calcified lesions worsens percutaneous coronary intervention prognosis, presenting more restenosis, thrombosis and need for new revascularization. The aim of this study was to assess the superiority of CTO with a prespecified management algorithm on a conventional angiography treatment, in addition to assessing CTO safety. A superiority randomized study was carried out including...
TAVR in Bicuspid Valves
Bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) disease affects 1%-2% of the population and manifests with severe aortic stenosis in the middle-aged. It characterizes for a very different anatomy with more calcification than the tricuspid aortic valve. At present, surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR) is the first treatment indication. TAVR in this scenario has shown, in different studies,...
Reinterventions in TAVR with Self-Expanding Valves
TAVR treatment of severe aortic stenosis is becoming more and more common, showing comparable evolution, or even superior in some studies when using the femoral approach, vs. surgical aortic valve replacement (SAVR). One of the current challenges is TAVR durability vs. SAVR. Even though 9 or 10 years has been deemed acceptable by current standards,...