Socioeconomic status (SES) has been linked to recurrent atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease events (rASCVD) after myocardial infarction (MI). However, patients with low SES are underrepresented in most randomized studies. This may be largely due to a higher incidence of metabolic syndrome, insufficient use of recommended medication, such as statins, for secondary prevention and insufficient participation in...
EuroCTO: Safety and Benefit at 3 Years
Chronic total occlusions (CTOs) account for approximately 15-20% of patients with stable coronary artery disease. This field has seen various advances regarding treatment, leading to an improvement in the success rate of procedures. According to registries and randomized studies, the main indication for percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) of CTO should be based more on clinical...
Device Effectiveness for Femoropopliteal Artery Disease Treatment: Analysis of K-VIS ELLA Registry
Endovascular treatment of lesions in femoropopliteal territory (FPA) has become the main therapeutic option, seeing as it is less invasive and has faster recovery. It has used different devices, such as conventional bare metal stents (BMS), balloon angioplasty (POBA), and drug coated balloons (DCB), as well as drug eluting stents (DES). However, real world data...
ABSORB IV – Improving Bioresorbable Scaffolds: A Long Road
5-year followup of bioresorbable scaffolds in selected and better prepared lesions (ABSORB IV). Historically, when comparing previously used therapies, such as conventional balloon angioplasty (BA) against bare metal stent (BMS) and later against drug eluting stent (DES) implantation, we see significantly improved outcomes. These advances have shown reduced recoil and more effective restenosis inhibition, compared...
No Reflow after Primary PCI in STEMI: An Angiographic Analysis of the TOTAL Study
In the early days of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients with ST elevation acute myocardial infarction (STEMI), no reflow phenomenon was known as an indicator of the worst possible outcomes in terms of left ventricular remodeling, infarct size, ejection fraction and mortality, at long term. The TOTAL study (Routine Aspiration Thrombectomy with PCI Versus...
Secondary Prevention with P2Y12 Inhibitors: How Consolidated Is This Long Term Alternative vs. Aspirin?
Secondary prevention with P2Y12 inhibitors vs aspirin monotherapy in CAD patients Antiaggregation therapy plays a central role at long term to prevent new cardiovascular events in atherosclerosis patients. After repeat myocardial infarction (MI) or stroke, prognosis can vary considerably. Even though the current guidelines prefer aspirin as the first choice for secondary prevention over P2Y12...
Simplified Rapid Intravenous Hydration for the Prevention of Contrast-Induced Nephropathy in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease
Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) undergoing coronary angiography are at increased risk of developing contrast-associated acute kidney injury (CA-AKI), which is associated with increased mortality. According to current guidelines, the standard treatment for preventing CA-AKI in patients with moderate to severe CKD is long-duration peri-procedural intravenous hydration with saline solution. This standard hydration is...
What Is the Prognosis of an Acute Myocardial Infarction in the Presence of Moderate Aortic Stenosis?
Aortic stenosis (AS) is a common condition that shares risk factors with coronary artery disease. Many patients can suffer from both diseases simultaneously, something that increases the risk of acute myocardial infarction in the presence of aortic stenosis. AS can cause ischemia even in the absence of coronary artery disease, due to ventricular hypertrophy, increased...
Relationship between Distal Vessel Quality and Outcomes in the Treatment of Chronic Total Occlusions
Percutaneous treatment of chronic total occlusions has increase, and has become a a more habitual therapeutic challenge. However, there is limited information on distal vessel quality and its association with outcomes and techniques. This variable appears to be excluded form CTO scores, except for the RECHARGE (REgistry of CrossBoss and Hybrid procedures in FrAnce, the...
Aortic Stenosis and Cardiogenic Shock: Is TAVR an Option?
Cardiogenic shock (CS) in a setting of aortic stenosis is associated with high mortality rates. In consequence, surgery is generally not a possibility for this patient group, and they usually undergo aortic valvuloplasty, resulting in a mortality rate of 33%-50% at 30 days, 70% at one year, and 90% at two years. While transcatheter aortic...