The main studies carried out on patients with chronic coronary syndromes (CCS), such as the MASS II, COURAGE, BARI 2D and FAME-2, failed to show benefits in terms of mortality with the invasive approach. The ISCHEMIA, a large randomized study including patients with moderate to severe ischemia, with without left main disease and with acceptable…
Revascularization vs. Deferral of Physiologically Significant Lesions in the Left Main Coronary Artery
Most randomized studies on decision-making in coronary artery disease revascularization exclude left main coronary artery disease (LMCAD), as did the ISCHEMIA Study. On the other hand, the benefits of functionally assessing lesions, proven in studies such as FAME, emphasize the importance of this tool in guiding revascularization decisions. However, there is still little understanding of…
ISCHEMIA Trial: Does Complete Anatomical or Functional Revascularization Modify Anything Compared with Medical Treatment?
Chronic coronary syndrome (CCS) has been considered another comorbidity in previous studies, and there has been no significant reduction in cardiovascular mortality or myocardial infarction (MI) rates with revascularization through percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) or myocardial revascularization surgery (MRS) compared with optimal medical treatment (OMT). One possible reason for the lack of benefit has been…
Left Main Revascularization: 12 Year Registry in Canada
The current indication for severe left main lesion continues to be coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) but percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has come far in this territory thanks to increasing operator experienced and the use of IVUS during procedures. At present, left main disease have a Class IIa indication in the American guidelines when…
Hybrid Coronary Revascularization: A Valid Option?
In this article, we will examine the use of hybrid coronary revascularization to treat multivessel coronary artery disease. Coronary artery disease (CAD) is the most common cause of morbidity and mortality in the western world. The presence of multivessel CAD is associated to high short and midterm mortality and coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) is…
BEST-CLI: Revascularization of Critical Lower Limb Ischemia, a Pragmatic Study
Critical lower limb ischemia (CLLI) is associated with a major deterioration in quality of life and a significant increase in morbidity and mortality. Its estimated annual incidence is 220 to 3500 cases per million people, with an expected prevalence of 11% of patients with peripheral arterial disease. CLLI is the “terminal” stage of peripheral artery…
Revascularization Using DES in Infrapopliteal Disease: Meta-Analysis and Change of Paradigm?
Peripheral vascular disease (PVD) has been under-studied and under-recognized in comparison with ischemic heart disease and stroke, despite its well-known impact on quality of life and its associated morbidity and mortality. According to a systematic review, it was estimated that in 2015 about 238 million people globally had PVD. This number is on the rise.…
EuroPCR 2022 | Should Revascularization Be Performed Before TAVR in Patients with Stable Coronary Disease?
Currently, the American and European guidelines recommend coronary angioplasty in patients with severe aortic stenosis with lesions >70% (Class IIa) who will undergo transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR). However, the benefit of performing a revascularization in these patients is still uncertain. This prospective multicenter study included 2025 patients divided into two groups: complete revascularization (N = 1310)…
Improved Ventricular Function Post Revascularization: Fewer Events across Subgroups?
According to the STITCH and STITCHES trials, in patients with coronary artery disease and deteriorated left ventricular ejection fraction (EF), revascularization of a viable heart might reverse left ventricular systolic dysfunction. In these patients, improved EF after coronary revascularization appears to increase long term survival, particularly after cardiac artery bypass grafting (CABG), compared against medical…
In Multivessel Disease, When Should Renal Impairment Be Considered?
Cardiovascular disease is one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality in patients with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD), and vice-versa. Both diseases share risk factors, including, but not limited to, diabetes, high blood pressure, smoking, dyslipidemia, and old age. As kidney disease develops, its severity grade has been linked to more thrombotic events…