A 53-yr-old man underwent radiofrequency ablation to treat persistent atrial flutter. After the procedure, the chest pain was getting worse, and the electrocardiogram showed ST-segment elevation in inferior leads with reciprocal changes. Immediate coronary angiography showed total occlusion with thrombi at the distal portion of the right coronary artery, which was very close to the ablation site. Intervention with thrombus aspiration and balloon dilatation was successful, and the patient recovered without any kind of sequelae. Although the exact mechanism is obscure, the most likely explanation is a thermal injury to the vascular wall that ruptured into the lumen and formed thrombus. Vasospasm and thromboembolism can also be other possibilities. This case raise the alarm to cardiologists who perform radiofrequency ablation to treat various kinds of cardiac arrhythmias, in that myocardial infarction has been rarely considered one of the complications.
Acute Disease ; Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary ; Atrial Flutter/*surgery ; Catheter Ablation/*adverse effects ; Chest Pain/etiology ; Coronary Occlusion/etiology ; Coronary Vessels/radiography ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Myocardial Infarction/*diagnosis/etiology/therapy ; Thrombosis/surgery

PURPOSE: When performing coronary angiography (CAG), diagnostic catheter intubation to the ostium can cause damping of the pressure tracing. The aim of this study was to determine the predictors of atherosclerotic ostial stenosis in patients showing pressure damping during CAG. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In total, 2926 patients who underwent diagnostic CAG were screened in this study. Pressure damping was defined as an abrupt decline of the coronary blood pressure with a blunted pulse pressure after engagement of the diagnostic catheter. According to CAG and intravascular ultrasound (IVUS), we divided damped ostia into two groups: atherosclerotic ostial lesion group (true lesion group) and non-atherosclerotic ostium group (false lesion group). Clinical and angiographic characteristics were compared between the two groups. RESULTS: The overall incidence of pressure damping was 2.3% (68 patients and 76 ostia). Among the pressure damped ostia, 40.8% (31 of 76 ostia) were true atherosclerotic ostial lesions (true lesion group). The true lesion group had more frequent left main ostial damping and more percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs) performed on non-ostial lesions, compared to the false lesion group. On multivariate logistic regression analysis, left main ostial damping [hazard ratio (HR) 4.11, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.24-13.67, p=0.021] and PCI on non-ostial lesion (HR 5.34, 95% CI 1.34-21.27, p=0.018) emerged as independent predictors for true atherosclerotic ostial lesions in patients with pressure damping. CONCLUSION: Left main ostial damping and the presence of a non-ostial atherosclerotic lesion may suggest a significant true atherosclerotic lesion in the coronary ostium.
Aged ; *Coronary Angiography ; Coronary Artery Disease/etiology/*radiography ; Coronary Occlusion/diagnosis/*therapy ; Coronary Stenosis/etiology/*radiography ; Coronary Vessel Anomalies/radiography ; Coronary Vessels/*pathology ; Female ; Humans ; Incidence ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Percutaneous Coronary Intervention/adverse effects/methods ; Predictive Value of Tests ; Proportional Hazards Models ; Radiography, Interventional

OBJECTIVEThe aim of this study was to assess the long-term clinical outcome of patients with diabetes mellitus and chronic total occlusion (CTO) underwent drug-eluting stents (DES) implantation.

METHODSData of 143 consecutive eligible patients from January, 2006 to May, 2007 were retrospectively analyzed. The endpoint of the study was the major adverse cardiac events (MACE), including death, myocardial infarction, target lesion revascularization. The patients were divided into two groups, event group and non-event group, according to the result of follow-up.

RESULTSLong-term follow-up was finished in 139 (97.2%) patients. Mean follow-up duration was (19.8 + or - 5.1) months. MACE rate was 10.5% during follow-up: 3 deaths, 1 myocardial infarction and 11 repeated target lesion revascularization with PCI. Compared with the non-event group, the percentage of residual lesion [(17.7 + or - 1.8)% vs. (15.4 + or - 5.0)%, P = 0.001] was significantly higher in the event group, however, the final minimal luminal diameter [(2.14 + or - 0.22)% vs. (2.89 + or - 0.37)%, P = 0.004] was lower. Cox regression analysis showed that final luminal diameter (OR: 0.097, 95%CI: 0.013 - 0.694, P = 0.020) was the only dependent predictor at follow-up.

CONCLUSIONFinal minimal luminal diameter is an independent predictor of MACE during follow-up for patients with diabetes and CTO underwent DES implantation.

Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Blood Vessel Prosthesis Implantation ; Chronic Disease ; Coronary Occlusion ; complications ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Diabetic Angiopathies ; diagnosis ; therapy ; Drug-Eluting Stents ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Prognosis ; Treatment Outcome

The aim of this study was to examine the anti-proliferative and anti-inflammatory effects of ezetimibe/simvastatin (E/S) after drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation in a porcine coronary restenosis model. Pigs were randomized into two groups in which the coronary arteries (23 pigs) had DES. Stents were deployed with oversizing (stent/artery ratio 1.3:1) in porcine coronary arteries. Fifteen pigs were taken 10/20 mg of E/S and eight pigs were not taken E/S. Histopathologic analysis was assessed at 28 days after stenting. In neointima, most inflammatory cells were lymphohistiocytes. Lymphohistiocyte count was not different between two groups (337+/-227 vs. 443+/-366 cells, P=0.292), but neointima area was significantly smaller (1.00+/-0.49 mm2 vs. 1.69+/-0.98 mm2, P=0.021) and percent area stenosis was significantly lower (23.3+/-10% vs. 39+/-19%, P=0.007) in E/S group compared with control group. There were no significant differences in fibrin score (1.99+/-0.79 vs. 1.81+/-0.88, P=0.49), endothelial score (1.75+/-0.66 vs. 1.80+/-0.59, P=0.79), and the percent of endothelium covered lumen (43+/-21% vs. 45+/-21%, P=0.84) between E/S group and control group. Combined therapy with ezetimibe and simvastatin inhibits neointimal hyperplasia, but does not inhibit inflammatory infiltration and arterial healing after DES implantation in a porcine coronary restenosis model.
Animals ; Anticholesteremic Agents/administration & dosage ; Azetidines/*administration & dosage ; Coronary Restenosis/diagnosis/drug therapy/*etiology ; *Disease Models, Animal ; Drug Combinations ; Drug Implants/administration & dosage ; Drug-Eluting Stents/*adverse effects ; Female ; Graft Occlusion, Vascular/diagnosis/*drug therapy/*etiology ; Humans ; Hydroxymethylglutaryl-CoA Reductase Inhibitors/administration & dosage ; Simvastatin/*administration & dosage ; Swine ; Treatment Outcome