BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The previous studies have demonstrated the superiority of implanting drug eluting stent (DES) for restenosis reduction compared with the implantation of uncoated stents in small coronary arteries. However, the arteries in those studies tended to have short lesions. So, we evaluated the efficacy of a drug eluting stent in small coronary lesions with a relatively long length. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: From July 2003 to March 2005, DESs (Cypher or Taxus) were implanted into 100 consecutive patients with 116 lesions that were less than 2.75 mm in diameter. All patients received aspirin indefinitely and clopidogrel for 6 months. The primary end point was 6 month angiographic in-segment restenosis, and the secondary end points were procedural success and any major adverse cardiac events (MACE: death, non fatal myocardial infarction and target lesion revascularization) at 9 months. RESULTS: The mean age of the patients was 63 years, 53% were male, 24% were diabetics, 34% were current smokers and 55% had hypertension. A total of 121 DESs were implanted into 116 lesions (mean number of DESs/lesion: 1.1/lesion). The mean proximal and distal reference diameters were 2.21+/-0.39 and 2.01+/-0.40 mm, respectively. The mean lesion length was 19.14+/-7.89 mm. The mean pre- and post-minimal lumen diameters were 0.73+/-0.42 mm and 2.26+/-0.41 mm, respectively. The mean size and length of the stents were 2.65+/-0.13 mm and 28.46+/-10.04 mm, respectively. The procedural success rate was 98.3%. The angiographic follow-up rate was 78.4%. The binary in-segment restenosis rate was 15.4% (14 lesions). The MACE at 9 months was 8.0%. CONCLUSION: DES implantation in small coronary lesions with a relatively long length demonstrated favorable results. However, a larger scale study is needed to clarify the efficacy of the DES in small coronary arteries.
Arteries ; Aspirin ; Coronary Restenosis ; Coronary Vessels* ; Drug-Eluting Stents* ; Follow-Up Studies ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Male ; Myocardial Infarction ; Stents

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The 5-HT2A receptor is one of the main mediators of a serotonin-evoked coronary artery contraction. This is because vasoconstriction is selectively blocked by the 5-HT2 receptor antagonist, with the 5-HT2A receptor gene mRNA being detected in spastic coronary arteries. The relationship between the T102C polymorphism of the 5-HT2A receptor gene and the response to the 5-HT2A antagonist (clozapine) has recently been established, suggestive of a functional implication. Previous studies have observed an association between low cholesterol levels and mental disorders, but the underlying cause has not been determined. It has been established that the T102C polymorphism of the 5-HT2A serotonin receptor gene and a variety of psychological problems are related, but the relationship between the serum lipid level and this genetic polymorphism has not been reported. We investigated the influence of this polymorphism on coronary artery disease, including vasospastic angina and the clinical parameters, such as the lipid profile. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: After a diagnostic angiography was performed, the genotype was identified from the genomic DNA extracted from the peripheral blood of 646 patients without specific psychiatric diseases. RESULTS: There were no differences in the genotype frequencies between coronary artery disease, coronary artery disease with vasospasm, and the normal control groups, even from a subgroup analysis of the clinical parameters. Contrary to previous reports, the genotype distribution was not related to a myocardial infarction or hypertension. The lipid profile analysis showed significantly lower total cholesterol (193.5 vs. 202.1mg/dL, p=0.016) and HDL-cholesterol (42.7 vs. 46.2mg/dL, p=0.003) levels in the CC genotype than the other genotypes, and the frequencies of CC genotype showed a significantly decreasing trend between the HDL-cholesterol (p=0.003) and total cholesterol (p=0.003) quartiles. From a multivariate analysis, only the HDL-cholesterol level was significantly associated with a lower frequency of the CC genotype (p=0.006). CONCLUSION: The T102C polymorphism is not related to coronary artery disease, including vasospasm of the coronary artery, but the CC genotype of this polymorphism is related to low HDL-cholesterol. We identified a novel genetic polymorphism of the serotonin receptor, which affects the HDL-cholesterol level. Because previous observational studies have shown an association between low cholesterol levels and mental disorders, our data should be considered when analyzing the serum lipid levels and serotonin receptor function in humans.
Angiography ; Cholesterol ; Coronary Artery Disease* ; Coronary Vessels* ; DNA ; Genotype ; Humans ; Hypertension ; Mental Disorders ; Multivariate Analysis ; Muscle Spasticity ; Myocardial Infarction ; Polymorphism, Genetic ; Receptor, Serotonin, 5-HT2A* ; RNA, Messenger ; Serotonin ; Serotonin 5-HT2 Receptor Antagonists ; Vasoconstriction

BACKGROUND: Vasodilators including angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor(ACEI) have been suggested to reduce left ventricular volume and to improve left ventricular performance in patients with moderate to severe regurgitant valvular heart diseases. However, long-term effects of angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor upon left ventricular size and function in asymptomatic or minimally symptomatic patients with chronic mitral regurgitation remain to be elucidated. MATERIALS AND METHOD: Forty five patients with moderate to severe chromic mitral regurgitation on echocardiography and mild or no symptoms were studied. Serial changes of left ventricular dimension and ejection fraction were analyzed retrospectively using M-mode echocardiography in patients treated with ACEI(ACEI group, n=21) and in patients treated with other medications except ACEI or with no medication(non-ACEI group, n=24). RESULTS: The mean duration of follow-up was 30+/-15 months. ACEI group showed trends of decreasing left ventricular end-systolic dimension(LVESD) and left ventricular end-diastolic dimension(LVEDD) and a trend of increasing ejection fraction(EF), though statistically insignificant when compared to those of before-treatment or non-ACEI group. In patients with larger initial LVESD(>35mm), LVEDD was reduced(the percent changes of LVEDD 2 and 3 years after ACEI treatment were -4.2# and -4.4%) that was significantly different from those of non-ACEI group(+3.4% and +3.4% each)(p<0.05). In patients with larger initial LVEDD(>60mm), the percent changes of LVEDD 2 and 3 years after ACEI treatment were -4.9% and -5.8%, and in patients with initial EF less than 60%, the percent change of LVEDD 2 years after ACEI treatment was -0.57%. Those changes were also statistically significant compared to those of non-ACEI group(p<0.05 each). CONCLUSION: In mildly symptomatic chronic mitral regurgitation patients, especially whose left ventricular dimension is increase, long-term ACEI therapy seems to be effective in preventing left ventricular dilatation or in reducing left ventricular volume and such therapy may have a beneficial effect on the natural history of such patients.
Angiotensins* ; Dilatation ; Echocardiography ; Follow-Up Studies ; Heart Valve Diseases ; Humans ; Mitral Valve Insufficiency* ; Natural History ; Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A* ; Retrospective Studies ; Vasodilator Agents