[Interests and limitations of percutaneous coronary intervention strategy in nonagenarian patients: A single center experience]

AIM

To expose our center results in the angioplasty in nonagenarians and to evaluate its effectiveness but also the MACEs and the mortality in the short and long term.

METHODS

A retrospective study of 98 patients admitted to the Antibes hospital center from November 2013 to September 2018.

RESULTS

The median age was 91.8 [90.8-93.4]. 52.6% was male. 9.7% of the patients had a polyvascular site. 50.6% of patients had moderate renal failure. The radial approach was used in 88.4% of cases. 21.6% of patients had tri-truncal lesions, while 46.4% were monotruncular, LAD artery was the culprit artery in 67% of cases. One stent per lesion was used in the majority of cases. Our successful rate was 90%. After angioplasty, 96% of the patients underwent double antiaggregation platelet therapy, 74.4% under clopidogrel. The presence of arrhythmias before angioplasty, the femoral approach, the coronary dissection and cardiogenic shock after angioplasty were predictors of short- and long-term mortality. Diabetes, history of myocardial infarction, impaired left ventricular ejection fraction, calcified coronary lesions, occurrence of arrhythmias or signs of heart failure on post-procedure were predictors of MACE occurrence.

CONCLUSIONS

This study demonstrates that angioplasty in selected population of nonagenarians is perfectly feasible with a good risk/benefit ratio and specifies the different predictors of MACE, both short- and long-term mortality.

[Instent rupture of a saphenous vein graft during percutaneous intervention successfully treated with a covered stent]

Percutaneous coronary interventions of saphenous vein grafts are associated with an increased risk of periprocedural complications; among these, the rupture of the vein graft is probably the less common and the most dangerous; it is even more exceptional when it occurs on a stented portion of the graft. We report the case of a 75-year-old man who presented during a balloon angioplasty of intent restenosis of a saphenous vein graft a spectacular graft rupture at the level of the previously stented site and who was ultimately successfully treated with a covered stent.

[Angioplasty of intra-stent restenosis of a saphenous graft complicated by massive embolism]

The main risk of angioplasty of saphenous vein aortocoronary bypass grafts is myocardial infarction by distal embolism, explaining the introduction of systems of distal protection with encouraging results. Although embolism of an atheromatous stenosis is classical, that of intra-stent restenosis is exceptional. The authors report a very unusual case of atheromatous and/or thrombotic embolism occurring during angioplasty of an intra-stent restenosis which was recovered by a micropore filter system.

[Prognostic value of normal coronary angiography]

Coronary angiography is the "gold standard" for coronary artery disease (CAD). It is considered either normal or subnormal without any lesion (endocoronary echography often demonstrates atheroma), or in presence of a < 50% stenosis. Nevertheless, the risk of plaque rupture is not well correlated with the degree stenosis. Despite the frequent presence of non-significant atheroma, is a normal coronarography really of a good prognosis? Between January and September 1997, 136 of 600 (22.6%) angiographies were considered as normal. The indications were: "CAD suspicion" (n = 77), "preoperative angiography of valvulopathy" (n = 38), and "angioplasty control" (n = 22). The arteries were strictly normal for 86 patients (63%) and a < 50% stenosis was found in 50 patients (37%); 108 patients (80.1%) were followed for 18 +/- 3 months: eight non coronary deaths were reported: four postoperative deaths in "valvular group", two pulmonary embolisms and two pulmonary neoplasm's in "CAD suspicion group". No myocardial infarction was reported and one unstable angina was documented. Despite the frequency of non-significant atheroma, an acute coronary syndrome exceptionally complicates a "normal" coronarography.

[Cardiogenic shock in an infant due to rupture of an aneurysm of the sinus of Valsalva into the left ventricle]

The authors report the case of a 15 month-old infant admitted to the intensive care unit for cardiogenic shock due to rupture of an aneurysm of the right anterior sinus of Valsalva into the left ventricle, associated with massive aortic regurgitation. The patient underwent a Ross procedure with resection of the aneurysm. This is a very rare condition because rupture of the aneurysm into the left ventricle has not been previously reported in a young girl to the best of the authors' knowledge. Moreover, a Ross procedure has not been previously described in this indication. The case illustrates the diagnostic difficulty associated with this pathology and underlines the necessity of thinking of this diagnosis in infants with appearances of dilated cardiomyopathy and aortic regurgitation.

Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty of ostial lesions of internal mammary artery grafts

The internal mammary artery (IMA) is currently the best graft for coronary bypass surgery and is therefore preferentially anastomosed to major arteries, usually the left anterior descending (LAD) artery. This graft may develop a stenosis, most often at the distal anastomosis. Ostial stenoses are rare and their pathophysiology uncertain. While angioplasty of distal anastomotic lesions provides adequate results, the very small number of published cases of angioplasty of ostial lesions explains the lack of knowledge on results of this type of procedure. The authors report six procedures of this type on five patients, including two with stenting. The primary success rate was 100%, with only one hospital complication in the form of pulmonary edema. Mean follow-up for 35 months revealed one sudden death due to probable restenosis, another death 3 years after angioplasty from rapid fatal shock without complementary investigation, and one case of unstable angina secondary to intrastent restenosis. These results suggest that this type of angioplasty is technically feasible with low risk, and that the restenosis rate seems relatively high, potentially presenting as sudden death, in the same way as unprotected dilatation of the native left main artery. A very close clinical follow-up of these patients is therefore necessary, with angiographic control in case of suspected ischemia.

[Angor with occlusion of the left main coronary artery treated with angioplasty]

The occlusion of the left main coronary artery is rare and generally fatal. However, some subjects do survive. The two conditions necessary for survival appear to be the existence of a dominant right coronary artery and above all a rapidly functional left-right collaterality. The time lapse between occlusion and the introduction of an efficient collateral system is fundamental to patient survival. If the time lapse is too long, there is a risk of myocardial infarction, often complicated by cardiogenic shock, with a poor prognosis even after deocclusion. In this study, the case is reported of a patient with left main coronary artery occlusion presenting as unstable angor without an increase in enzymatic levels, and with a totally functional left-right collaterality. Deocclusion angioplasty was successfully performed. Finally, the short- and medium-term results of left main coronary artery angioplasty have been discussed.

[Hemostasis disturbances in myocardial ischemia]

In this article, a description has been given of the close connection between coronary atherosclerosis and the onset of thrombosis. The hemostatic factors examined in this study are implicated both in the pathology of acute coronary syndromes and in the prognosis of ischemic heart disease. Amongst other factors, the role of the following has been investigated: platelets, thromboxane A2 and prostacyclin, von Willebrand factor, factor VII and tissue factor, thrombin, fibrinogen tissue plasminogen activator and plasminogen activator inhibitor. It is concluded that endothelial dysfunction in coronary atherosclerosis is the most frequent cause of disturbances in hemostatic function.

[Treatment of aorto-coronary saphenous vein bypass lesions: pros and cons of angioplasty]

Heart patients who have undergone a coronary bypass may present with renewed myocardial ischemia, often connected with bypass dysfunction. The saphenous bypass is the most frequently implicated, and palliative revascularization may be envisaged, either by further bypass surgery, or by angioplasty. The latter approach has been developed since the beginning of the 1980s, and since that time there has been considerable technical and pharmacological progress in performing this type of graft. However the indications for angioplasty and its comparison with reoperation remain controversial. In the present study, it therefore seemed pertinent to include the respective opinions of two experts in the field of angioplasty and coronary bypass surgery.

[Aneurysm of the sinus of Valsalva. Apropos of a case of right intra-atrial rupture]

An unusual systolo-diastolic heart murmur was discovered fortuitously in a 39-year-old man undergoing a routine check-up. Transesophageal echocardiography gave the diagnosis of Valsalva sinus aneurysm ruptured into the right atrium. Cardiac surgery was successful. We reviewed the literature on this unusual condition, focusing on the pathophysiological, clinical, diagnostic and therapeutic aspects. Transesophageal echocardiography provides the diagnosis.

[Immediate collateral coronary circulation after a methylergometrin test]

The development of a collateral coronary circulation has been well studied by angiography in two main clinical situations: myocardial infarction (by durable coronary occlusion) and angina (due to significant coronary artery stenosis), but only rarely in spastic angina. The authors report the case of severe spasm at the site of non-significant stenosis after a methylergometrine test, with immediate contro-lateral collateral circulation in a patient with a short history of spastic angina without myocardial infarction. This observation demonstrates that collateral circulation may develop very rapidly in spastic angina (without basal ischaemia in the absence of significant coronary stenosis), because this patient only had seven ten-minute episodes of clinical ischaemia. As collateral circulation may mask clinical and electrical signs in spastic angina, this case suggests that angiographic control should be systematic during the methylergometrine test.