Orbital Atherectomy and Heavily Calcified Saphenous Vein Graft Intervention.

Percutaneous coronary intervention in the diseased saphenous vein graft differs significantly from that in the diseased native coronary artery. After being exposed to arterial pressures over time, vein grafts have substantially different plaque characteristics, with more inflammatory cells, more diffuse disease, and less calcification. Severe calcification of saphenous vein grafts, although uncommon, poses a high risk of stent underexpansion. Orbital atherectomy for treatment of de novo calcified coronary lesions has been associated with better outcomes at 5-year follow-up. However, there are no published data on the use of orbital atherectomy to treat severely calcified saphenous vein graft lesions. We present the case of a 77-year-old woman with non-ST-segment-elevation myocardial infarction who underwent successful orbital atherectomy to prepare a severely calcified saphenous vein graft lesion for stent implantation.

A prospective study of contrast preservation using ultra-low contrast delivery technique versus standard automated contrast injector system in coronary procedures.

BACKGROUND: We aimed to assess the decrease in contrast media volume (CMV) with ultra-low contrast delivery technique (ULCD) developed at our institution versus the usual automated contrast injector system (ACIS) contrast delivery in coronary procedures. METHODS: We analyzed the amount of contrast given in the consecutive 204 patients of the operators who use ULCD technique versus consecutive 200 patients of the other operators who use ACIS without ULCD technique for coronary angiograms and/or percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs) from May 2017 to July 2018 at our center. We calculated the mean CMV between these groups. RESULTS: We observed a significant reduction in mean CMV with ULCD technique versus standard ACIS, respectively: angiogram 24.8 ± 15.8 mL (n = 194) vs 42.3 ± 25.1 mL (n = 200) (p < 0.0001); PCI 23.5 ± 19.7 mL (n = 52) vs 48.2 ± 30.8 mL (n = 16) (p < 0.0070); angiogram with ad hoc PCI 53.4 ± 32.1 mL (n = 23) vs 89.7 ± 35.6 mL (n = 16) (p < 0.0024); and overall angiogram and PCI 27.4 ± 20.5 mL (n = 204) vs 44.9 ± 28.0 mL (n = 181) (p < 0.0001). CONCLUSION: Our study showed a highly significant reduction in CMV using ULCD technique compared to standard ACIS contrast delivery in coronary invasive procedures. Even in the standard ACIS arm, CMV was significantly lower than values reported in literature, possibly due to operators' bias toward contrast preservation.

Outcomes and Safety of Transcatheter Aortic Valve Implantation With and Without Routine Use of Transesophageal Echocardiography.

Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) has been extensively used historically for Transcatheter aortic valve implantation (TAVI) but focus is shifting from routine use of TEE and general anesthesia to "as needed" use. We evaluated patients who had TAVI in our institution from September 2012 to February 2017. Decision for implantation and use of TEE during procedure was made by the structural heart team on a case-to-case basis, based on FDA approved indications. Data including procedural details, length of stay and rehospitalizations were obtained from all patients. TAVI was performed on 178 patients during the study period of which 104 of 178 had TEE during TAVI. Baseline characteristics were fairly comparable in both groups. Similar proportion of self-expanding and balloon expanding valves were deployed. Patients in TEE group had longer overall procedure time (107 minute vs 83 minute, p = 0.0002) and longer length of stay (5.01days vs 2.49days, p < 0.0001). Echocardiographic study postprocedure showed similar incidence of paravalvular leak and similar gradients and velocities across aortic valve. Rates of 30-day readmissions were similar in both groups. In conclusion, in this single-center retrospective analysis-TAVI without the 'routine use' of TEE was comparable with those done with TEE guidance in terms of periprocedural complications and 30-day readmissions. Overall procedure length and length of stay was predictably higher in the TEE group.

Amiodarone Refractory Electrical Storm Post-Revascularization for Anterior ST Elevation Myocardial Infarction: A Case Report and Brief Review of the Literature.

"Electrical storm" is a life-threatening condition defined as the occurrence of at least two episodes of malignant ventricular arrhythmia in a 24-hour period despite anti-arrhythmic therapy. It leads to unpredictable degrees of clinical instability - in the most severe cases mechanical support for circulation and oxygenation and for definitive therapy radiofrequency ablation or cardiac sympathetic denervation. We describe a case of medication refractory electrical storm complicating severe left ventricular dysfunction after an anterior ST-elevation myocardial infarction.

Iatrogenic propagation of coronary dissection during diagnostic coronary angiography: an uncommon but important procedural consideration.

Spontaneous coronary artery dissection is an uncommon cause of acute myocardial infarction in the general population but is relatively more common in the peripartum period. Regardless of clinical setting, the management strategy is individualised, ranging from conservative to invasive. We report a case of peripartum myocardial infarction due to spontaneous coronary dissection that propagated during diagnostic angiography and ultimately required emergent bypass surgery.

Paclitaxel Induced MDS and AML: A Case Report and Literature Review.

Therapy related acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) and myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) have been classically linked to alkylating agents and topoisomerase inhibitors. They constitute about 1% of all AMLs. There is less evidence on association of taxanes (paclitaxel and docetaxel) with these myeloid neoplasms. We present a case of paclitaxel therapy related acute myelogenous leukemia after treatment of endometrial cancer with a regimen containing paclitaxel and carboplatin. A 63-year-old female underwent surgery followed by a total of 6 cycles of chemotherapy with carboplatin and paclitaxel. Six months after last cycle of chemotherapy, she was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome with refractory anemia and excess blasts. Six weeks later, she had worsening anemia and thrombocytopenia which prompted a bone marrow biopsy which revealed acute myelomonocytic leukemia. A thorough literature review revealed 12 other case reports where taxanes have been implicated in the development of therapy related myeloid neoplasm. Based on the timeline of events in our patient, paclitaxel is the likely culprit in the pathogenesis of this myeloid neoplasm. This rare but significantly grave adverse effect should be kept in consideration when deciding on treatment options for gynecological malignancies.

Fibromuscular Dysplasia Leading to Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection with Sudden Cardiac Arrest.

A 30-year-old previously healthy female, who was six-week postpartum, experienced sudden collapse and tonic-clonic seizure. Emergency medicine services arrived at the scene and the patient was found to be in ventricular fibrillation. Advanced cardiovascular life support (ACLS) was initiated with return of spontaneous circulation. Afterwards, her initial EKG showed atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular rate, ST elevation in leads II, III, and aVF, and ST depression in V2-V4. She was transferred to a tertiary care hospital where emergent angiogram was performed revealing obstruction of blood flow in the proximal and mid right coronary artery (RCA). A hazy and irregularly contoured appearance of the RCA was consistent with diagnosis of fibromuscular dysplasia. Subsequently, intravascular ultrasonogram (IVUS) was performed which confirmed the diagnosis of RCA dissection. Successful revascularization of the RCA was performed using two bare mental stents. After a complicated course in hospital, she was discharged in stable condition and did very well overall.