Effect of Hinge Motion on Stent Edge-Related Restenosis After Right Coronary Artery Treatment in the Current Drug-Eluting Stent Era.

BACKGROUND: Stent edge-related restenosis (SER) remains a potential limitation of drug-eluting stent (DES). Hinge motion at the stent edge could lead to mechanical stress and contribute to incidents of SER. We investigated the effect of hinge motion on SER after implantation of current-generation DES in the right coronary artery (RCA), where excessive vessel movement is commonly observed.Methods and Results:Of 647 consecutive lesions in the RCA treated with second-generation or later DESs, 426 with follow-up angiography were included in this study. Intravascular imaging analysis was performed for 584 stent edges and reference segments. Binary restenosis occurred in 42 lesions (9.9%), and 55% were SERs. The hinge angle was significantly larger in the SER group than in the other restenosis or the no-restenosis group (17.9° vs. 11.6° and 10.6°, respectively; P<0.001). Lesions with an excessive hinge angle (>11.5°) had an increased rate of target lesion revascularization (19.1% vs. 7.2%; P<0.001) during the median follow-up period of 1,578 days. In per-edge analysis, hinge angle and residual plaque burden were independent predictors of SER. The coexistence of excessive hinge motion and residual plaque burden had a synergistic effect on stenotic progression in quantitative angiographic analysis (Pinteraction<0.001) at follow-up angiography. CONCLUSIONS: Substantial stress determined by angulation at a stent edge and its interaction with residual plaque can be considered as one plausible mechanism for SER.

Empagliflozin attenuates neointimal hyperplasia after drug-eluting-stent implantation in patients with type 2 diabetes.

The effects of empagliflozin, a sodium-glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitor, on neointimal response after drug-eluting-stent (DES) implantation remains unknown. Insufficiently controlled diabetes patients with coronary artery disease planned for DES stenting were consecutively enrolled. The patients were assigned to receive empagliflozin in addition to standard therapy or intensive therapy using other glucose-lowering drugs (oGLD). The primary endpoint was thickness of neointimal hyperplasia (NIH) 12 months after stenting assessed by optical coherence tomography (OCT). A total of 28 patients were analyzed (n = 15 in the empagliflozin group, n = 13 in the oGLD group). The levels of glucose profile were not significantly different between both groups at follow-up [HbA1c; 7.2 ± 0.8 vs 7.3 ± 0.9%, p = 0.46]. In OCT analysis, neointima was significantly less in the empagliflozin group than the oGLD group [mean NIH thickness: 137 ± 32 vs 168 ± 39 µm, p = 0.02]. Changes of systolic and diastolic blood pressure (BP), changes of body mass index, and changes of hematocrit after additional treatment were significantly associated with NIH attenuation, whereas no correlation was observed in changes in blood glucose parameters. Multivariate logistic regression analysis revealed that changes in systolic BP was the strongest predictor for NIH attenuation, followed by changes in diastolic BP. In patients with type 2 diabetes, standard plus empagliflozin attenuated neointimal progression as compared with intensive standard therapy after DES implantation. Our data possibly support a beneficial effect of empagliflozin in type 2 diabetes required for coronary revascularization therapy.

Repetitive restenosis in a biodegradable polymer sirolimus-eluting stent with hypersensitivity reaction: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Hypersensitivity reaction is a classic cause of in-stent restenosis (ISR) in coronary stents, typically reported in bare-metal stents and first-generation drug-eluting stents. Biodegradable polymer sirolimus-eluting stent (BP-SES) was developed with the concept of biocompatibility, and there has been no report of ISR of BP-SES with hypersensitivity reaction. CASE SUMMARY: An 81-year-old woman presented with ST-elevation acute inferior myocardial infarction. Primary percutaneous coronary intervention was performed for the culprit lesion in the left circumflex artery with a permanent polymer everolimus-eluting stent (PP-EES), followed by BP-SES implantation in the left anterior descending artery. Eight months later, coronary angiography showed total occlusion of the PP-EES and diffuse ISR in the BP-SES, treated with a paclitaxel-eluting balloon. Fluorodeoxyglucose with positron emission tomography showed increased uptake around the BP-SES, and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging revealed a late gadolinium-enhanced area around both stents. Four months later, she developed re-ISR in the BP-SES, and optical coherence tomography demonstrated diffuse-layered neointimal hyperplasia with microvascularization and peri-strut low-intensity area. She was successfully treated with coronary artery bypass grafting. DISCUSSION: Our case demonstrated repetitive short-term ISR of the BP-SES. Observation by both intravascular and non-invasive imaging modalities suggested the presence of hypersensitivity reaction localized in the stent. Hypersensitivity to the metal may be a possible mechanism because both stents are composed of L605 cobalt-chromium alloy. This is the first report of ISR of a BP-SES with hypersensitivity reaction. Non-invasive imaging can be useful to assess this critical condition.

Stent Recoil in Overlapping Stent 18 Years After Wiktor Stent Implantation.

In this paper, we look at the case of a 79 years old male who received a Wiktor stent (WS) implantation for myocardial infarction in proximal left anterior descending artery 18 years ago. Eleven years later, an Everolimus eluting stent (EES; Xience V™) was implanted for the proximal edge restenosis of WS from mid left main trunk to the middle part of WS. Seven years after EES implantation, the angiography and optical coherence tomography revealed in-stent restenosis with severe stent recoil just distal to the overlapping zone of WS. In the present case, stent recoil seems to have occurred due to different radial stiffness and flexibility between the two stents.

Indications for suboptimal low-dose direct oral anticoagulants for non-valvular atrial fibrillation patients.

BACKGROUND: Direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) have been developed for stroke prevention in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation (NVAF). We conducted a retrospective cohort study of patients with NVAF who were newly treated with DOACs in a real-world clinical setting. METHODS: We retrospectively analyzed patients with NVAF newly treated with one of three DOACs-dabigatran, rivaroxaban, or apixaban-between January 1, 2013, and December 31, 2015. RESULTS: A total of 670 patients with NVAF who were newly prescribed one of the three DOACs were analyzed; 74 patients (10.9%) received dabigatran, 290 (43.3%) received rivaroxaban, and 306 (45.8%) received apixaban. Fifteen patients had thromboembolic events, almost half of which were due to discontinuation of DOACs. Six patients had major bleeding, although almost all were discharged with good neurological prognoses. A total of 129 patients were treated with a suboptimal low-dose DOAC; none experienced a thromboembolic event as long as the DOAC was taken regularly, and none of the patients in any of the three DOAC groups had major bleeding events. CONCLUSIONS: With good adherence, the clinical course associated with DOACs is comparatively good. In the future, suboptimal low-dose DOAC therapy may serve as an appropriate choice for some patients with a high risk of stroke and bleeding.

Usefulness of fractional flow reserve guidance for PCI in acute myocardial infarction.

Objectives. After conventional balloon angioplasty (PTCA) for acute myocardial infarction in 77 patients (77 lesions), we used myocardial fractional flow reserve (FFR(myo)) to assess the endpoint of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and to determine whether adjunctive stenting was required. Of these, a total of 37 lesions with FFR > or = 0.94 after PTCA received no further treatment (FFR-PTCA group), while the remaining 40 lesions (FFR < 0.94) underwent adjunctive stenting (FFR-stent group). A further 78 patients (78 lesions) comprised the control group; these patients underwent direct stenting without FFR measurement (stent-only group). The restenosis rate at 14-day discharge (mean time to discharge) was 5.1% in the two groups treated with FFR guidance (FFR-PTCA and FFR-stent), but was 0% in the control group (p = ns). There were no significant differences in reocclusion rates between the FFR-guided patients (1.7%) and the controls (0%). There was no incidence of in-hospital mortality or reinfarction in any of the groups. The number of balloons used (mean, 1.3 0.6 balloons for FFR patients versus 1.8 0.5 balloons for control patients) and the total cost of hospitalization and treatment ($16,213 versus $19,730 in U.S. currency; 1,945,571 998,726 yen versus 2,367,656 538,444 yen in Japanese currency) were both higher in the control group. Long-term survival rates were comparable in the two groups. These findings indicate that FFR guidance for PCI of acute myocardial infarction is a useful, low-cost technique that results in similar clinical outcomes as primary stenting.

Effectiveness of cutting balloon angioplasty for small vessels less than 3.0 mm in diameter.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of cutting balloon angioplasty (CBA) in small vessels < 3.0 mm in diameter. Included were 166 patients (175 lesions) treated with CBA (CBA group), and 215 patients (240 lesions) were treated with plain old balloon angioplasty (POBA group). No differences were observed in patient backgrounds or lesion characteristics between the two groups. Procedural success rates were similar: 98.3% (CBA) versus 95.8% (POBA). Coronary dissection rates were also similar: 7.4% in the CBA versus 5.8% in the POBA group. Severe dissections (types E and F) occurred in 2.5% of cases in the POBA group, whereas there was none observed in the CBA group. In-hospital complications occurred in 3.3% in the POBA group, and in only 0.6% in the CBA group. The restenosis rate was 37.5% (CBA group) versus 48.1% (POBA group); and in vessels < 2.75 mm, restenosis was significantly lower in the CBA group than in the POBA group (36.9% vs 62.7%, P < 0.05). CBA may be a useful therapeutic strategy for small vessels, given the absence of severe coronary dissection and the significantly lower rate of restenosis compared to POBA.