The Use of Bumper Wire Technique and Intravascular Ultrasound for Precise Aorto-Ostial Stenting.

Background: Aorto-ostial interventions are challenging due to the limitations of contemporary equipment, imprecise ostial demarcation, and problematic ostial lesion characteristics. Suboptimal stent placement is common and portends worse clinical outcomes. Procedural and long-term outcomes of the bumper wire technique with intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) assessment have not been investigated. Methods: A single-center retrospective study was conducted. Patients who underwent ostial lesion percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) with the bumper wire technique between January 2019 and September 2020 were identified. The primary endpoint was to determine the geographic miss rate defined by inadequate ostial coverage or excess stent protrusion of > 2 mm by IVUS or angiography. The secondary endpoint was target lesion failure (TLF) at 6 months after PCI, defined as the composite of cardiovascular death, target vessel myocardial infarction (MI), and target lesion revascularization. Results: In total, 45 patients were identified. The average age was 71.7 years old, and 85.4% were men. Indication for PCI was acute coronary syndrome in about a third of patients. Twenty-six patients had left main ostial lesions and 19 patients had right coronary artery ostial lesions. Geographic miss was detected in two patients (4.4%): one patient (2.2%) had excess proximal stent protrusion and one patient (2.2%) had an ostial miss. Six patients were lost to follow-up. TLF, stroke, or major bleeding were not observed in any of the patients. Conclusion: The bumper wire technique is safe and efficient with low rates of geographic miss or adverse clinical outcomes. This is the first study to confirm precise aorto-ostial stent implantation with the bumper wire technique using IVUS confirmation.

Suction thrombectomy of a massive, hypermobile (type C) right atrial thrombus: a case report.

BACKGROUND: Right atrial thrombus (RAT) may be managed according to morphology and aetiology, i.e. Type A thrombi ('clot-in-transit', hypermobile) are managed with thrombolytics and surgical embolectomy due to high risk of embolization; Type B thrombi (broad-based, globular) may be managed medically as they will very likely maintain a benign course. Experience with management of a Type C thrombus (hypermobile but also broad-based) has not been explicitly described in the literature. CASE SUMMARY: A 25-year-old man with history of leukaemia with prior right subclavian vein chemoport is found to have massive RAT. Multimodal imaging shows a hypermobile mass attached to the right atrial lateral wall inferior to superior vena cava and prolapsing into right ventricle in diastole. Given the thrombus morphology and likely propagation from subclavian port, risk of catastrophic embolization was deemed high and as such, intervention was indicated. Systemic anticoagulation was considered but deferred due to theoretical risk of dissolving the thrombus stalk leading to embolization. Surgical thrombectomy was offered but the patient declined. Due to evidence for success in RAT, the AngioVac System: Generation 3 (Angiodynamics, Inc., Latham, NY, USA) was chosen for intervention. The RAT was successfully removed without any complication. DISCUSSION: AngioVac suction thrombectomy is a safe alternative option for removal of a Type C, massive, hypermobile RAT.

Clinical Characteristics and Management of Methamphetamine-Associated Cardiomyopathy: State-of-the-Art Review.

Methamphetamine-associated cardiomyopathy (MACM) is an increasingly recognized disease entity in the context of a rapidly spreading methamphetamine epidemic. MACM may afflict individuals with a wide range of ages and socioeconomic backgrounds. Presentations can vary greatly and may involve several complications unique to the disease. Given the public health significance of this disease, there is a relative dearth of consensus material to guide clinicians in understanding, diagnosing, and managing MACM. This review therefore aims to: (1) describe pathologic mechanisms of methamphetamine as they pertain to the development, progression, and prognosis of MACM, and the potential to recover cardiac function; (2) summarize existing data from epidemiologic studies and case series in an effort to improve recognition and diagnosis of the disease; (3) guide short- and long-term management of MACM with special attention to expected or potential sequelae of the disease; and (4) highlight pivotal unanswered questions in need of urgent investigation from a public health perspective.