Percutaneous balloon pericardiotomy has been used as an alternative for surgically created pericardial window mainly for the management of malignant pericardial effusions in critically ill patients. We describe a patient with purulent pericardial effusion and cardiac tamponade who was treated successfully and without complications with percutaneous balloon pericardiotomy. J INVASIVE CARDIOL 2006;18:E194–E197 Key words: balloon pericardiotomy, pericardial effusion, cardiac tamponade

In the area of drug-eluting stents (DES), complex interventional procedures are increasing in number. In particular, the number of patients undergoing three-vessel or bifurcation lesion stenting is rising, together with increasing concern about the risk of acute stent thrombosis in the area of the DES. In this paper, we present a patient who underwent multivessel bifurcation stent placement after an acute inferior myocardial infarction over a period of one week, with sudden subacute stents thrombosis of the two drug-eluting stents in the left anterior descending and the circumflex coronary arteries, leading to death. This case report is followed by a review of literature. J INVASIVE CARDIOL 2006;18:E198–E202

Stent thrombosis is a catastrophic event characterized by the acute thrombotic occlusion of a previously-stented segment of a coronary artery. It usually presents as an ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction and/or death, and most commonly occurs within the first several weeks after stent placement. Stent thrombosis is classified as either subacute stent thrombosis (SAT), occurring within 30 days of stent placement, or as late stent thrombosis (LST), occurring after 30 days. While very late stent thrombosis (VLST), occurring beyond 1 year, is not uncommon with the use of drug-eluting stents, it is distinctly unusual with the use of bare-metal stents. We report a case of very late thrombosis of a bare-metal stent occurring 717 days after implantation. J INVASIVE CARDIOL 2006;18:E203–E206

Thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (TTP) is an extremely rare but potentially fatal adverse reaction to the thienopyridines, clopidogrel and ticlopidine. We report the case of a patient with a history of clopidogrel-induced TTP who subsequently was successfully treated with aspirin, ticlopidine and cilostazol after stenting for severe, symptomatic coronary artery disease. This case supports the theory that clopidogrel and ticlopidine mediate TTP through slightly different mechanisms and that ticlopidine may be safely used in this setting if absolutely necessary. Moreover, while sufficient data are lacking, the combination of aspirin and cilostazol in this setting may provide adequate antithrombotic protection long term after drug-eluting stent placement. J INVASIVE CARDIOL 2006;18:E211–E213

We report the case of a 74-year-old patient admitted for acute anterior myocardial infarction and treated by intravenous thrombolysis. Because of hemodynamic instability, an intra-aortic balloon pump (IABP) was inserted. However, the patient’s systolic blood pressure deteriorated early after IABP placement. Echocardiography revealed a dynamic left ventricular outflow tract obstruction occurring only during assisted ventricular systoles. Interruption of counterpulsation allowed complete resolution of the dynamic obstruction and improvement of hemodynamic status. J INVASIVE CARDIOL 2006;18:E207–E208

We present the case of a 67-year-old female who was admitted to our institution because of anginal chest pain. Selective coronary angiography revealed separate ostial origins of the left anterior descending (LAD) artery and the right coronary artery (RCA) from the right coronary sinus (RCS). The left circumflex (LCx) coronary artery arose from the proximal RCA. The left anterior descending had an anterior free wall and the LCx had a retroaortic course. To our knowledge, this type of combination of anatomical variation of coronary circulation has not been described in the literature. J INVASIVE CARDIOL 2006;18:E214–E216

Extracardiac collaterals generally from bronchial and internal thoracic arteries to coronary circulation have been described in the literature. In this report, we present a case of 59-year-old male patient with collaterals from the left internal thoracic artery to the left anterior descending artery developed after coronary artery bypass grafting and aneurysmectomy surgery. It is likely the collaterals developed as a result of the postoperative adhesions. J INVASIVE CARDIOL 2006;18:E209–E210

Background. Little has been reported regarding the utility or outcomes of femoral venous vascular closure using arterial suture closure devices. We describe results using a pre-closure approach with a 6 French (Fr) Perclose Closer S device in patients who underwent antegrade aortic valvuloplasty using 14 Fr percutaneous femoral venous access catheters. Methods. Forty-five patients underwent antegrade aortic valvuloplasty and suture-mediated closure with a 6 Fr Perclose™ device. A 6 Fr Closer S suture device was preloaded into the femoral vein after 6 Fr sheath access, prior to insertion of a 14 Fr venous sheath. Upon completion of the procedure, the 14 Fr femoral venous sheath was removed through the existing sutures. Results. Of 45 patients (mean age 82.4 years; 17 males), immediate hemostasis was achieved with percutaneous suture closure in 43 (95.6%). Only 2 failures occurred which were subsequently successfully treated with manual compression. No late access si

Background. Heavy alcohol consumption is a well-known cause of dilated cardiomyopathy and hypertension, but its effects on coronary atherosclerosis are less well understood. The objective of this study was to compare coronary anatomy and left ventricular dysfunction in patients with and without alcoholism associated with heavy consumption. Methods. We studied 100 consecutive alcoholic male patients presenting with chest pain to the Department of Veterans Affairs New York Harbor Healthcare System (VA) between 1994 and 2002. Alcoholism was defined as a history of either chronic alcohol-related pancreatitis or liver cirrhosis. Patients were compared to age-matched controls (n = 200) that were known to be nonalcoholic. All patients underwent coronary angiography. Results. Baseline demographic characteristics were similar between the two groups. The prevalence of significant coronary artery disease (CAD) (defined as coronary arterial luminal diameter stenosis > 50%) was

Background. The use of longer radioactive seed trains to avoid “geographic miss” may lead to greater radiation exposure to distal vasculature due to the natural tapering of coronary arteries. The aim of this study was to use IVUS-based dosimetric analysis to evaluate the effect of beta-radiation on angiographically normal, noninjured distal segments. Methods. We analyzed 17 in-stent restenosis cases (stent length: 20 ± 8 mm) treated with a 40 mm 90Sr/Y source train. The prescribed dose was 18.4 Gy (reference ? 3.3 mm) or 23 Gy (reference > 3.3 mm) at 2 mm from the source. Noninjured, but fully radiated, distal reference sites were determined by angiography. Based upon the three-dimensional vessel contours obtained at baseline, the minimum dose delivered to 90% of plaque volume (Dv90) was determined. Vessel, plaque and lumen volumes and Dv90 were computed in every 2 mm subsegment (n = 52). Results. On average, no significant serial change was observed in plaque area

Introduction. The purpose of this study was to retrospectively review the 5-year experience of a university hospital with implantable loop recorders (ILR) for the diagnosis of recurrent, unexplained syncope or presyncope. Methods. One hundred patients with syncope or presyncope of unknown etiology (negative tilt-table test, electrophysiology study and neurologic workup) underwent prolonged monitoring with an ILR from March 2000 to December 2004. All implants were performed using a first-generation (manual activation) or second-generation (manual plus automatic activation) ILR. Results. One hundred patients (70 women, 30 men) with a mean age of 68 ± 18 years received the ILR. Twenty-three patients had coronary artery disease; 2 patients had dilated cardiomyopathy. Ten patients received a first-generation ILR, and 90 patients received a second-generation ILR. After 9 ± 8 months’ follow up, ILR interrogation identified an arrhythmogenic etiology to the syncope/presync

Background. We report our experience on the technical feasibility and impact on quality of life (QOL) for angioplasty and primary stenting of chronic total occlusion (CTO) of the superficial femoral artery (SFA). Methods. Forty-four patients (51 legs) underwent attempted percutaneous revascularization for SFA CTO utilizing the self-expanding nitinol SMART^® stent (Cordis Corp., Miami, Florida). The Walking Impairment Questionnaire (WIQ score range: 0 to 14,080) was used to assess quality of life and ankle-brachial indices (ABI) were obtained pre- and post-procedure. Results. Successful revascularization was achieved in 90.2% of the cases; Mean follow up was 374 ± 321 days. The mean occlusion length was 15.5 ± 9.9 cm; the mean stented segment length was 23.2 ± 12.2 cm. The minimum stent diameter averaged 7.0 ± 0.6 mm, and the maximum final balloon diameter averaged 5.9 ± 0.6 mm. The mean pre- and post-intervention WIQ scores were 722 ± 1,503 and 8,421 ± 5,

We describe a new technique that allows real-time, three-dimensional (3-D) localization of the Brockenbrough needle tip during transseptal catheterization using the EnSite NavX™ system. Transseptal catheterization has been traditionally performed using fluoroscopy, and recently, with the use of intracardiac echocardiography. However, even intracardiac echocardiography has the limitation of providing only 2-D views limited to the ultrasound plane. By displaying the transseptal needle on the EnSite NavX system, we achieved real-time 3-D localization of the needle tip within the right atrial geometry and found accurate visual correlation between fluoroscopy, intracardiac echocardiography and nonfluoroscopic 3-D cardiac mapping. This study suggests that the EnSite NavX system is able to provide 3-D localization of the transseptal needle during transseptal catheterization, and may be a useful imaging modality in this procedure. J INVASIVE CARDIOL 2006;18:324–327

Objective. To study the influence of clinical and angiographic factors on global and regional left ventricular (LV) function after rescue percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Methods. We performed repeat cardiac catheterization in 102 patients who underwent rescue PCI at our centre. Eighty-two patients had suitable baseline and follow-up ventriculograms, which were analyzed offline by an automated edge detection technique. Results. The mean (standard deviation [SD]) follow-up period was 22 (15) months. PCI was completed in all patients between 3 to 24 hours following the onset of pain. Improved global and regional LV systolic function was observed in 55 (67%) patients, and deterioration in 27 (33%). On univariate analysis, baseline ejection fraction (p = 0.005) and coronary stenting (p = 0.05) were associated with improved LV systolic function. Preprocedure TIMI flow, postprocedure TMP grade, time-to-reperfusion, and use of

Objectives. To demonstrate the safety and feasibility of a new concept for CTO recanalization using a controlled antegrade and retrograde subintimal tracking technique (CART technique). Background. A successful percutaneous recanalization of chronic coronary occlusions results in improved survival, as well as enhanced left ventricular function, reduction in angina, and improved exercise tolerance. However, successful recanalization of CTOs is still not optimal, and needs further improvements. Methods. Ten patients with a CTO underwent the CART procedure. This technique combines the simultaneous use of the antegrade and retrograde approaches. A subintimal dissection is created antegradely and retrogradely, which allows the operator to limit the extension of the subintimal dissection in the CTO portion. A retrograde approach means that the occlusion site is approached in a retrograde fashion through the best collateral channel from any other patent coronary artery. <

Platelet activation and aggregation play an important role in the pathogenesis of arterial thrombosis in coronary, cerebral and peripheral vascular beds. The antiplatelet agent clopidogrel has become a mainstay of treatment for patients with acute coronary syndromes and stroke, and to reduce ischemic complications after percutaneous coronary and peripheral interventions. There are, however, increasing numbers of reports of hypersensitivity reactions to clopidogrel. We present here a protocol for clopidogrel desensitization in isolated cutaneous reactions. Eight patients have completed the protocol successfully. Three subsequently underwent coronary intervention, and all are currently tolerating a daily clopidogrel dose a median of 7.5 months after desensitization. Desensitization may allow for the safe use of clopidogrel in patients with a history of prior cutaneous hypersensitivity reactions. J INVASIVE CARDIOL 2006;18:341–344