Impact of different stent alloys on human vascular response to everolimus-eluting stent: an optical coherence tomography study: the OCTEVEREST.

Background: New generation drug-eluting stents (DES) incorporate thinner struts and novel alloys to improve clinical performance. Nevertheless, the impact of novel stent materials and designs on human vascular response to DES remains elusive. We sought to evaluate the in-vivo coronary artery response to platinum-chromium (PtCr) versus cobalt-chromium (CoCr) stents featuring the same durable polymer and antiproliferative drug by optical coherence tomography (OCT).

Serial assessment of coronary artery response to paclitaxel-eluting stents using optical coherence tomography.

Background: The paucity of longitudinal, serial high-resolution imaging studies has limited our understanding of in vivo arterial response to drug-eluting stents. We sought to investigate the human coronary response to paclitaxel-eluting stent implantation, using serial optical coherence tomography assessments.

Methods And Results: Thirty patients with at least 2 significant coronary lesions in different vessels were treated with a paclitaxel-eluting stent.

Examination of the in vivo mechanisms of late drug-eluting stent thrombosis: findings from optical coherence tomography and intravascular ultrasound imaging.

Objectives: This study investigated the role of uncovered stent struts on late stent thrombosis (LST) after drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation with optical coherence tomography (OCT).

Background: Autopsy studies have identified delayed healing and lack of endothelialization of DES struts as the hallmarks of LST. DES strut coverage has not previously been examined in vivo in patients with LST.

Impact of drug release kinetics on vascular response to different zotarolimus-eluting stents implanted in patients with long coronary stenoses: the LongOCT study (Optical Coherence Tomography in Long Lesions).

Objectives: We assessed the in vivo vascular response to a new generation of zotarolimus-eluting stents (ZES) with prolonged drug release (Resolute ZES-SR, Medtronic Vascular, Santa Rosa, California) compared with ZES with faster kinetics (Endeavor ZES-FR, Medtronic Vascular) by optical coherence tomography.

Background: Local drug release kinetics has been implicated with antirestenosis efficacy of drug-eluting stents. However, the impact of different release kinetics on vascular response of diseased human coronary arteries remains to be investigated.

Difference of culprit lesion morphologies between ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction and non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndrome: an optical coherence tomography study.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the difference of culprit lesion morphologies assessed by optical coherence tomography (OCT) between ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndrome (NSTEACS).

Background: Autopsy studies have reported that rupture of a thin-cap fibroatheroma and subsequent thrombus formation is the most important mechanism leading to acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Optical coherence tomography is a high-resolution imaging modality that is capable of investigating detailed coronary plaque morphology in vivo.

Left ventricular apical aneurysm due to unrecognized sarcoidosis.

A 47-year-old woman was hospitalized for syncope. An electrocardiogram showed complete right bundle branch block and T-wave inversion in leads III, aVF, and V2-4. Cardiac catheterization was performed since the echocardiogram demonstrated the existence of a left ventricular apical aneurysm and apical thrombus.

Assessment by optical coherence tomography of stent struts across side branch. -Comparison of bare-metal stents and drug-elution stents.-.

Background: Late stent thrombosis (LST) after drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation is a major clinical problem that has not been fully explained. Incomplete neointimal coverage of stent struts is an important morphometric predictor of LST, which may be associated with impaired healing and the absence of full coverage of struts at branch-point ostia. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) was performed to compare 3 types of stents placed across side branches.

Association between circulating monocyte subsets and in-stent restenosis after coronary stent implantation in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction.

Background: Recent studies have shown that monocytes in human peripheral blood are heterogeneous. The clinical significance of 2 distinct monocyte subsets as a marker of late in-stent restenosis (ISR) following implantation of bare-metal stents (BMSs) in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) was examined.

Methods And Results: Seventy-one consecutive patients with AMI who underwent BMS implantation were enrolled in the study.

Clinical characteristics of patients with kawasaki disease and levels of peripheral endothelial progenitor cells and blood monocyte subpopulations.

Background: Coronary sequelae that persist after Kawasaki disease (KD) have been associated with coronary vascular events in adolescents and young adults. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between coronary sequelae late after KD and circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs), as a marker of vascular repair, or monocyte subsets as a marker of inflammation.

Methods And Results: The 31 KD patients were divided into 3 groups according to the type of coronary artery lesion (CAL): group 1 consisted of 14 patients with persistent aneurysm; group 2 consisted of 9 patients with regressed aneurysms; group 3 included 8 KD patients with normal coronary arteries from disease onset.

Association of monocyte subsets with vulnerability characteristics of coronary plaques as assessed by 64-slice multidetector computed tomography in patients with stable angina pectoris.

Objective: The aim of the present study was to examine the relation between monocyte subsets and the presence, extent, and vulnerability characteristics of non-calcified coronary plaques (NCPs) as assessed by multidetector computed tomography (MDCT).

Methods: We studied 73 patients with stable angina pectoris who underwent MDCT. Two monocyte subsets (CD14(+)CD16(-) and CD14(+)CD16(+)) were measured by flow cytometry.

Association of monocyte subset counts with coronary fibrous cap thickness in patients with unstable angina pectoris.

Objectives: We examined whether distinct monocyte subsets relate in specific ways to coronary fibrous cap thickness (FCT) in patients with unstable angina pectoris (UAP).

Methods: Forty patients with UAP who underwent percutaneous coronary intervention were enrolled in this study. The changes in the non-culprit FCT were assessed by optical coherence tomography (OCT) at baseline and after 9 months.

Relation of microchannel structure identified by optical coherence tomography to plaque vulnerability in patients with coronary artery disease.

Increased neovascularization in atherosclerotic plaques is associated with plaque vulnerability. The high resolution of optical coherence tomography (OCT) might provide a chance to directly visualize plaque neovascularization in vivo. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relation between microchannels in culprit plaques identified by OCT and plaque vulnerability in patients with coronary artery disease.

First evaluation of real-time nitric oxide changes in the coronary circulation in patients with non-ischaemic dilated cardiomyopathy using a catheter-type sensor.

Aims: No direct method has yet been developed to measure real-time plasma nitric oxide (NO) concentration in humans. In this study, we evaluated a new method for measuring plasma NO concentration in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and in normal controls using a catheter-type sensor.

Methods And Results: We simultaneously measured average peak velocity (APV) of the coronary artery flow and change in plasma NO concentration using the NO sensor placed in the great cardiac vein of 10 DCM patients and 10 control subjects.

Electrocardiographic strain and endomyocardial radial strain in hypertensive patients.

Background: Electrocardiographic strain pattern (ECGS) is a well-recognized marker of the presence and severity of anatomic left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH) and also has been associated with adverse prognosis in hypertensive patients. Left ventricular (LV) endomyocardial radial strain (Endo-RS) is predominant in systolic LV wall thickening compared with epimyocardial radial strain (Epi-RS) in a normal heart. However, it remains unclear whether the ratio of Endo-RS to Epi-RS alters in hypertensive patients, especially in those with ECGS.

Post-reperfusion enhancement of CD14(+)CD16(-) monocytes and microvascular obstruction in ST-segment elevation acute myocardial infarction.

Background: The presence of microvascular obstruction (MVO) after primary ST-segment elevation acute myocardial infarction (STEMI) is associated with a poor outcome. The aim of the paper was to examine the relationship between distinct monocyte subsets and gadolinium-enhanced cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) characteristics of MVO after STEMI.

Methods And Results: Seventy-one patients with primary STEMI successfully treated with stenting were enrolled in the study.

Multiple coronary lesion instability in patients with acute myocardial infarction as determined by optical coherence tomography.

Autopsy studies have suggested that acute myocardial infarction (AMI) represents a pan-coronary process of vulnerable plaque development. We performed multifocal optical coherence tomographic (OCT) examination to compare coronary lesion instability between AMI and stable angina pectoris (SAP). A total of 42 patients with AMI (n = 26) or SAP (n = 16) who had multivessel disease and underwent multivessel coronary intervention were enrolled in the present study.

Upregulation of fractalkine and its receptor, CX3CR1, is associated with coronary plaque rupture in patients with unstable angina pectoris.

Background: Recent studies suggest that fractalkine (FKN or CX3CL1) and its cognate receptor, CX3CR1, play a role in atherogenesis, so the relationship between coronary plaque rupture, as observed by preintervention optical coherence tomography, and plasma levels of FKN and CX3CR1 was investigated in this study.

Methods And Results: The study population consisted of 46 patients with unstable angina pectoris (UAP), 30 patients with stable angina pectoris, and 25 healthy controls. The UAP patients underwent a preintervention optical coherence tomography study, which revealed that the number of patients with and without plaque rupture at the culprit site was 27 (rupture group) and 19 (non-rupture group), respectively.

Advantage of next-generation frequency-domain optical coherence tomography compared with conventional time-domain system in the assessment of coronary lesion.

Background: Intracoronary optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a high-resolution imaging modality used for evaluation of coronary lesion morphology. However, current time-domain OCT (TD-OCT) have a number of limitations with regard to both procedural usage and safety in the clinical setting. The next-generation frequency-domain OCT (FD-OCT), which has a much faster frame rate and pullback speed than TD-OCT, is expected to overcome these limitations.

Effect of human peripheral monocyte subsets on coronary flow reserve in infarct-related artery in patients with primary anterior acute myocardial infarction.

1. In the present study, we investigated the relationships between relative levels of specific peripheral monocyte subsets and coronary flow velocity reserve (CFVR) during the subacute phase in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI). 2.

Head to head comparison between the conventional balloon occlusion method and the non-occlusion method for optical coherence tomography.

Background: Optical coherence tomography (OCT) has been introduced as a high-resolution imaging modality for the coronary arteries. The current OCT system, however, has a serious limitation in that the image acquisition method requires a soft balloon occlusion to avoid signal scattering from red blood cells.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to compare OCT images from the conventional balloon occlusion method and a non-occlusion image acquisition method, the continuous-flushing method, in the clinical setting.

Impact of heterogeneity of human peripheral blood monocyte subsets on myocardial salvage in patients with primary acute myocardial infarction.

Objectives: We examined whether distinct monocyte subsets contribute in specific ways to myocardial salvage in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI).

Background: Recent studies have shown that monocytes in human peripheral blood are heterogeneous.

Methods: We studied 36 patients with primary AMI.

Relationship between coronary arterial remodeling, fibrous cap thickness and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein levels in patients with acute coronary syndrome.

Background: Thin-capped fibroatheroma (TCFA) is a recognized precursor lesion for acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Positive remodeling (PR) is the predominant pattern of arterial remodeling in patients with ACS. The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship between coronary arterial remodeling, fibrous cap thickness and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) concentration in patients with ACS.

Lipid-rich plaque and myocardial perfusion after successful stenting in patients with non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndrome: an optical coherence tomography study.

Aims: Although some recent guidelines recommend an early invasive strategy for non-ST-segment elevation acute coronary syndrome (NSTEACS), several studies have failed to identify any benefit for very early intervention for NSTEACS. The no-reflow phenomenon may inhibit the expected benefit from very early recanalization for NSTEACS subjects. The aim of this study was to investigate whether optical coherence tomography (OCT) could predict no-reflow in patients with NSTEACS.

Coronary microvascular resistance index immediately after primary percutaneous coronary intervention as a predictor of the transmural extent of infarction in patients with ST-segment elevation anterior acute myocardial infarction.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to investigate whether microvascular resistance index (MVRI) immediately after primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) can predict the transmural extent of infarction (TEI) defined by contrast-enhanced cardiac magnetic resonance (ce-CMR) in patients with anterior acute myocardial infarction (MI).

Background: The degree of microvascular damage is an important determinant of myocardial viability and clinical outcomes in acute MI. A novel dual-sensor (pressure and Doppler velocity) guidewire has the ability to evaluate microvascular damage.

Morphology of exertion-triggered plaque rupture in patients with acute coronary syndrome: an optical coherence tomography study.

Background: Plaque rupture and secondary thrombus formation play key roles in the onset of acute coronary syndrome (ACS). One pathological study suggested that the morphologies of plaque rupture differed between rest-onset and exertion-triggered rupture in men who experienced sudden death. The aim of the present study was to use optical coherence tomography to investigate the relationship in patients with ACS between the morphology of a ruptured plaque and the patient's activity at the onset of ACS.