Interventional Cardiology

This cardiac subspecialty uses minimally invasive, catheter-based technologies in a cath lab to diagnose and treat coronary artery disease (CAD). The main focus in on percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) to revascularize patients with CAD that is causing blockages resulting in ischemia or myocardial infarction. PCI mainly consists of angioplasty and implanting stents. Interventional cardiology has greatly expanded in scope over recent years to include a number of transcatheter structural heart interventions.

Cardiologists reflect on developing primary PCI in face of criticism and pushback
SCAI celebrated cardiologists William W. O'Neill, MD, and Cindy L. Grines, MD, for the important roles they played in the development of primary PCI. “It was challenging,” Grines explained. “We had the pharmaceutical industry that was anti-primary angioplasty and we had a lot of our own colleagues that were anti-primary angioplasty."
How TAVR valve choice impacts outcomes when treating type 1 bicuspid AS
Self-expanding and balloon-expandable TAVR valves are associated with comparable success rates and one-year outcomes when treating type 1 bicuspid aortic stenosis. However, each valve type comes with its own advantages and disadvantages.
IVUS-guided PCI reduces risks in patients with diabetes
PCI can be more challenging in high-risk patients presenting with diabetes and ACS. IVUS guidance was associated with improved outcomes among these patients compared to angiography guidance alone.
Medtronic using AI to identify more TAVR patients in need
Medtronic has launched new research into AI's potential to identify patients with severe aortic stenosis and other worrying symptoms. The company hopes to overcome longstanding health disparities and reach individuals who may otherwise go untreated.
SAVR linked to higher 10-year survival rate than TAVR for low-risk patients
TAVR patients in this study were treated with early-generation devices that have since been updated, but researchers still believe their data are relevant to today's care teams.

Angiographic completeness of PCI not tied to outcomes after FFR-guided stenting

Visual estimations of the completeness of revascularization failed to predict subsequent cardiovascular events for patients with acute coronary syndromes (ACS) who underwent stenting guided by fractional flow reserve (FFR), researchers reported in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

September 14, 2018

COAPT, SOLVE-TAVI among major trials at TCT.18

Gregg W. Stone, MD, had the unenviable task of condensing the 255-page agenda for next weekend’s Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics (TCT) meeting into a handful of highlights during a 12-minute media briefing on Thursday, Sept. 13.

September 13, 2018

TCT.18 Preview: Celebrating 30 Years & Unveiling a New Training Center

Three decades after the first Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics conference, TCT.18’s organizers are moving “toward a more practical approach,” says Cardiovascular Research Foundation CEO Juan Granada, MD.

September 13, 2018

Angiography, PCI improve outcomes in non-STEMI patients with kidney disease

Chronic kidney disease is a marker of adverse outcomes in patients with non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (non-STEMI), according to a study published this month in the American Journal of Cardiology. And even though percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and coronary angiography (CAG) are linked to improved outcomes in those patients, they’re also drastically underutilized in clinical practice.

September 10, 2018

Accomplished interventional cardiologist, advocate Joseph Babb dies

Joseph D. Babb, MD—who performed the first coronary angioplasty in the state of Connecticut and was a past president of the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI)—has died, SCAI announced Sept. 6. He was 79.

September 7, 2018

Lawsuit: Surgeon left needle inside patient during open-heart surgery

The family of a Tennessee man who died in 2017, one month after open-heart surgery, is suing TriStar Centennial hospital, alleging the surgeon left a needle inside his body.

September 4, 2018

VISION: 75% of deaths after noncardiac surgery due to cardiovascular complications

Late-breaking results from the VISION study, presented early this week at the European Society of Cardiology (ESC)’s annual symposium, found nearly three-quarters of patient deaths after noncardiac surgery can be attributed to cardiovascular causes.

August 29, 2018

1-year outcomes still support culprit-only PCI for cardiogenic shock

For patients with acute myocardial infarction (MI) complicated by cardiogenic shock, stenting only the culprit lesion showed a trend toward improved one-year survival when compared to multivessel PCI, according to the latest results of the CULPRIT-SHOCK trial presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress in Munich.

August 27, 2018

Around the web

Health Imaging

Use of AI opportunistic screening in CT for cardiovascular disease

Ron Blankstein, MD, professor of radiology, Harvard Medical School, explains the use of artificial intelligence to detect heart disease in non-cardiac CT exams.

Health Imaging

New imaging protocols proposed to curb rise of cardiovascular infections

Eleven medical societies have signed on to a consensus statement aimed at standardizing imaging for suspected cardiovascular infections.

Interventional Cardiology

Cardiologists reflect on developing primary PCI in face of criticism and pushback

How TAVR valve choice impacts outcomes when treating type 1 bicuspid AS

IVUS-guided PCI reduces risks in patients with diabetes

Medtronic using AI to identify more TAVR patients in need

SAVR linked to higher 10-year survival rate than TAVR for low-risk patients

Around the web