Category Archives: Angiograms

Post-Dilatation Stent Sizes

2018 stent expansion chart

click for hi-res PDF of chart

For the interventionalist, proper sizing of coronary stents is critical. While imaging via angiography has been the standard for years, newer intravascular imaging technologies, such as IVUS and OCT, are becoming more widely used, as evidence accrues that these modalities make a difference in outcomes. For example, IVUS (Intravascular Ultrasound) not only allows the measurement of the exact open diameter of the vessel, as seen on angiography, but it shows the “invisible to angiography” layer of plaque. plaque that will be compressed, so that a more accurate post-PCI diameter can be determined. Under-expanded stents have been associated with increased stent thrombosis and restenosis. Continue reading

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Filed under Angiograms, Drug-Eluting Stents, Imaging, IVUS, OCT, Stent, Stent Thrombosis

AimRADIAL Masterclass V + FFR Workshop in Budapest

budapest_palaceOn September 22-23, 2016, the 5th Advanced International Masterclass on the Transradial Approach will be held in Budapest, Hungary. And this year, AimRADIAL will be preceded on September 21 by a one-day comprehensive workshop covering all aspects of Fractional Flow Reserve (FFR) from the basic principles and set-up in the cath lab, to the differences between FFR, iFR, and CFR, a comprehensive review of the clinical study data so far, and finally a look at future modalities, like FFR-CT (although the title of that talk by Dr. Nick Curzen is “FFR-CT: the future is now“). Continue reading

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Filed under Angiograms, Cardiac CT, FAME I / FAME II, FFR, Global Trends, iFR, Medical Education, Meetings & Conferences, Patient Experience, Transradial Approach

Happy 100th Anniversary to the RSNA

Mason Sones in a Philips cath lab of the 50's

Mason Sones in a Philips cath lab of the 50’s

This week the Radiological Society of North America, a.k.a. RSNA, is holding its annual meeting in Chicago. RSNA is an international society of radiologists, medical physicists and other medical professionals with more than 54,000 members from 136 countries across the globe. And this year the 55,000 attendees in Chicago are celebrating something special: the 100th anniversary of the RSNA.

To help honor the work of the Society, Angioplasty.Org would like to offer the video below which details the impact that imaging had on our field: the treatment of coronary artery disease. Continue reading

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Filed under ACC, Angiograms, History, Imaging, Innovators, Meetings & Conferences, Video

Philips Buys Volcano: It’s About Money, Technology, and History

  Rumors and theories about an acquisition of Volcano Corporation (NASDAQ: VOLC) had been circulating for quite some time: months, years even. The company seemed an obvious choice: it has an advanced intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) technology that leads the market, with Boston Scientific coming in second; it has a fractional flow reserve (FFR) wire that splits the market with St. Jude Medical; and recently Volcano gained FDA approval for its Instant Wave-Free Ratio (iFR) physiologic measurement product, a faster, cheaper potential alternative to FFR. Continue reading

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Filed under ACC, Angiograms, Back to the Future, Business & Industry, Cardiac CT, Cost Effectiveness, FFR, Global Trends, History, Imaging, Intravascular Guidance, IVUS, OCT, Video

FFR and iFR: Roadmapping Your Heart, “With Traffic”

The coronary angiogram is often referred to as a road map of the heart. As such, it serves the cardiologist and cardiac surgeon well. It shows where the coronary arteries are, how they intersect, the angles of the branches, etc. There are diagrams of these anatomical features in many textbooks, but the reality is that these characteristics can vary from individual to individual, so it’s necessary to get a road map for each individual in whom an intervention is being contemplated.  Then, of course, there’s the issue of narrowings in the coronary arteries. Should these receive stents? Should they be bypassed? Should they be left alone and treated with medical therapy? Continue reading

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Filed under Angiograms, FAME I / FAME II, FFR, Heart Attack, Imaging, Stent

50 Years Ago Today Charles Dotter Invented Angioplasty

Charles Dotter. MD

Charles Dotter. MD

It was 50 years ago today that Dr. Charles T. Dotter, a radiologist in Portland, Oregon, performed the first angioplasty. But it wasn’t in the heart; it was in the leg.

An 82-year-old woman was suffering from great pain in her left foot because of blocked circulation in her leg. Her toes had become gangrenous and there was an non-healing ulcer. Amputation was recommended by the physicians at Oregon Health Sciences University, but the woman refused.

Luckily, the surgeon in charge of the case knew of Dr. Dotter’s interest in the possibility of using a catheter to open a blocked artery. Continue reading

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Filed under Angiograms, History, Imaging, Innovators, Video

George W. Bush Gets Angioplasty and Stent – Was It Necessary?

George W BushFormer President George W. Bush received an angioplasty and stent this morning at Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas. The stent was recommended by Bush’s doctors to open a blockage in one of his coronary arteries, found yesterday during what was described by Bush spokesman Freddy Ford as his annual physical exam at the Cooper Clinic in Dallas. Continue reading

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Filed under Angiograms, Appropriate Use Criteria (AUC), Cardiac CT, Celebrity Patients, COURAGE, Drug-Eluting Stents, FFR, Imaging, Media Coverage, Non-Invasive Testing, Optimal Medical Therapy, Stent