Trajectories of Cardiac Function Following Treatment With an Impella Device in Patients With Acute Anterior ST-Elevation Myocardial Infarction

Impella-Driven High-Risk Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: A Novel, Single Non-Surgical-Centre Case Report

Complex percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) procedures have been routinely performed in non-surgical centres in the UK for more than two decades. These procedures follow strict guidelines and recommendations by the British Cardiovascular Intervention Society to ensure a more effective running of PCI programs. Even more so, expected guiding principles necessary for the safe optimisation of complex PCI procedures have also been created.  An 81-year-old male was admitted with non-ST-elevation myocardial infarction (NSTEMI) and severely impaired left ventricle ejection fraction (LVEF; 26% according to the cardiac MRI report). Angiogram findings revealed severe multiple-vessel coronary artery disease affecting the following arteries: right coronary artery (RCA), left anterior descending artery (LAD), left circumflex artery (LCx), and intermediate artery (IM). There was also severe disease in the distal left main stem (LMS) bifurcation extending to the ostia of the LAD, LCx, and IM branches. Following a multidisciplinary meeting, the patient underwent Impella-supported high-risk PCI (complex PCI) using the DK crush technique with no peri- and post-procedure complication and a significant LV function improvement (45-49%). This is the first known case of this procedure performed at the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Treliske (RCHT), Truro, Cornwall. This case report highlights that when the decision to choose between coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) and PCI is not straightforward following an individualised risk-stratification scoring system analysis and in the setting of patient comorbidities, a high-risk PCI supported with the Impella device is a suitable alternative with promising short-term and long-term outcomes.

Cardiac mechanics and reverse remodelling under mechanical support from left ventricular assist devices

In recent years, development of mechanical circulatory support devices has proved to be a new treatment modality, in addition to standard pharmacological therapy, for patients with heart failure or acutely depressed cardiac function. These include left ventricular assist devices, which mechanically unload the heart when implanted. As a result, they profoundly affect the acute cardiac mechanics, which in turn, carry long-term consequences on myocardial function and structural function. Multiple studies have shown that, when implanted, mechanical circulatory assist devices lead to reverse remodelling, a process whereby the diseased myocardium reverts to a healthier-like state. Here, we start by first providing the reader with an overview of cardiac mechanics and important hemodynamic parameters. We then introduce left ventricular assist devices and describe their mode of operation as well as their impact on the hemodynamics. Changes in cardiac mechanics caused by device implantation are then extrapolated in time, and the long-term consequences on myocardial phenotype, as well as the physiological basis for these, is investigated.