Repeated thrombus occlusion in superficial femoral artery at the gap between two stents: a case report

Background

In recent years, endovascular treatment has emerged as a preferred option for treating long lesions in the superficial femoral artery (SFA), including those classified as Trans-Atlantic Inter-Society Consensus IIC and D. This approach may involve the use of multiple stents to ensure adequate coverage of the entire lesion, as maintaining primary patency is a key consideration in the treatment strategy.

Case summary

An 82-year-old woman underwent endovascular treatment with two stents for a chronic total occlusion lesion in the left SFA. Six months later, she was admitted to our hospital with acute limb ischaemia (ALI). Angiography revealed significant thrombus within the stents and a gap between the stents, while intravascular ultrasounds showed neointimal hyperplasia at the gap. Initially, the patient was treated with a cutting balloon for the gap, but experienced another episode of ALI the following day. Subsequently, a stent was placed to cover the gap, resulting in the resolution of ALI without further recurrence.

Discussion

Superficial femoral arteries expose the stent to high stresses due to the unique external forces. When multiple stents are implanted, there must be sufficient overlap. If a stent gap occurs, stent deployment is unavoidable due to the neointimal hyperplasia as well as the coronary stent gap. Further research and clinical expertise are needed to optimize stent placement strategies and minimize stent-related complications in SFA lesions.

Temporal Course of Vascular Response After Fluoropolymer Paclitaxel-Eluting Stent Implantation for Femoropopliteal Artery Lesions

BACKGROUND

Limited data are available regarding the vascular response after fluoropolymer paclitaxel-eluting stent (FP-PES) implantation. This study sought to assess the vascular response at 6 and 12 months after FP-PES implantation for femoropopliteal artery lesions using serial optical coherence tomography (OCT) examination.Methods and Results:From the IMPERIAL trial, this study evaluated 10 de novo femoropopliteal lesions treated with FP-PES. The primary study endpoint was neointimal tissue coverage at a 6- and 12-month follow up, as assessed by serial OCT examination. The incidence of peri-strut low-intensity area (PLIA) and extra-stent lumen (ESL) was also assessed. A total of 203 matched cross-sectional images were evaluated at 6 and 12 months (5,615 and 5,763 struts, respectively). From 6 to 12 months, the mean neointimal thickness tended to increase from 198 µm to 233 µm, with a significant reduction in the incidence of malapposed struts (0.59% vs. 0.28%, P=0.039). Conversely, uncovered struts and PLIA were more frequently observed at 12 months (4.4% vs. 7.8%, P=0.01; 12.7% vs. 21.0%, P<0.001, respectively). The ESL area significantly increased over time without any difference in its incidence (0.24±0.32 mm²vs. 0.38±0.36 mm², P=0.009).

CONCLUSIONS

Neointimal proliferation was markedly inhibited from 6 to 12 months after FP-PES implantation, whereas the incidence of uncovered struts and PLIA significantly increased over time with the enlargement of ESL.

A Budget Impact Model for the use of Drug-Eluting Stents in Patients with Symptomatic Lower-Limb Peripheral Arterial Disease: An Australian Perspective

Purpose

Improvement in long-term outcomes through innovative, cost-effective medical technologies is a focus for endovascular procedures aimed at treating symptomatic lower-limb peripheral arterial disease (PAD). The advent of drug-eluting stents (DES) has improved symptomatic PAD treatment via a reduction in high rates of target lesion revascularisation (TLR). The present study aimed to compare the 5-year financial impact of treatment with Eluvia, a new paclitaxel-eluting stent, versus treatment with Zilver PTX, a drug-coated stent, among patients in Australia by developing a budget impact model (BIM).

Methods

A BIM was developed from an Australian public hospital payer perspective using Australian national cost weights (AUD), published literature, and public hospital audit data. Clinical outcomes, including clinically driven TLRs (CD-TLRs), adverse events, and length of stay, were based on the 2-year results of the IMPERIAL trial, which compared Eluvia DES to Zilver PTX.

Results

Assuming EVP eligibility rate of 80% and DES uses rate ranging from 10 to 28% (superficial femoral artery lesions only), the 5-year model forecasted a treatment population between 14,428 and 40,399 patients. The model estimated 1499–4198 fewer CD-TLRs and 16,515–46,243 fewer hospital days with Eluvia DES use. This translated to 5-year potential savings of $4.3–$12.1 million to the Australian public hospital payer attributable to reduced CD-TLRs for Eluvia DES and $33.1–$92.6 million to Australian public hospitals owing to reduced adverse events and hospital bed days.

Conclusion

Eluvia DES use as treatment for symptomatic lower-limb PAD could lead to potential savings for the Australian public healthcare system based on improved patient outcomes.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s00270-021-02848-8.

Paclitaxel-coated peripheral artery devices are not associated with increased mortality

OBJECTIVE

Long-term safety concerns have been raised that the use of paclitaxel-coated balloons and stents is linked to excess mortality. Our objective was to compare outcomes in patients treated with paclitaxel vs uncoated devices and to analyze long-term mortality.

METHODS

We conducted a retrospective single-institution review of 1170 consecutive patients who underwent femoropopliteal percutaneous revascularization by angioplasty, atherectomy, stent placement, or combination between 2011 and 2018. The primary outcome measure was all-cause mortality. Groups were divided into patients who received paclitaxel (n = 652) and those who did not (n = 518). Categorical variables were assessed using χ² analysis and continuous variables with the Wilcoxon signed rank test. A multivariable analysis was performed using multivariable logistic regression models. Mortality was compared using Kaplan-Meier survival analysis.

RESULTS

Demographics, risk factors, and Rutherford class were similar between the groups, except that the paclitaxel group was more likely to have diabetes (60.9% vs 55.0%; P = .04), was less likely to be on dialysis (10.7% vs 14.9%; P = .04), and had lower average creatinine concentration (1.6 ± 1.8 mg/dL vs 2.0 ± 2.3 mg/dL; P = .003). There were no differences in all-cause mortality through 2 years between paclitaxel and no-paclitaxel cohorts (25.5% vs 30.3%; log-rank, P = .098). At 3 years and 3.5 years, mortality was significantly lower in the paclitaxel group: year 3, 32.1% vs 39.4% (log-rank, P = .041); year 3.5, 35.2% vs 43.9% (log-rank, P = .027). Survival rates were not significantly different in examining subgroups by diabetes, chronic kidney disease, presence of chronic limb-threatening ischemia, or paclitaxel-coated balloon manufacturer. Multivariable analysis demonstrated that age, dialysis, chronic limb-threatening ischemia, chronic kidney disease, and congestive heart failure were independent risk factors for mortality, whereas paclitaxel use was associated with lower mortality.

CONCLUSIONS

The use of paclitaxel-coated balloons and stents does not increase mortality compared with uncoated devices out to 3.5 years. Paclitaxel-coated devices can be used with continued caution, especially in patients at increased risk of restenosis. Further long-term studies are needed to determine the risk of late mortality.

Zilver PTX Post-market Surveillance Study of Paclitaxel-Eluting Stents for Treating Femoropopliteal Artery Disease in Japan: 2-Year Results

Purpose

A prospective, multicenter post-market surveillance study in Japan evaluated the 2-year safety and effectiveness of the DES in real-world patients with complex femoropopliteal artery lesions.

Methods

There were no exclusion criteria, and consecutive symptomatic patients with femoropopliteal lesions treated with the DES were enrolled in the study. Clinically driven target lesion revascularization (TLR) was defined as reintervention performed for > 50% diameter stenosis after recurrent clinical symptoms of peripheral arterial disease. Clinical benefit was defined as freedom from persistent or deteriorating ischemic symptoms. Patency was evaluated by duplex ultrasound where physicians considered this standard of care.

Results

In this study, 905 patients were enrolled at 95 institutions in Japan. There were numerous comorbidities including a high incidence of diabetes (58.8%) and chronic kidney disease (43.6%). Additionally, 21.4% of patients were classified with critical limb ischemia. Lesions were complex, with an average length of 14.6 ± 9.6 cm (range 0.5–40 cm), 41.5% total occlusions, and 18.7% in-stent restenosis. In total, 1861 DES were placed in 1080 lesions. Two-year follow-up was obtained for > 90% of eligible patients. Freedom from TLR was 83.7%, and clinical benefit was 80.0% through 2 years. The 2-year primary patency rate was 70.3%. Rutherford classification significantly improved (p < 0.01), with approximately 80% of patients classified as Rutherford class 0 or 1 at 2 years.

Conclusion

Despite more challenging lesion characteristics, 2-year results from the current study are similar to outcomes from the previous Zilver PTX studies, confirming the efficacy of the Zilver PTX DES in a complicated femoropopliteal lesion (Zilver PTX Post-Market Study in Japan; NCT02254837).

Level of Evidence

Post-market surveillance study, Level III.

Impact of Chronic Renal Failure on Safety and Effectiveness of Paclitaxel-Eluting Stents for Femoropopliteal Artery Disease: Subgroup Analysis from Zilver PTX Post-Market Surveillance Study in Japan

Purpose

Favorable long-term outcomes of the Zilver PTX drug-eluting stent (DES) in femoropopliteal lesions have been demonstrated. Chronic renal failure (CRF) has been shown to be a risk factor for restenosis and decreased limb salvage. The results of the DES in patients with CRF have not previously been reported. This study compares the results with the DES in patients with CRF and those without CRF.

Methods

This retrospective analysis from the Zilver PTX Japan Post-Market Surveillance Study included 321 patients with CRF and 584 patients without CRF. Outcomes included freedom from target lesion revascularization (TLR) and patency.

Results

Of the patients included in this subgroup analysis, 2-year data were available for 209 patients in the CRF group and 453 patients in the non-CRF group. The two groups were similar in terms of lesion length and the frequency of in-stent restenosis. Critical limb ischemia, severe calcification, and diabetes were more common in patients with CRF, whereas total occlusion was more common in patients without CRF. Freedom from TLR rates were 81.4 versus 84.9% (p = 0.24), and patency rates were 70.7 versus 70.3% (p = 0.95) in patients with and without CRF at 2 years, respectively.

Conclusion

This is the first comparative study of the DES in femoropopliteal artery lesions in patients with and without CRF. These results indicate that the DES placed in femoropopliteal artery lesions of CRF patients is safe and effective with similar patency and TLR rates to patients without CRF.

Level of Evidence

Level 3, Post-Market Surveillance Study.

Three-Year Clinical Outcomes of a Polymer-Free Paclitaxel-Eluting Microporous Stent in Real-World Practice: Final Results of the Safety and Efficacy Registry of the Yinyi Stent (SERY-I)

BACKGROUND

The safety and efficacy of a China-made polymer-free paclitaxel-eluting microporous stent (Yinyi) at 1-year has been previously reported. However, limited evidence exists regarding the long-term performance of this novel drug-eluting stent (DES). This study investigated the 3-year efficacy and safety of the Yinyi stent in the setting of safety and efficacy registry of the Yinyi stent (SERY-I) clinical trial.

METHODS

Between June 2008 and August 2009, a total of 1045 patients undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) were implanted with ≥ 1 Yinyi stents at 27 medical centers in mainland China. Thereafter, clinical follow-up was performed for a period of 3 years after enrollment. The primary endpoint was the cumulative rate of composite major adverse cardiac events (MACE) including target lesion revascularization (TLR), the combined incidence of cardiac death, and non-fatal myocardial infarction; the second endpoint was the incidence of stent thrombosis.

RESULTS

Overall, 1376 lesions were treated successfully with 1713 Yinyi stents, and 1019 (98.7%) patients received dual antiplatelet therapy for at least 12 months. At 3 years, a total of 13 (1.33%) patients had suffered cardiac death. The incidence of non-fatal myocardial infarction and TLR was 9 (0.92%) and 58 (5.92%) among the patients. Stent thrombosis occurred in 13 (1.33%) patients, and the rate of Academic Research Consortium (ARC) definite or probable stent thrombosis was 0.82%.

CONCLUSIONS

Given the limitations that SERY-I was a single arm, nonrandomized study and only telephone follow-up was performed without angiographic analysis, the safety and efficacy of Yinyi stent observed in this extended follow-up Registry needs further verification.

12-month intravascular ultrasound observations from BiOSS® first-in-man studies

The aim of this study was to analyze the difference in neointima pattern assessed by intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) between two dedicated bifurcation stents, BiOSS® Expert and BiOSS® LIM at 12-month follow-up. This manuscript reports IVUS findings obtained from the analysis of patients enrolled into first-in-man registries initially assessing the BiOSS Expert® (paclitaxel) and BiOSS LIM® (sirolimus) stents. Quantitative angiographic analysis was performed pre, post-stenting, and at follow-up. IVUS examination was performed at 12 months. There were analyzed 34 cases (BiOSS Expert® 11 patients, BiOSS LIM® 23 patients). Procedural characteristics in the two groups were similar, except for rates of main vessel predilatation and FKB/POT, which were higher in BiOSS® LIM group, 54.5 % vs 73.9 % (P < 0.05) and 0 % vs 39.1 % (P < 0.05), respectively. When comparing late lumen loss (LLL) for both stents there were significantly bigger values for main vessel and main branch in the BiOSS® Expert group, but not in side branch. Intravascular ultrasound examination showed that in the BiOSS LIM® group comparing with the BiOSS Expert® group there was lower neointima burden in the whole stent (24.7 ± 7.5 % vs 19.4 ± 8.6 %, P < 0.05) as well as in main vessel (22.8 ± 5.6 % vs 16.9 ± 6.1 %, P < 0.05) and main branch (36.1 ± 6.5 % vs 27.6 ± 8.7 %, P < 0.05), but not at the level of bifurcation (15.1 ± 3.8 % vs 13.6 ± 5.4 %, P = NS). In addition, we found that final kissing balloon/proximal optimization technique (FKB/POT) was associated with significantly smaller value of LLL in main vessel (0.24 ± 0.09 mm vs 0.32 ± 0.14 mm, P < 0.05), which in IVUS analysis resulted in smaller neointima burden in main vessel (13.7 ± 3.9 % vs 18.9 ± 4.45 %, P < 0.05) as well as at the bifurcation site (12.6 ± 4.1 % vs 14.1 ± 2.4 %, P < 0.05). The obtained results suggest that neointima proliferation was the largest in main branches of both stents assessed in quantitative angiography (LLL) as well as in IVUS (neointima burden) and the neointima increase was smaller in BiOSS LIM® stents than in BiOSS Expert® stents. Moreover, the middle part of the stent seems to not to be associated with excessive neointima proliferation and more aggressive protocol of implantation with the use FKB/POT seems to decrease this process.

Very long-term clinical and angiographic outcomes after sirolimus- and paclitaxel-eluting stent placement for ST-elevation myocardial infarction: a propensity score-matched comparison

We conducted a retrospective examination of the very long-term outcomes of placing sirolimus (SES) and paclitaxel (PES)-eluting stents in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). This was a nonrandomized, retrospective, single-center study that included 872 first STEMI patients who underwent successful placement of either SES (n = 547) or PES from November 2004 to April 2012. The primary end point was the incidence of severe cardiac events comprising cardiac death, nonfatal recurrent myocardial infarction, and definite stent thrombosis (ST). The frequency of target lesion revascularization (TLR) was also compared. A propensity score-matched analysis was used to adjust the 29 baseline variables. In the baseline-adjusted cohorts in 231 STEMI patients in each arm, the frequency of the primary end point in the SES group (5.6 %) during the follow-up duration of 2583 ± 806 days was not significantly different from that in the PES group (6.1 %, follow-up: 1866 ± 699 days). The cumulative primary end point-free ratio in the SES group was not significantly different from that in the PES group (p = 0.503). The frequency of TLR in the SES group (7.5 %) was significantly lower than that in the PES group (16.9 %, p = 0.005), with and the significantly higher cumulative TLR-free ratio in the SES group than that in the PES group (p < 0.001). The very long-term clinical outcomes after SES or PES placement for STEMI patients were statistically equivalent. SES showed the better angiographic outcomes for STEMI compared to PES.

Two-year clinical outcome in patients with small coronary artery disease treated with everolimus- versus paclitaxel-eluting stenting

BACKGROUND

Percutaneous coronary interventions involving small coronary vessels represent a true challenge because of the increased risk of restenosis and adverse outcomes. We evaluated the 2-year clinical outcomes between single everolimus-eluting stents (EES) and paclitaxel-eluting stents (PES) in small coronary artery disease.

METHODS

From the data of SACRA (SmAll CoronaRy Artery treated by TAXUS Liberté) and PLUM (PROMUS/Xience V Everolimus-ELUting Coronary Stent for sMall coronary artery disease) registries, 245 patients with 258 lesions and 264 patients with 279 lesions, respectively, were enrolled in this study.

RESULTS

The 2-year clinical driven target lesion revascularization (4.5% vs. 10.6%, p=0.01) and target vessel revascularization (8.0% vs. 13.9%, p=0.03) rates were significantly lower in the EES group compared with the PES group. Major adverse cardiac events in the EES group tended to be lower than those in the PES group (8.7% vs. 14.3%, p=0.05). On the other hand, all new lesions for remote target vessel revascularization were observed at the proximal site of target lesions in both groups and those rates were not different between the two groups (3.4% vs. 3.3%, p>0.99).

CONCLUSION

EES showed better clinical results at 2-year follow-up compared with PES in small coronary artery diseases, however, new lesions at the proximal remote site of the target lesion remain problematic.

Clinical outcomes of chronic kidney disease patients treated with everolimus-eluting stents (EES) and paclitaxel-eluting stents (PES)

BACKGROUND

The target lesion revascularization of paclitaxel-eluting stents (PES) has been reported to be lower than that of sirolimus-eluting stents in patients on hemodialysis (HD). However, the comparison of PES and second generation drug-eluting stents in CKD patients has not been fully investigated. We compared clinical outcomes of everolimus-eluting stents (EES) and PES in CKD patients.

METHODS

Hundred and forty seven CKD patients (eGFR<60mLmin(-1)1.73m(-2)) treated with PES (n=74, from May 2007 to December 2009) and EES (n=73, from January 2010 to January 2013) were enrolled in the study. Major adverse cardiac events (MACEs) were defined as death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, and ischemia driven target lesion revascularization.

RESULTS

The incidence of 36-month MACE was significantly lower in EES, non-HD group compared to PES, non HD group (0% in EES group and 13.5% in PES group, respectively, P<0.01). There was no significant difference in MACE between EES and PES in HD patients (5.4% in PES group and 5.5% in EES group, P=0.98). In multivariate analysis, PES group and PES ISR were independent factors for worse incidence of MACE.

CONCLUSIONS

In CKD patients, PES was associated with worse clinical outcomes in non-HD patients as compared with EES.

Safety and efficacy of everolimus-eluting stents compared with first-generation drug-eluting stents in patients undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention

OBJECTIVE

To assess the safety and efficacy everolimus-eluting stents (EES) compared with first-generation drug-eluting stents (DES) in patients with acute myocardial infarction (MI) undergoing primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).

BACKGROUND

EES have been associated with improved clinical outcomes compared to paclitaxel-eluting stents (PES) and with similar outcomes compared to sirolimus-eluting stents (SES).

METHODS

A total of 520 patients who presented with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) from 2003 to 2013, who underwent primary PCI with DES, were retrospectively analyzed. Of these, 247 received SES, 136 PES, and 137 EES. Patients were followed up to 2 years for major adverse cardiac events (MACE). Univariate and multivariate models detected correlates to outcome.

RESULTS

EES implantation, compared with PES and SES, resulted in comparable rates of MACE (8.8% vs. 16.2%, p=0.06 and 8.8% vs. 12.6%, respectively, p=0.26), stent thrombosis, MI, and target lesion revascularization. Patients who received EES had lower rates of all-cause mortality (3.7% vs. 12.6% vs. 9.4%, p=0.03) at 1-year follow up. However, in the univariate and multivariate analyses, stent type was not independently associated with the primary outcome or with all-cause mortality. Diabetes mellitus and number of stents implanted were independently associated with the primary outcome.

CONCLUSION

While EES seem to be associated with better outcome when compared to PES, the main correlates of STEMI patients are the presence of diabetes and number of stents implanted, and not the type of stent used for intervention.

Comparison of long-term clinical outcomes between sirolimus- and paclitaxel-eluting stents in real-world clinical practice

Advances in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) have improved the outcomes of patients with coronary artery diseases. The advent of drug-eluting stents (DES) has dramatically reduced the rate of revascularization. The first-generation DES has yielded the main role of PCI to the second-generation DES; however, many patients had been implanted with the first-generation DES, sirolimus-eluting stents (SES) and paclitaxel-eluting stents (PES). Therefore, it is of importance to detect the long-term clinical outcomes in patients who underwent PCI with SES or PES. We analyzed data from our PCI cohort who underwent PCI with first-generation DES at Juntendo University Hospital between August 2004 and June 2010. The index procedure was analyzed when patients underwent multiple PCIs. Patients who were implanted with both SES and PES were excluded from this study. The study ended on December 31, 2011. The primary outcome was a composite of all-cause mortality and acute coronary syndrome (ACS). The secondary outcome was the rate of target lesion revascularization (TLR) and stent thrombosis. We analyzed data from 861 consecutive patients who underwent implantation of SES or PES. The median follow-up period was 1671 days (interquartile range 1081 and 2105). Kaplan-Meier curves for the primary endpoint did not significantly differ between the two groups (p = 0.8). The incidence of stent thrombosis was 1.4 and 1.8 per 1,000 person-years in the SES and PES groups, respectively (p = 0.9). The rate of TLR was significantly lower in the SES, than the PES group (12.6 and 38.3 per 1,000 person-years, p = 0.03). The rate of TLR was lower in the group treated with SES than PES, but the primary outcome comprising all-cause mortality and ACS was comparable between the two groups.

Long-term outcome of the unrestricted use of everolimus-eluting stents compared to sirolimus-eluting stents and paclitaxel-eluting stents in diabetic patients: the Bern-Rotterdam diabetes cohort study

BACKGROUND

Newer generation everolimus-eluting stents (EES) improve clinical outcome compared to early generation sirolimus-eluting stents (SES) and paclitaxel-eluting stents (PES). We investigated whether the advantage in safety and efficacy also holds among the high-risk population of diabetic patients during long-term follow-up.

METHODS

Between 2002 and 2009, a total of 1963 consecutive diabetic patients treated with the unrestricted use of EES (n=804), SES (n=612) and PES (n=547) were followed throughout three years for the occurrence of cardiac events at two academic institutions. The primary end point was the occurrence of definite stent thrombosis.

RESULTS

The primary outcome occurred in 1.0% of EES, 3.7% of SES and 3.8% of PES treated patients ([EES vs. SES] adjusted HR=0.58, 95% CI 0.39-0.88; [EES vs. PES] adjusted HR=0.29, 95% CI 0.13-0.67). Similarly, patients treated with EES had a lower risk of target-lesion revascularization (TLR) compared to patients treated with SES and PES ([EES vs. SES], 5.6% vs. 11.5%, adjusted HR=0.68, 95% CI: 0.55-0.83; [EES vs. PES], 5.6% vs. 11.3%, adjusted HR=0.51, 95% CI: 0.33-0.77). There were no differences in other safety end points, such as all-cause mortality, cardiac mortality, myocardial infarction (MI) and MACE.

CONCLUSION

In diabetic patients, the unrestricted use of EES appears to be associated with improved outcomes, specifically a significant decrease in the need for TLR and ST compared to early generation SES and PES throughout 3-year follow-up.

Very late stent thrombosis after paclitaxel-eluting stent implantation with full neointimal tissue coverage visualized by optical coherence tomography

We present findings of a very late stent thrombosis (VLST) involving paclitaxel-eluting stents (PESs) that were fully covered by thin neointima, visualized by optical coherence tomography (OCT) in a patient receiving dual antiplatelet therapy. A 69-year-old Japanese man had been treated with 2 overlapping PESs for chronic coronary artery disease in the proximal right coronary artery. A follow-up coronary computed tomography angiography showed no restenosis in the stent site, and the result of stress myocardial perfusion imaging showed no ischemic changes. Seventeen months after the percutaneous coronary intervention, he was transported to our clinic with a diagnosis of acute myocardial infarction. Emergency coronary angiography showed a total occlusion at the overlapping site of the 2 PESs. After thrombus aspiration therapy, the OCT image revealed a thin layer of neointimal tissue covering the stent struts with no stent malapposition or fracture. There was no plaque rupture site or intracoronary thrombus. Histopathologic study of an aspirated red thrombus revealed massive amounts of inflammatory infiltrates including eosinophils and neutrophils within the fibrin clot. These findings suggested the possibility that the patient's allergic and inflammatory reactions may have caused the onset of VLST. <Learning objective: To recognize the relationship between in stent OCT findings of neointima and pathological findings of the thrombus at the VLST after PES implantation.>.

Stenting for left main coronary artery occlusion in adolescent: A case report

Acute total or subtotal occlusion of left main coronary artery (LMCA) is a catastrophic and mostly fatal event. Patients may present with cardiogenic shock and die whenever this event occurs. Survival is strongly dependent on the presence of collateral blood flow to the left coronary artery or a dominant right coronary artery, and emergency intervention for preserving the left ventricular function. Here, we present a case of a 14-year-old boy with subtotal occlusion of the LMCA accompanying acute myocardial infarction probably caused by congenital syphilis according to his positive serum syphilis antibody. His survival was closely associated with a dominant right coronary artery and timely thrombolytic therapy. Finally, he was treated with angioplasty and paclitaxel-eluting stent implantation. He was followed up after stenting and was doing quite well at the time when we wrote this paper.

Late stent thrombosis after discontinuation of dual anti-platelet therapy in off-label use of paclitaxel-eluting stent visualized by optical coherence tomography-3-vessel OCT study

We observed late stent thrombosis image by optical coherence tomography (OCT) in vessels with off-label paclitaxel-eluting stents (PES) implantation. A 59-year-old Japanese man was treated with a single on-label PES for chronic coronary artery disease in the left circumflex artery. After 9 months, he was implanted with two linked PESs in the left anterior descending artery (LAD) and a single PES in the right coronary artery (RCA). He was examined for suspicion of a colon tumor by fiberscope after discontinuation of dual anti-platelet therapy without consultation. He complained of chest pain and was transferred to our center. Emergency coronary angiography demonstrated thrombotic total occlusion of the proximal LAD in the two linked PESs. After thrombus aspiration therapy, OCT was performed to evaluate the stents in the 3 vessels. The off-label two linked PESs demonstrated the same average neo-intimal hyperplasia (NIH) thickness and percentage of uncovered stent struts compared with the on-label PES in the RCA by visualized OCT image. However, the heterogeneity of NIH in the LAD stent was significantly higher than the stents in the other two vessels. The implantation of the two linked off-label and the heterogeneity of NIH may increase hyperplatelet coagulability more than on-label single PES use.