title: Balloon catheter requirements during contemporary percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty.
abstract: In order to examine the outcome of utilizing multiple balloon catheters during the percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA), 300 consecutive PTCAs were analyzed. PTCA was performed in a single lesion in 163 patients (54%), in multiple lesions in 52 patients (18%), and in multiple vessels in 85 patients (28%). A total of 488 balloon catheters were used (1.6/case, range 1-9) and in 112 cases (37%) > or = 2 catheters were used. Multiple balloon catheters were needed in 27 single lesion (17%), 24 multilesion (48%), and 61 multivessel (72%) cases (p < .05). There was no difference in the angiographic success rate in cases completed with 1 balloon catheter (238/251, 95%) compared to those requiring > or = 2 catheters (260/274, 95%). Emergency bypass was required in 5 patients (1.7%) and there were 2 deaths (0.6%). Thus, although contemporary PTCA frequently requires multiple balloon catheters for completion, success rates remain high and appear to offset the increased procedural expenses.
authors.affiliation: Michigan Heart and Vascular Institute, St. Joseph Mercy Hospital, Ann Arbor.
authors.forename: J K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Kahn
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015906:Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary / Q000295:instrumentation*; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000628:therapy*; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010043:Outcome and Process Assessment, Health Care; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012189:Retrospective Studies