title: The usefulness of a tracking catheter in complex coronary angioplasty.
abstract: Complex lesion angioplasty, such as chronic total occlusions, coronary vessels with right angle take-offs, tortuous vessels, and tortuous internal mammary artery or saphenous vein grafts is a continuing challenge. The complex problems have been successfully managed with novel guiding catheter shapes and ultralow profile balloons. However, on occasion steerable guidewire placement remains extremely difficult, despite significantly improved means of intracoronary manipulations.
authors.affiliation: Cardiology Division, St. Louis University Medical Center, Missouri 63110-0250.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tatineni
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Kern
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Aguirre
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Donohue
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bach
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bell
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D015906:Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary / Q000295:instrumentation*; D006328:Cardiac Catheterization / Q000295:instrumentation*; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass; D004867:Equipment Design; D005260:Female; D006083:Graft Occlusion, Vascular / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000628:therapy*; D011183:Postoperative Complications / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000628:therapy; D011859:Radiography; D012501:Saphenous Vein / Q000637:transplantation; D014654:Vascular Patency / Q000502:physiology