title: [Prospective use of an intravascular ultrasound-derived minimum lumen area cut-off value in the assessment of intermediate left main coronary artery lesions].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Angiographic assessment of the severity of intermediate lesions in the left main coronary artery (LMCA) is subject to significant limitations. Intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) can provide accurate measurement, but there is no agreement on the minimum lumen cross-sectional area (MLA) that indicates significant disease. The aim of this study was to determine the long-term safety of applying a cut-off value of 6 mm2 for the MLA in the LMCA.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study included patients with intermediate lesions (i.e., 25-50%) in unprotected LMCAs, with no previous evidence of associated ischemia. An IVUS examination was carried out and revascularization was indicated when the MLA was < or =6 mm2.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In total, 79 patients were recruited between 2000-2005. In 31 (39%), the MLA was < or =6 mm2, and they underwent LMCA revascularization; in the remaining 48 (61%), the MLA was >6 mm2, and patients either underwent angioplasty for other lesions (n=37) or continued medical treatment (n=11). In a follow-up period of 40 [17] months, four patients (8.3%) died from heart disease, all of whom had an MLA between 9-10 mm2 in the baseline study. Revascularization of the LMCA was necessary in only two patients (4.2%), both of whom had elective surgery more than 2 years after the initial study.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Intravascular ultrasound assessment of intermediate LMCA lesions using an MLA cut-off value of 6 mm2 appears safe over the long term provided the clinical and angiographic criteria applied to patient selection are similar to those used in this study.
authors: Unidad de Hemodinámica y Cardiología Intervencionista, Hospital Universitario Marqués de Valdecilla, Santander, Spain. hemodinamica@humv.es
authors: José M
authors: JM
authors: de la Torre Hernández
authors: Marta
authors: M
authors: Ruiz-Lera
authors: Leticia
authors: L
authors: Fernández-Friera
authors: Cristina
authors: C
authors: Ruisanchez
authors: Fermín
authors: F
authors: Sainz-Laso
authors: Javier
authors: J
authors: Zueco
authors: Alvaro
authors: A
authors: Figueroa
authors: Thierry
authors: T
authors: Colman
mesh_terms: D003324:Coronary Artery Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018084:Ultrasonography, Interventional