title: Evaluation of intermediate coronary stenosis with intravascular ultrasound and fractional flow reserve: Its use and abuse.
abstract: Clinical decision making in patients with intermediate coronary stenosis is still debated. Intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) examination and/or functional assessment of coronary stenosis by fractional flow reserve (FFR) are currently used to define the severity of such lesions. There are very few studies with a small sample size that have a head-to-head comparison between IVUS and FFR in the evaluation of angiographically de novo intermediate lesions. There are no randomized, controlled trials to demonstrate the superiority of IVUS versus FFR in providing improved clinical outcomes in comparison with angiography alone. However, the issue of superiority might be irrelevant, because IVUS and FFR could be complementary techniques to be used in the catheterization laboratory to provide critical anatomic and functional data that permit more accurate decisions in the management of the patient.
authors.affiliation: San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Valeria
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Magni
authors.forename: Alaide
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Chieffo
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Colombo
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D023921:Coronary Stenosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000628:therapy; D053805:Fractional Flow Reserve, Myocardial; D006801:Humans; D007262:Infusions, Intravenous; D007269:Injections, Intra-Arterial; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018579:Patient Selection; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D018084:Ultrasonography, Interventional; D014665:Vasodilator Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage
chemical_list: D014665:Vasodilator Agents