title: Successful high-risk percutaneous coronary intervention with the use of minimal extracorporeal circulation system.
abstract: Minimal extracorporeal circulation (MECC) represents a contemporary system which integrates several advances in cardiopulmonary bypass technology in a single circuit. We challenged the efficacy of the MECC system to support the circulation in elective high-risk percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). A 78-year-old patient with complex coronary disease who would have been otherwise rejected for interventional therapy underwent PCI with rotablation on MECC support. The MECC system provided hemodynamic support at a flow of 1.8 L min(-1) m(-2) while perfusion pressure was kept at a minimum of 70 mm Hg. This allowed for successful angioplasty of the left main stem and a chronically occluded right coronary artery, which otherwise produced significant hemodynamic compromise. This case illustrates that mechanical circulatory support with the MECC system could provide a stable environment and a "safety net" for carrying out complex percutaneous coronary intervention in high-risk patients.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, AHEPA Hospital, Thessaloniki, Greece.
authors.forename: Kyriakos
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Anastasiadis
authors.forename: Stavros
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hadjimiltiades
authors.forename: Polychronis
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Antonitsis
mesh_terms: D015906:Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary / Q000009:adverse effects*; D002315:Cardiopulmonary Bypass / Q000295:instrumentation*; D017023:Coronary Angiography; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006353:Heart-Assist Devices; D006439:Hemodynamics; D006801:Humans; D011474:Prosthesis Design; D016896:Treatment Outcome