title: Myths to Debunk to Improve Management, Referral, and Outcomes in Patients With Chronic Total Occlusion of an Epicardial Coronary Artery.
abstract: A chronic total occlusion (CTO) is defined as an occlusive (100% stenosis) coronary lesion with anterograde Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction 0 flow for at least 3 months. CTOs are common in patients referred for coronary angiography (up to 33%) and are associated with angina, impaired quality of life, and reduced survival. Unfortunately, CTO percutaneous coronary intervention continues to be underperformed worldwide (10% to 15% at most institutions, ∼30% where expert operators are available). The aim of this study was to address common fallacies pertaining to CTOs among cardiologists by providing a concise review of pertinent previously published reports along with an update on safety and efficacy of state-of-the-art CTO percutaneous coronary intervention techniques.
authors.affiliation: Interventional Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Montreal Heart Institute, Université de Montréal, Québec, Canada.
authors.forename: Lorenzo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Azzalini
authors.affiliation: Interventional Cardiology, Bergen Cardiac Care Centre, St. Boniface General Hospital, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada.
authors.forename: Minh
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vo
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Hospital Ziekenhuis Oost-Limburg, Genk, Belgium.
authors.forename: Joseph
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dens
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, St. Antonius Hospital, Nieuwegein, The Netherlands. Electronic address: agostonipf@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Pierfrancesco
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Agostoni
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass; D054059:Coronary Occlusion / Q000601:surgery / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D061214:Patient Safety; D062645:Percutaneous Coronary Intervention; D011788:Quality of Life