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Background: Contemporary chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) practice has received limited study., Aim: To examine the contemporary CTO PCI practice., Methods: We performed an online, anonymous, international survey of CTO PCI operators., Results: Five hundred forty-five CTO PCI operators and 190 interventional cardiology fellows with an interest in CTO PCI participated in this survey. Almost half were from the United States (41%), most (93%) were men, and the median h/week spent in the hospital was 58. Median annual case numbers were 205 (150-328) for PCIs and 20 (5-50) for CTO PCIs. Almost one-fifth (17%) entered CTO cases into registries, such as PROGRESS-CTO (55%) and EuroCTO (20%). More than one-third worked at academic institutions (39%), 31% trained dedicated CTO fellows, and 22% proctored CTO PCI. One-third (34%) had dedicated CTO PCI days. Most (51%) never discharged CTO patients the same day, while 17% discharged CTO patients the same day >50% of the time. After successful guidewire crossing, 38% used intravascular imaging >90% of the time. Most used CTO scores including J-CTO (81%), PROGRESS-CTO (35%), and PROGRESS-CTO complications scores (30%). Coronary artery perforation was encountered within the last month by 19%. On a scale of 0-10, the median comfort levels in treating coronary artery perforation were: covered stents 8.8 (7.0-10), coil embolization 5.0 (2.1-8.5), and fat embolization 3.7 (0.6-7.3). Most (51%) participants had a complication cart/kit and 25% conducted regular complication drills with catheterization laboratory staff., Conclusion: Contemporary CTO PCI practices vary widely. Further research on barriers to following the guiding principles of CTO PCI may improve patient outcomes., (© 2023 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Objectives: To examine the incidence, treatment and outcomes of perforation during percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI)., Background: Coronary perforation is a potentially life-threatening PCI complication., Methods: We examined the clinical, angiographic, and procedural characteristics, management, and outcomes of coronary perforation at a tertiary care institution., Results: Between 2014 and 2019, perforation occurred in 70 of 10,278 PCIs (0.7%). Patient age was 71 ± 12 years, 66% were men, and 30% had prior coronary artery bypass graft surgery. Among perforation cases, the prevalence of chronic total occlusions was 33%, moderate/severe calcification was 66% and moderate/severe tortuosity was 41%. The frequency of Ellis class 1, 2, and 3 perforations was 14%, 50%, and 36%, respectively. Most (n = 51; 73%) were large vessel perforations, 16 (23%) were distal vessel perforations and 3 (4%) were collateral vessel perforations (1 septal and 2 epicardial). Hypotension occurred in 26%, pericardial effusion in 36% and tamponade in 13%; 47% of perforations did not have clinical consequences. Perforations were most often treated with prolonged balloon inflation (63%), reversal of anticoagulation (39%), and covered stent implantation (33%). Technical and procedural success were 73% and 60%, respectively, and major periprocedural adverse cardiac events occurred in 21% of the patients. Three patients (4%) required emergent CABG surgery and four (6%) died., Conclusions: Coronary perforation is an infrequent complication of PCI. Most perforations are large vessel perforations and often require further intervention. The incidence of death or emergent cardiac surgery is low.

Objectives: To investigate the perceptions of interventional cardiologists (IC) regarding the frequency, impact, and management strategies of percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) complications., Background: The perceptions and management strategies of ICs of PCI complications have received limited study., Methods: Online survey on PCI complications: 46 questions were distributed via email lists and Twitter to ICs., Results: Of 11,663 contacts, 821 responded (7% response rate): 60% were from the United States and the median age was 46-50 years. Annual PCI case numbers were <100 (26%), 100-199 (37%), 200-299 (21%), and ≥300 (16%); 42% do not perform structural interventions, others reported performing <40 (30%), or >100 (11%) structural cases annually. On a scale of 0-10, participating ICs were highly concerned about potential complications with a median score of 7.2 (interquartile range: 5.0-8.7). The most feared complication was death (39%), followed by coronary perforation (26%) and stroke (9%). Covered stents were never deployed by 21%, and 32% deployed at least one during the past year; 79% have never used fat to seal perforations; 64% have never used coils for perforations. Complications were attributed to higher patient/angiographic complexity by 68% and seen as opportunities for improvement by 70%; 97% of participants were interested in learning more about the management of PCI complications. The most useful learning methods were meetings (66%), webinars (48%), YouTube (32%), and Twitter (29%)., Conclusion: ICs who participated in the survey are highly concerned about complications. Following complication management algorithms and having access to more experienced operators might alleviate stress and optimize patient outcomes., (© 2022 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)