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Abstracat : Chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs) can be lengthy procedures. We sought to investigate the effect of procedural time on CTO PCI outcomes. We examined the procedural time required for the various steps of CTO PCI in 6,442 CTO PCIs at 40 US and non-US centers between 2012 and 2022. The mean and median procedure times were 129 § 76 and 112 minutes, respectively, with no significant change over time. The median times from access to wire insertion, guidewire manipulation time, and post crossing were 20, 32, and 53 minutes, respectively. Lesions crossed in

The impact of a previous failure on procedural techniques and outcomes of chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has received limited study. We examined the clinical and angiographic characteristics and procedural outcomes of 9,393 patients who underwent 9,560 CTO PCIs at 42 United States and non-United States centers between 2012 and 2022. A total of 1,904 CTO lesions (20%) had a previous failed PCI attempt. Patients who underwent reattempt CTO PCI were more likely to have a family history of coronary artery disease (37% vs 31%, p 30 CTO PCIs annually were more likely to achieve technical success in patients with previous failure. In conclusion, a previous failed CTO PCI attempt was associated with higher lesion complexity, longer procedure time, and lower technical success; however, the association with lower technical success did not remain significant in multivariable analysis.

Background: Coronary artery perforation is one of the most feared and common complications of chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Methods: To assess the usefulness of the recently developed PROGRESS-CTO (NCT02061436) perforation risk score in independent cohorts. Individual patient-level data pooled analysis of three registries was performed. Results: Of the 4566 patients who underwent CTO PCI at 25 centers, 196 (4.2%) had coronary artery perforation. Patients with perforations were older (69 ± 10 vs. 65 ± 10, p < 0.001), more likely to be women (19% vs. 13%, p = 0.009), more likely to have a history of prior coronary artery bypass graft (34% vs. 20%, p < 0.001), and unfavorable angiographic characteristics such as blunt stump (62% vs. 48%, p < 0.001), proximal cap ambiguity (52% vs. 34%, p < 0.001), and moderate-severe calcification (60% vs. 49%, p = 0.002). Technical success was lower in patients with perforations (73% vs. 88%, p < 0.001). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of the PROGRESS-CTO perforation risk model was 0.76 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.72−0.79), with good calibration (Hosmer-Lemeshow p = 0.97). We found that the CTO PCI perforation risk increased with higher PROGRESS-CTO perforation scores: 0.3% (score 0), 2.3% (score 1), 3.1% (score 2), 5.5% (score 3), 7.5% (score 4), 14.6% (score 5). Conclusion: Given the good discriminative performance, calibration, and the ease of calculation, the PROGRESS-CTO perforation score may facilitate assessment of the risk of perforation in patients undergoing CTO PCI.

Preprocedural coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) can be useful in procedural planning for chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).We examined the clinical, angiographic and procedural characteristics and outcomes of cases with vs. without preprocedural CCTA in PROGRESS-CTO (NCT02061436). Multivariable logistic regression was used to adjust for confounding factors.Of 7034 CTO PCI cases, preprocedural CCTA was used in 375 (5.3%) with increasing frequency over time. Patients with preprocedural CCTA had a higher prevalence of prior coronary artery bypass graft surgery (39% vs. 27%, p 0.001) and angiographically unfavorable characteristics including higher prevalence of proximal cap ambiguity (52% vs. 33%, p 0.001) and moderate/severe calcification (59% vs. 41%, p 0.001) compared with those without CCTA. CCTA helped resolve proximal cap ambiguity in 27%, identified significant calcium not seen on diagnostic angiography in 18%, changed estimated CTO length by5 mm in 10%, and was performed as part of initial coronary artery disease work up in 19%. CCTA cases had higher J-CTO (2.6 ± 1.2 vs. 2.3 ± 1.3, p 0.001) and PROGRESS-CTO (1.3 ± 1.0 vs. 1.2 ± 1.0 p = 0.027) scores. After adjusting for potential confounders, cases with preprocedural CCTA had similar technical success (odds ratio [OR]: 1.18, 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.83-1.67) and incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events (OR: 1.47, 95% CI, 0.72-3.00).Preprocedural CCTA was used in ~5% of CTO PCI cases. While CCTA may help with procedural planning, especially in complex cases, technical success and MACE were similar with or without CCTA.

Data on myocardial infarction (MI) treatment in patients with previous coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) is limited. We queried the Nationwide Readmissions Database to identify hospitalizations of patients with MI from 2016 to 2019. Among hospitalized patients presenting with MI, 10.3% had previous CABG. Patients with MI who had previous CABG were less likely to be revascularized than those without previous CABG for both ST-segment elevation MI (STEMI) (46.4% vs 68.4%) and non-ST-segment elevation MI (NSTEMI) (30.8% vs 36.7%). CABG was associated with a lower risk of death in NSTEMI patients (odds ratio [OR] 0.84, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.82 to 0.86), but a higher risk in STEMI patients (OR 1.06, 95% CI 1.01 to 1.13). Revascularization was associated with a lower risk of in-hospital death in patients with previous CABG presenting with STEMI (OR 0.30, 95% CI 0.26 to 0.35) and NSTEMI (OR 0.21, 95% CI 0.19 to 0.23).

The use of intravascular lithotripsy (IVL) in chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has received limited study.We analyzed the baseline clinical and angiographic characteristics and procedural outcomes of 82 CTO PCIs that required IVL at 14 centers between 2020 and 2022.During the study period, IVL was used in 82 of 3301 (2.5%) CTO PCI procedures (0.4% in 2020 and 7% in 2022; p for trend 0.001). Mean patient age was 69 ± 11 years and 79% were men. The prevalence of hypertension (95%), diabetes mellitus (62%), and prior PCI (61%) was high. The most common target vessel was the right coronary artery (54%), followed by the left circumflex (23%). The mean J-CTO and PROGRESS-CTO scores were 2.8 ± 1.1 and 1.3 ± 1.0, respectively. Antegrade wiring was the final successful crossing strategy in 65% and the retrograde approach was used in 22%. IVL was used in 10% of all heavily calcified lesions and 11% of all balloon undilatable lesions. The 3.5 mm lithotripsy balloon was the most commonly used balloon (28%). The mean number of pulses per lithotripsy run was 33 ± 32 and the median duration of lithotripsy was 80 (interquartile range: 40-103) seconds. Technical and procedural success was achieved in 77 (94%) and 74 (90%) cases, respectively. Two (2.4%) Ellis Class 2 perforations occurred after IVL use and were managed conservatively.IVL is increasingly being used in CTO PCI with encouraging outcomes.

The comparative efficacy and safety of parallel wiring versus antegrade dissection and re-entry (ADR) in chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is controversial.We compared the clinical and angiographic characteristics and outcomes of parallel wiring versus ADR after failed antegrade wiring in a large, multicenter CTO PCI registry.A total of 1725 CTO PCI procedures with failed antegrade wiring with a single wire were approached with parallel wiring (692) or ADR (1033) at the discretion of the operator. ADR patients were older (65 ± 10 vs. 62 ± 10, years, p lt; 0.001) and had higher prevalence of comorbidities, such as diabetes mellitus (43% vs. 32%, p lt; 0.001), prior coronary artery bypass graft surgery (31% vs. 19%, p lt; 0.001), and lower left ventricular ejection fraction (50 ± 14 vs. 53 ± 11%, p lt; 0.001). The ADR group had higher J-CTO (2.8 ± 1.1 vs. 2.1 ± 1.3, p lt; 0.001) and PROGRESS-CTO (1.6 ± 1.1 vs. 1.2 ± 1.0, p lt; 0.001) scores. Equipment use including guidewires, balloons, and microcatheters was higher, and the procedures lasted longer in the ADR group. Technical success (78% vs. 75%, p = 0.046) and major adverse cardiovascular events (composite of all-cause mortality, stroke, acute myocardial infarction, emergency surgery or re-PCI, and pericardiocentesis) (3.7% vs. 1.9%, p = 0.029) were higher in the ADR group, with similar procedural success (75% vs. 73%, p = 0.166).In lesions that could not be crossed with antegrade wiring, ADR was associated with higher technical but not procedural success, and also higher MACE compared with parallel wiring.

Coronary artery perforation is one of the most common and feared complications of chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). We evaluated the utility of the recently presented OPEN-CLEAN (Coronary artery bypass graft, Length of occlusion, Ejection fraction, Age, calcificatioN) perforation score in an independent multicenter CTO PCI dataset. Of the 2,270 patients who underwent CTO PCI at 7 centers, 150 (6.6%) suffered coronary artery perforation. Patients with perforations were older (69 ± 10 vs 65 ± 10, p

Background: The impact of occlusion length on the procedural techniques and outcomes of chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has received limited study. Methods: We examined the clinical and angiographic characteristics and procedural outcomes of 10,335 CTO PCIs at 42 US and non-US centers between 2012 and 2022. The cohort was divided into two groups based on lesion length (≥20 mm vs.

Background: Proximal cap ambiguity is a key parameter in the global chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) crossing algorithm. Methods: We examined the baseline characteristics and procedural outcomes of 9718 CTO PCIs performed in 9498 patients at 41 US and non-US centers between 2012 and 2022. Results: Proximal cap ambiguity was present in 35% of CTO lesions. Patients whose lesions had proximal cap ambiguity were more likely to have had prior coronary artery bypass graft surgery (37% vs. 24%; p < 0.001). Lesions with proximal cap ambiguity were more complex with higher J-CTO score (3.1 ± 1.0 vs. 2.0 ± 1.2; p < 0.001) and lower technical (79% vs. 90%; p < 0.001) and procedural (77% vs. 89%; p < 0.001) success rates compared with nonambiguous CTO lesions. The incidence of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) was higher in cases with proximal cap ambiguity (2.5% vs. 1.7%; p < 0.001). The retrograde approach was more commonly used among cases with ambiguous proximal cap (50% vs. 21%; p < 0.001) and was more likely to be the final successful crossing strategy (29% vs. 13%; p < 0.001). The antegrade dissection and re-entry (ADR) "move-the-cap" techniques were also more common among cases with proximal cap ambiguity. Conclusions: Proximal cap ambiguity in CTO lesions is associated with higher utilization of the retrograde approach and ADR, lower technical and procedural success rates, and higher incidence of in-hospital MACE.

Whether saphenous vein grafts (SVGs) should be occluded after successful chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) of the corresponding native vessel remains controversial.We analyzed the clinical and angiographic characteristics and procedural outcomes of 51 patients who underwent SVG occlusion following successful CTO-PCI of the corresponding native vessel between 2015 and 2022 at 14 centers.Mean patient age was 71 ± 8 years and 80% were men. The most common CTO target vessel was the right coronary artery (41%), followed by the left circumflex (37%). Retrograde crossing through the SVG was the successful crossing strategy in 40 cases (78%). SVG occlusion was achieved with coils (1.9 ± 1.0) in 35 of 51 patients (69%) and vascular plugs in the other 16 cases (31%). All procedures were technically successful and the SVG was occluded completely (TIMI 0 flow) in 38 of the cases (75%), with the remaining cases having TIMI 1 flow. Follow-up was available for 37 patients (73%); during a mean follow-up of 312 days from CTO-PCI, the incidence of target-lesion failure due to restenosis was 5.4% (n = 2) with no other major events reported.Following native vessel CTO-PCI, SVG occlusion is often performed and is associated with favorable mid-term outcomes.

Chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) can improve patient symptoms, but it remains controversial whether it impacts subsequent clinical outcomes.In this systematic review and meta-analysis, we queried PubMed, ScienceDirect, Cochrane Library, Web of Science, and Embase databases (last search: September 15, 2021). We investigated the impact of CTO-PCI on clinical events including all-cause mortality, cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction (MI), major adverse cardiovascular event (MACE), stroke, subsequent coronary artery bypass surgery, target-vessel revascularization, and heart failure hospitalizations. Pooled analysis was performed using a random-effects model.A total of 58 publications with 54,540 patients were included in this analysis, of which 33 were observational studies of successful vs failed CTO-PCI, 19 were observational studies of CTO-PCI vs no CTO-PCI, and 6 were randomized controlled trials (RCTs). In observational studies, but not RCTs, CTO-PCI was associated with better clinical outcomes. Odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for all-cause mortality, MACE, and MI were 0.52 (95% CI, 0.42-0.64), 0.46 (95% CI, 0.37-0.58), 0.66 (95% CI, 0.50-0.86), respectively for successful vs failed CTO-PCI studies; 0.38 (95% CI, 0.31-0.45), 0.57 (95% CI, 0.42-0.78), 0.65 (95% CI, 0.42-0.99), respectively, for observational studies of CTO-PCI vs no CTO-PCI; 0.72 (95% CI, 0.39-1.32), 0.69 (95% CI, 0.38-1.25), and 1.04 (95% CI, 0.46-2.37), respectively for RCTs.CTO-PCI is associated with better subsequent clinical outcomes in observational studies but not in RCTs. Appropriately powered RCTs are needed to conclusively determine the impact of CTO-PCI on clinical outcomes.

To compare the clinical outcomes after extraplaque (EP) versus intraplaque (IP) tracking in chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).The impact of modern dissection and reentry (DR) techniques on the long-term outcomes of CTO PCI remains controversial.We performed a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies that compared EP versus IP tracking in CTO PCI. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs) are calculated using the Der-Simonian and Laird random-effects method.Our meta-analysis included seven observational studies with 2982 patients. Patients who underwent EP tracking had significantly more complex CTOs with higher J-CTO score, longer lesion length, and more severe calcification and had significantly longer stented segments. During a median follow-up of 12 months (range 9-12 months), EP tracking was associated with a higher risk of major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) (OR 1.50, 95% CI (1.10-2.06), p = 0.01) and target vessel revascularization (TVR) (OR 1.69, 95% CI (1.15-2.48), p = 0.01) compared with IP tracking. There was no difference in the incidence of all-cause death (OR 1.37, 95% CI (0.67-2.78), p = 0.39), myocardial infarction (MI) (OR 1.48, 95% CI (0.82-2.69), p = 0.20), stent thrombosis (OR 2.09, 95% CI (0.69-6.33), p = 0.19), or cardiac death (OR 1.10, 95% CI (0.39-3.15), p = 0.85) between IP and EP tracking.EP tracking is utilized in more complex CTOs and requires more stents. EP tracking is associated with a higher risk of MACE, driven by a higher risk of TVR at 1 year, but without an increased risk of death or MI compared with IP tracking. EP tracking is critically important for contemporary CTO PCI.

Use of radial access for chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has been increasing. We examined the clinical characteristics and procedural outcomes of patients who underwent CTO PCI with radial versus femoral access in the Prospective Global Registry for the Study of CTO Intervention (PROGRESS-CTO, NCT02061436). Of 10,954 patients who underwent CTO PCI at 55 centers in 7 countries between 2012 and 2022, 2578 (24%) had a radial only approach. Patients who underwent radial only access were younger (63 ± 10 vs. 65 ± 10, years, p amp;lt; 0.001), more likely to be men (84% vs. 81%, p = 0.001), and had significantly lower prevalence of comorbidities compared with the femoral access group including diabetes mellitus (39% vs. 45%, p amp;lt; 0.001) and coronary artery bypass graft surgery (57% vs. 64%, p amp;lt; 0.001). In addition, radial only cases had lower angiographic complexity with lower J-CTO and PROGRESS-CTO scores. After adjusting for potential confounders, radial only access was associated with lower risk of access site complications (odds ratio [OR]: 0.45, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.22-0.91), similar technical success (OR: 0.87, 95% CI: 0.74-1.04) and major adverse cardiovascular events (MACE) (OR: 0.65, 95% CI: 0.40-1.07), compared with the femoral access group. Radial only access was used in 24% of CTO PCIs and was associated with lower access site complications, and similar technical success and MACE as compared with the femoral access group.

The field of chronic total occlusion (CTO) percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) has witnessed a dramatic evolution in the last decade. The challenging nature of CTO interventions involves regularly dealing with support-related issues, uncrossable/undilatable lesions, manipulation of equipment in the subadventitial (also known as "subintimal") space, and the treatment of complications such as perforation and equipment loss or entrapment. The CTO experience has provided numerous techniques to the creative operator facing challenges in the non-CTO PCI setting. Herewith, we discuss an armamentarium of techniques routinely used in CTO-PCI, which can also be utilized in interventions for non-occlusive coronary artery disease and have the potential to improve the efficacy and safety of these procedures.

Despite the availability of several acute coronary syndrome (ACS) prognostic risk scores, there is no appropriate score for early-risk stratification at the time of the first medical contact with patients with ACS. The primary objective of this study is to develop a simple risk score that can be used for early-risk stratification of patients with ACS.We derived the risk score from the Acute Myocardial Infarction in Quebec and Canada ACS-1 registries and validated the risk score in 4 other large data sets of patients with ACS (Canada ACS-2 registry, Canada-GRACE, EFFECT-1, and the FAST-MI registries). The final risk score is named the Canada Acute Coronary Syndrome Risk Score (C-ACS) and ranged from 0 to 4, with 1 point assigned for the presence of each of these variables: age ≥75 years, Killip1, systolic blood pressure100 mm Hg, and heart rate100 beats/min. The primary end points were short-term (inhospital or 30-day) and long-term (1- or 5-year) all-cause mortality.The C-ACS has good predictive values for short- and long-term mortality of patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction and non-ST-segment elevation ACS. The negative predictive value of a C-ACS score ≥1 is excellent at ≥98% (95% CI 0.97-0.99) for short-term mortality and ≥93% (95% CI 0.91-0.96) for long-term mortality. In other words, a C-ACS score of 0 can potentially identify correctly ≥97% short-term survivors and ≥91% long-term survivors.The C-ACS risk score permits rapid stratification of patients with ACS. Because this risk score is simple and easy to memorize and calculate, it can be rapidly applied by health care professionals without advanced medical training.

BACKGROUND: INESSS is a government-funded independent body that aids in evidence-based policy-making. Its cardiology evaluation unit recently completed a second systematic province-wide field evaluation of STEMI care in Quebec during a 6-month period in 2008-2009 in collaboration with a committee of clinical experts. The main objectives were to improve STEMI care by: 1) providing individual feedback to hospitals; and 2) identifying problems related to systems of STEMI care through analysis of inter-regional data. METHODS: At least 3 clinicians and 2 administrators of each of the 80 participating hospitals received a portrait of STEMI care for the province, their region and their hospital. Individual report cards ranked the healthcare region and the hospital for 14 measures of care. For the inter-regional analyses, we examined characteristics of existing networks of STEMI care such as the corridors of service for transfers for primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PPCI). RESULTS: At the provincial level, 82% of treated patients (n=1608) received PPCI. The majority (61%, n=987) were transferred from a non-tertiary centre with a median door-in door-out delay of 51 minutes (min) (10-90th percentile: 26-135) and a median door-to-device delay of 112 min (75-209). Notably, the 2 healthcare regions with the greatest number of STEMI patients had among the lowest proportions of patients treated (whether with PPCI or fibrinolysis) within recommended delays (39% and 32%, respectively). One of these regions had 9 community hospitals and a single PPCI center that did not have cardiac surgery-on-site (SOS) while the other region had 11 community hospitals and 6 PCI centers (1 no SOS and 5 SOS). In the latter region, >60% of STEMI patients had a direct admission PPCI but 3/6 centers had a median door-to-device time >90 min and there was a large variation in center volume. Only 22% of STEMI patients transferred for PPCI had a door-to device ≤90 min and choice of PPCI center was often not geographically optimal. Two PPCI centers received CONCLUSIONS: Our province-wide evaluation of STEMI care indicates that it is important to examine systems of care as well as in-hospital processes. In 2 poorly-performing but high-output regions of Quebec, transfer for PPCI was the predominant choice of treatment of the community hospitals despite long delays. Moreover, recourse to certain PPCI centers appeared to be sub-optimal for both direct admission PPCI and transfer for PPCI. Thus, to improve systems of STEMI care, healthcare organizers must identify ways to optimize both choice of reperfusion strategy and corridors of service.

Background: Current guidelines recommend smoking cessation and weight management for secondary prevention in post-myocardial infarction (MI) patients. However, little is known about the effects of smoking cessation on weight change post-MI. Methods: We examined this question using data from a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial investigating the effect of bupropion on smoking cessation in patients immediately following a MI. Weight change was compared between 3 groups: patients who reported complete abstinence, those who reported intermittent smoking, and those who reported persistent smoking during the 12-month follow-up. Analyses were restricted to patients who attended all follow-up visits (N=179). Weight was collected by research nurses at follow-up. Abstinence was defined by self-report in the previous 7 days and a carbon monoxide level ≤10 ppm. Results: During follow-up, 92 patients were abstinent, 49 were intermittently smoking, and 38 were consistently smoking. At baseline, 68.7% of patients were male, and the mean age was 53.9 years (SD 10.0). The mean weight and BMI at baseline were 78.4 kg (SD 17.7) and 27.3 kg/m 2 (SD 5.0), respectively. Mean body weight increased in all 3 groups during follow-up ( Figure ). However, patients who remained abstinent were more likely to gain weight than those who smoked persistently (difference 3.3 kg, 95% CI 0.9, 5.6). No difference in weight change was present between persistent and intermittent smokers. Both intermittent and persistent smokers reduced their daily cigarette consumption between baseline and 12-month follow-up (mean difference −15.5, 95% CI −19.1, −11.9 and −15.8, 95% CI, −19.9, −11.7, respectively). Conclusions: Patients who remain abstinent are more likely to gain weight 12 months post-MI. Given the importance of weight management in this population, strategies to ensure long-term weight control among patients who quit smoking are needed.

Major bleeding was recently identified as an independent predictor of adverse clinical outcomes in patients with acute coronary syndromes. We sought to determine the impact of major bleeding on in-hospital mortality in patients with ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) and the clinical characteristics associated with major bleeding. AMI-QUEBEC was a retrospective cohort study of consecutive STEMI patients admitted to 17 selected acute-care hospitals in the Province of Quebec (Canada) in 2003. Research coordinators identified major bleeding complications according to the Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction (TIMI) classification. The cohort included 1,655 patients. Thirty-eight percent (38%) of patients were treated with fibrinolysis, 51% with primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) (65% femoral approach) and 12% received no reperfusion therapy. Twenty-eight percent (28%) of patients were females, mean age was 62.3 years, mean weight was 77.5 kg, 5.1% had prior stroke, and baseline serum creatinine was 104 μmol/L. Concomitant medications included clopidogrel loading in 32%, glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitor 24%, unfractionated heparin 82% and low molecular weight heparin 9%. TIMI major bleeding occurred in 7.3% of patients. Overall in-hospital mortality was 11.6%. Independent predictors of mortality were major bleeding (OR 4.36 [2.48 –7.68]) and age (OR 1.06 [1.03–1.08] per year increase). Independent predictors of TIMI major bleeding were femoral approach (OR 11.2 [3.9 –32.1]) female gender (OR 2.8 [1.5–5.1]) and peak creatinine (OR1.02 [1.01–1.03] per 1μmol/L increase). Age, weight, blood pressure, mode of reperfusion, clopidogrel, aspirin, anticoagulant, clopidogrel load, glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors, PCI within 24 hours post-fibrinolysis were not independent predictors of major bleeding. TIMI major bleeding conferred a greater than four-fold increase in risk of short-term mortality in an unselected STEMI population. The use of the femoral approach for vascular access was the most powerful predictor of major bleeding in this patient population, highlighting the impact of vascular access site selection.