Dedicated bifurcation analysis: dedicated devices

Abstract

Percutaneous treatment of bifurcations with conventional (straight) stents has been associated with complex procedures and poor clinical outcomes. Also, several limitations including side branch ostial gap, excessive metal density in the parent vessel, incomplete stent apposition, and stent distortion/disruption have been reported with current techniques. Dedicated bifurcation stents have been designed to simplify the procedure, even in complex and challenging anatomies, and to improve acute and late outcomes. The application of conventional quantitative coronary angiography (QCA) analysis, originally designed for straight vessel analysis, in the bifurcation anatomy has resulted in inconsistent results. Also, the lack of standardized QCA method for reporting has precluded the possibility for accurate comparison between clinical trials and different techniques and devices. We review QCA results of dedicated bifurcation devices reported according new dedicated QCA segmental analysis.