Transradial Coronary Stenting: A United States Experience

Coronary stenting is associated with increased vascular complications and prolonged length of stay compared to balloon angioplasty. One strategy to address these concerns is performing the coronary stent procedure via the radial artery access site. The current study reviews the results of transradial coronary stenting in 300 patients in a United States hospital setting. All patients who underwent transradial coronary stent implantation at our center were included in the study. Procedural success, clinical events, vascular complications, post-procedure length of stay, and hospital charges were evaluated. Transradial coronary stenting was successfully performed in 283 of 300 patients (95%), although a significant learning curve was present. Nine complications occurred in the first 100 patients with only two in the last 100 patients. Unsuccessful procedures were due to inability to cross lesion in 3 patients (1%), emergency CABG in 6 patients (2%), stent embolization in 7 patients (2.3%), and 1 death (0.3%). Only one minor vascular complication occurred. The study confirms that transradial coronary stenting is feasible and safe, although new operators should be aware of potentially serious complications of the bare stent technique. Findings support the use of this alternative access site for coronary stenting in selected patients.