Multimodality Intravascular Imaging to Predict Periprocedural Myocardial Infarction During Percutaneous Coronary...

The aim of this study is to compare the relative merits of optical coherence tomography (OCT), intravascular ultrasound (IVUS), and near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in patients with coronary artery disease for the prediction of periprocedural myocardial infarction (MI).

Although several individual intravascular imaging modalities have been employed to predict periprocedural MI, it is unclear which of the imaging tools would best allow prediction of this complication.

We retrospectively analyzed 110 patients who underwent OCT, IVUS, and NIRS. Periprocedural MI was defined as a post-procedural cardiac troponin I (cTnI) elevation above 3× the upper limit of normal; analysis was also performed for cTnI ≥5× the upper limit of normal.

cTnI ≥3× was observed in 10 patients (9%) and 8 patients had cTnI ≥5×. By OCT, minimum cap thickness was significantly lower (55 vs. 90 μm, p < 0.01), and the plaque burden by IVUS (84 ± 9% vs. 77 ± 8%, p < 0.01) and maximum 4-mm lipid core burden index by NIRS (556 vs. 339, p < 0.01) were greater in the cTnI ≥3× group. Multivariate logistic regression analysis identified cap thickness as the only independent predictor for cTnI ≥3× the upper limit of normal (odds ratio [OR]: 0.90, p = 0.02) or cTnI ≥5× (OR: 0.91, p = 0.04). If OCT findings were excluded from the analysis, plaque burden (OR: 1.13, p = 0.045) and maximum 4-mm lipid core burden index (OR: 1.003, p = 0.037) emerged to be the independent predictors.

OCT-based fibrous cap thickness is the most important predictor of periprocedural MI. In the absence of information about cap thickness, NIRS lipid core or IVUS plaque burden best determined the likelihood of the periprocedural event.