Clinical and angiographic assessment 6 months after double vessel percutaneous coronary angioplasty

Percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty is an accepted treatment for selected patients with single vessel disease but has not been rigorously evaluated in patients with double vessel disease. Among 769 patients undergoing transluminal coronary angioplasty between 1980 and 1984, 74 with double vessel stenosis of 50% or more underwent double vessel coronary angioplasty. Primary success was obtained for both lesions in 63 patients (85%), for one lesion in 11 patients (15%) and for 137 (93%) of 148 segments overall. Except for myocardial infarction in one patient, no serious complication occurred. Before coronary angioplasty, 15 patients had unstable angina, 14 had Canadian Cardiovascular Society class III and 32 class I to II effort angina and only 2 were asymptomatic. Six months after coronary angioplasty, 27 were asymptomatic, 27 had class I to II and 5 had class III effort angina and 2 had sustained an episode of unstable angina. During the follow-up study, two patients had an infarction and one had coronary artery bypass surgery. Coronary arteriography was performed at a mean of 5.5 +/- 2.1 months after coronary angioplasty in all but three patients. Restenosis was found in 30 (23%) of 132 segments with angiographic control. Restenosis was present in one vessel in 17 patients and in both vessels in 4; 40 patients (66%) had no restenosis. Of the 34 patients with definite or probable angina, 50% had restenosis and 19% of patients with restenosis were symptom free.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)