Distal Vessel Diameter and Antegrade Crossing Success in Chronic Total Occlusion Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Ning Yin1, Ping Wang1, Yuan Shan2

  • 1Center for Coronary Artery Disease (CCAD), Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University, and Beijing Institute of Heart, Lung, and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing, China.

CJC Open
|May 18, 2026
PubMed

Insights

Distal vessel diameter is a key predictor of success for antegrade percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in chronic total occlusion (CTO) cases. Larger diameters significantly increase the likelihood of successful antegrade PCI (A-PCI) for CTO.

Area of Science:

  • Cardiology
  • Interventional Cardiology
  • Vascular Biology

Background:

  • Chronic total occlusion (CTO) presents a significant challenge in ischemic heart disease, increasing risks of heart failure and sudden cardiac death.
  • Antegrade percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is a primary treatment, but its success rate for CTO is limited.
  • While distal vessel diameter is known to be important in A-PCI, its predictive role in CTO populations needs further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the relationship between distal vessel diameter and antegrade crossing success rate in patients undergoing antegrade PCI for CTO.
  • To identify key predictors of successful A-PCI for CTO.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective study of 502 patients with CTO treated with antegrade PCI.
  • Logistic regression and receiver operating characteristic curve analysis were used to assess the impact of distal vessel diameter on success rates.

Main Results:

  • Antegrade crossing success was achieved in 72.5% of patients.
  • Distal vessel diameter was significantly smaller in the failure group (1.60 mm) compared to the success group (1.94 mm).
  • Distal vessel diameter was the strongest independent predictor of success, with each 0.5-mm increase tripling the odds of successful crossing.

Conclusions:

  • Distal vessel diameter is the most powerful independent angiographic predictor of antegrade crossing success in CTO-PCI.
  • Its predictive significance exceeds that of established proximal lesion characteristics like cap ambiguity.
Abstract