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Intravascular Ultrasound in Percutaneous Coronary Intervention: A Consensus Document from the UK
John Hung1, Brian Cox1, Michael Foley2
1Department of Cardiology, Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital Liverpool, UK.
Insights
This UK consensus statement provides guidance on using intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) during percutaneous coronary intervention, aiming to improve patient outcomes. It addresses barriers and proposes solutions for wider adoption of IVUS technology.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Medical Imaging
Background:
- European Society of Cardiology and American Heart Association updated intravascular imaging recommendations.
- Growing evidence supports intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) use in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI).
Purpose of the Study:
- To present a UK consensus statement on IVUS application in PCI.
- To guide consistent integration of IVUS into clinical practice for optimized patient outcomes.
Main Methods:
- Consensus developed by 26 senior interventional cardiologists across UK centers.
- Discussion of IVUS indications, current UK usage patterns, and future standards.
- Proposal of a standardized workflow and core IVUS dataset documentation.
Main Results:
- Identified persistent barriers including cost, training variability, and procedural integration.
- Proposed practical solutions like national training curricula and accreditation for IVUS operators.
- Emphasized the need for broader adoption of IVUS in PCI.
Conclusions:
- The consensus statement aims to support clinicians and teams in embedding IVUS into practice.
- Standardized workflows and training are crucial for consistent IVUS use.
- Optimizing patient outcomes through enhanced PCI procedures is the ultimate goal.
Abstract:
Following the recently upgraded recommendations for intravascular imaging use from the European Society of Cardiology and the American Heart Association, we present a UK consensus statement on the use of intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) in percutaneous coronary intervention. Developed by 26 senior interventional cardiologists across a range of UK centres, this statement reflects growing evidence and changing expectations for IVUS use. We discuss the indications for IVUS, the current patterns of use in the UK, anticipated future standards and the need for broader adoption. We propose a standardised workflow and recommend routine documentation of a core IVUS dataset to support quality and as a mechanism for improvement. Persistent barriers, such as perceived cost, training variability and procedural integration, are addressed with practical solutions, including the introduction of national training curricula incorporating intravascular imaging accreditation for operators and targeted education for allied health professionals. Our goal is to support clinicians, catheter lab teams and service leads in embedding IVUS more consistently into practice to optimise patient outcomes.