Late (3 years) follow-up of successful versus unsuccessful revascularization in chronic total coronary occlusions treated by drug eluting stent.

The success rate of recanalization of coronary chronic total occlusion (CTO) has improved in recent years, but the clinical benefit associated with successful CTO recanalization in the drug-eluting stent (DES) era is not well known. A cohort of 317 consecutive patients (mean age 65 ± 10, 84% men) with CTOs (defined as Thrombolysis In Myocardial Infarction [TIMI] flow grade 0 and duration >3 months) of native coronary vessels in which percutaneous coronary intervention was attempted was enrolled from June 2005 to March 2009. All successful procedures (196 patients) were performed by DES implantation. The incidence of major adverse cardiac events (MACEs; a composite of cardiac death, myocardial infarction, and repeat revascularization) was assessed during a mean follow-up period of 3 years. MACE predictors were assessed in clinical, angiographic, and procedural data, including procedural success. Patients with successful percutaneous coronary intervention experienced a significantly lower MACE rate compared to those with failed procedures (17 [9%] vs 32 [26%], p = 0.008). Patients with multivessel disease experienced MACEs more frequently than those with single-vessel disease (45 [22%] vs 4 [4%], p = 0.002). On multiple Cox regression analysis, the presence of multivessel disease and CTO opening failure were independent predictors of MACEs (hazard ratio 2.31, 95% confidence interval 1.17 to 4.96, p = 0.01, and hazard ratio 1.81, 95% confidence interval 1.33 to 4.12, p = 0.02, respectively). The worst prognosis was confined to patients with multivessel disease and failed procedures (hazard ratio 2.73, 95% confidence interval 1.21 to 3.92, p = 0.03). In conclusion, successful recanalization of CTOs with DES translates into a reduction of the 3-year MACE rate compared to failed procedures, and the worst prognosis is observed in patients with failed procedures and multivessel disease, a notion that might be taken into account in the management of patients with coronary CTOs.