We are pleased to present the last issue of 2008, which concludes 9 years of Cardiovascular Revascularization Medicine. We are pleased to share that the number and quality of submissions are continuously on the rise. In addition, there has been a significant rise in the journal's distribution among interventional cardiologists, health care professionals, and industry representatives.
The first of 4 clinical original articles comes to us from Shaw et al., in which they aimed to examine 30-day and 12-month outcomes in patients from a large multicenter registry and determine whether renal impairment predicted adverse events in patients undergoing percutaneous revascularization. Next, Fischell et al. conducted a prospective registry to evaluate the efficacy of prophylactic administration of intracoronary nicardipine and adenosine within the rotational atherectomy “flush cocktail” as a method to prevent no-reflow and non-Q-wave myocardial infarction in patients treated with rotational atherectomy in native coronary arteries. In their study, Lachance et al. suggest that fractional flow reserve is especially useful in the evaluation of intermediate lesions with documented ischemia on noninvasive tests since percutaneous coronary intervention may often be deferred since many of these lesions have a fractional flow reserve >0.75. In the submission from Rigatelli et al., the authors aimed to evaluate the existence of peculiar angiographic determinants of impending left ventricle rupture after primary percutaneous coronary angioplasty.
In order to produce a maximal and reproducible re-endothelialization method, Wu et al. attempted to evenly culture canine bone marrow-derived endothelial progenitor cells onto decellularized porcine aortic tubular scaffold by employing a homemade horizontally rotational device, which was presumed an essential process toward tissue-engineered venous graft. In our second biology original article, Pinto Slottow et al. aimed to image magnesium-based absorbable metallic stents at different time points following implant and to follow the progress of their degradation in porcine coronary arteries through use of optical coherence tomography, intravascular ultrasound, and histopathological analysis. In our lone technology submission, Schmehl et al. investigated the thrombogenicity of self-expanding nitinol peripheral stents coated with silicone carbide and the release of nickel from the alloy. Next, Movahed et al. aimed to update and review current schemes of coronary artery bifurcation lesion classifications and interventional techniques.
In the first of four case reports, Arieti et al. present two cases of complete myocardial revascularization assisted by the Impella Recover 2.5 catheter-mounted axial flow pump. Next, Aytekin et al. report a case of an angiographically confirmed paclitaxel-eluting stent thrombosis, which occurred 36 months after successful stent implantation. Demircan et al. report on the withdrawal of a broken guidewire from the distal coronary during the percutaneous coronary intervention. Vaknin-Assa et al. then describe a patient with an unusual case of very late dual Cypher stent thrombosis that caused massive acute myocardial infarction and cardiogenic shock that was treated using emergent resuscitation and angioplasty. Our image of the issue, submitted by Levisay et al., represents a patient who developed coronary aneurysm formation after drug-eluting stent implantation but not at the site of previous bare metal stent implantation.
As we summarize 2008, it is evident we have rediscovered our trust of drug-eluting stents; and 2009 should prove an interesting year in interventional cardiology. Two new drug-eluting stents will be available in the United States, and the approval of Prasugrel, accompanied by reports of reduction in late stent thrombosis, is surely exciting. Even reports from the Syntax study did not differ in terms of safety when PCI was compared to CABG for patients with three-vessel and left main disease, thus signaling safety with drug-eluting stents. With new innovations in structural heart disease, an ambitious percutaneous valve program, cell therapy, and attempts to minimize myocardial reperfusion injury, we look forward to an interesting 2009. As we head into the new year, we encourage contributions, as well as suggestions on how to further improve the journal.
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