Functional assessment of multivessel coronary artery disease: ischemia-guided percutaneous coronary intervention

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Abstract

Invasive evaluation and treatment of coronary artery disease (CAD) has traditionally been based upon coronary angiography to determine the need for and the success of revascularization. However, coronary angiography augmented with fractional flow reserve (FFR) creates a paradigm shift, providing a more complete functional assessment of coronary lesions. Measuring FFR to identify ischemic lesions and guide revascularization results in fewer adverse outcomes, including persistent angina, myocardial infarction, and mortality. An ischemic lesion identified by FFR is more likely to lead to adverse events when compared with an angiographically similar lesion with nonischemic FFR when both are treated medically. Although the mechanism explaining this is unclear, it is likely multifactorial, including the impact of mechanical forces, upregulation of inflammatory mediators, and the amount of distal myocardial tissue at risk. Using both anatomic and ischemia-guided assessments (such as the Functional SYNTAX Score) aids in the therapeutic decision-making process in patients with multivessel CAD. This review focuses on the evidence for FFR-guided management of multivessel CAD.

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