Calcified plaques in the radial artery: OCT insight

• Published in: REC, Interventional cardiology (Internet. English ed.) Vol. 2; no. 4; pp. 302 - 303
• Main Authors: Arroyo-Úcar, Eduardo, Torres Saura, Francisco, Vazquiánez, Romero, Pizarro Sánchez, Gonzalo, Moreno, Raúl, Ibañez, Borja
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Permanyer 01-10-2020
• ISSN: 2604-7322; 2604-7322
• DOI: 10.24875/RECICE.M20000094

The calcified nodule has been established as the least common underlying substrate in the acute coronary syndrome; however calcium can be widely present in other acute-common scenarios. In this setting, the optical coherence tomography (OCT) study has identified 3 different types of calcification according to morphology. Former studies have already documented calcified nodules in patients with peripheral artery disease; however the different patterns that exist beyond coronary arteries remain unknown. An 80-year-old patient was referred for coronary angiography following systolic dysfunction. The coronary angiography performed through right radial approach showed a severely calcified vessel (mid portion of the left anterior descending artery) and mitral and aortic calcification. The OCT pullback performed with 6 mL of contrast at 3 mm/seg through the radial artery removed 4 cm of the radial sheath and showed multiple calcified plaques (mid portion of the artery) defined by the presence of superficial, well-established, low-backscattering and heterogeneous regions (video 1 of the supplementary data). The simultaneous angiography co-registration confirmed the presence of ulnar artery occlusion.