CT coronary angiography-guided percutaneous coronary intervention for chronic total occlusion combined with retrograde approach

Abstract

Percutaneous coronary intervention was performed for chronic total occlusion (CTO) of the right coronary artery (RCA) in a 55-year-old man. CT coronary angiography (CTCA) with a 64-slice scanner showed a large calcified plaque at the entrance to the CTO. A stent that had been implanted at the RCA ostium 10 years earlier was angled toward a side branch, suggesting that the guidewire would not reach the true lumen via the antegrade approach. Therefore, we attempted the retrograde approach via a septal collateral with the kissing wire technique. However, the guidewire failed to cross the CTO because of obstruction by the implanted stent. We next attempted the controlled antegrade and retrograde subintimal tracking technique and 2 stents were successfully deployed. In this patient, CTCA provided useful information for management of a difficult CTO.