The Return of the Vulnerable Plaque: Optical Coherence Tomography Imaging of a Case of a Late In-Stent Restenotic Chronic Total Occlusion

Abstract

Although the use of drug-eluting stents (DES) has dramatically decreased the incidence of in-stent restenosis (ISR), concerns regarding the late manifestations of ISR remain. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging provides unique insights into characteristics and patterns of ISR. We report a case of late DES ISR with unusual heterogeneous intracoronary luminal characteristics suggestive of vulnerable atherosclerotic plaque activity by OCT imaging. This case demonstrates that late ISR after DES may involve more than mere neointimal hyperplasia with lesion-associated craters, septae, and neoatherosclerosis. The use of OCT provides novel insights into the mechanisms and potential biology of the late DES ISR.

Keywords

coronary artery disease - interventional cardiology - optical coherence tomography

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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