Effect of inter-arm blood pressure differences on outcomes after percutaneous coronary intervention

Abstract Background We investigated the effect of inter-arm blood pressure differences (IABPD) on the percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) outcomes of patients with coronary artery diseases. Methods We retrospectively reviewed the data of blood pressures measured simultaneously in the bilateral arms of 855 patients (560 males) who underwent PCI with drug-eluting stents for coronary artery diseases. IABPD was defined as the difference of blood pressure in both arms. The primary outcome was the presence of major adverse cardiac events (MACE) consisting of cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, stroke, and ischemia-driven target vessel revascularization. Results The mean age of the included patients was 66.2 ± 11.6 years, with a mean follow-up period of 44.5 ± 26.4 months. MACE occurred in 15.2% of patients, showing a higher rate in the higher IABPD group (≥10 mmHg) than in the lower IABPD group ( Conclusion Among patients treated with PCI, the incidence of MACE was significantly higher in those with a higher IABPD (≥10 mmHg) than in those with a lower IABPD (