Excimer laser in the treatment of obstructive coronary disease. Initial experience

The aim of this study is to evaluate a group of four male patients aged between 47 and 77 years (mean 52 +/- 4.5) with coronary artery disease who underwent excimer laser with classical indication for this method. The vessels considered were the left anterior descending artery in three patients and the right coronary artery in one. Conventional percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) was applied in all patients after the laser procedure. Reduction to 50% or less of the internal diameter was considered a satisfactory result. Early success (laser plus PTCA) was obtained in 100%. There were a decreasing in number of obstruction from 75-100% (mean of 80 +/- 8.5%) to 0-50% (mean of 20 +/- 6%) after the procedure (laser plus PTCA). During hospitalization no complication have been found. In conclusion, we certified that excimer laser has been applied in special situation (complex lesions) with high rate of success than conventional angioplasty but these results will require further studies.