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background: Although the transradial approach had significantly reduced vascular complications, studies have demonstrated that it may be related to higher radiation exposure. The objective of this study is to compare radiation exposure in invasive cardiologic procedures using the transradial and transfemoral approaches. Methods: Prospective cohort study including patients undergoing diagnostic cardiac catheterization or percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) between August 2010 and December 2011. Clinical, angiographic and radiation exposure characteristics were recorded in a dedicated database. Patients were analyzed according to the access route: femoral or radial. Results: Of the 1,197 patients included in the study, 782 were submitted to procedures using the femoral access and 415 using the radial access. There was a lower prevalence of females (36.2% vs. 45.6%; P < 0.01), previous coronary artery bypass graft surgery (4% vs. 12.7%; P < 0.01) and severe valvular heart disease (0.3% vs. 1.4%; P = 0.07) in the radial group. The median radiation dose received by the patients was higher with the radial approach, both for diagnostic (621.6 mGy vs 445.7 mGy; P < 0.01) and therapeutic procedures (1,241.6 mGy vs 990.9 mGy; P < 0.01). Less experienced operators in the radial approach exposed patients to higher radiation doses (1,463 mGy vs 1,196 mGy; P = 0.02), which did not occur with the more experienced operators (1,311 mGy vs 1,449 mGy; P = 0.84). Conclusions: Patients undergoing invasive cardiologic procedures are exposed to higher radiation levels when the

Background: Vascular complications (VC) following percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) are an important cause of morbidity and mortality. However, available data do not reflect current interventional cardiology practice. Objective: To determinate the incidence of VC and its predictors in a population treated with PCI in contemporary practice. Methods: Cross-sectional study with coronary stent implantation conducted from January/2000 to December/2007. Clinical and angiographic characteristics, as well as in-hospital evolution, were evaluated and recorded in a database. Exclusion criteria included in-hospital death and urgent heart surgery. VC were defined as major bleeding, vascular surgery or hematoma > 10 cm. Data were analyzed using SPSS 11.0 and the characteristics of patients with and without VC were compared using the Student's t test and chi-square test. Multiple Logistic Regression Analysis was performed to determinate the independent predictors of VC. Results: A total of 4,595 patients with 5,485 stents were included in this analysis. Mean age was 60.64 ± 10.65 years and 32% of the patients were female. The transfemoral approach was used in 95% of the PCIs and the transradial approach in 5%. Six French and 7 French introducers were used in 85% and 15% of the PCIs, respectively. A total of 162 (3.3%) patients experienced VC. The multivariate analysis determined that the only predictor for VC was the use of 7 French introducers (odds ratio = 3.05, 95% confidence interval = 1.2-7.8; p = 0.02).

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Percutaneous Coronary Intervention in Patients Aged > 70 Years-Old: in-Hospital Outcomes in the Current Era Introduction: Observational data from the 90's demonstrates that elderly population has an increased risk when treated by percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). Objective: To evaluate in-hospital outcomes in patients aged > 70 years old who underwent PCI in the current era. Methods: In a single center, from January/2005 to June/2007, a total of 296 patients who underwent PCI were included in this analysis. The presence of risk factors, angiographic characteristics and in-hospital outcomes were recorded and compared among patients < 70-yo (n = 186) and > 70-yo (n = 110) in a dedicated database. For comparison purposes, unpaired t test and chi-square were used for continuous and dichotomous variables respectively. An alpha < 0.05 was considered significant. Results: There was no difference between groups < 70-yo and > 70-yo regarding clinical presentation and the presence of risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Also, there was a homogenous distribution of treated vessels, angiographic pattern, coronary calcification and success rate (96.6% in > 70-yo group x 97.1% < 70-yo, p = 0.91). Regarding complications, there was an increased rate of contrast induced nephropathy in the older group (2.7% x 0%, p = 0.02) that required dialysis. Additionally, we observed a trend in higher mortality (1.81% x 0.53%, p = 0.06) and neurological compromise (1.81% x 0%, p = 0.06) in the elderly population. Vascular complication rates and urgent surgical revascularization were similar in both groups. Conclusion: Patients older and younger than 70-yo present similar clinical profile, angiographic characteristics and success rate. However, the incidence of contrast-induced nephropathy requiring dialysis, mortality and neurological compromise are higher in the older group.