Abstract
BACKGROUND: In percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI), the impact of prolonged fluoroscopy time (FT) on procedural outcomes is poorly studied. METHODS AND RESULTS: We analyzed the outcomes of 12,538 consecutive elective PCIs. The primary endpoint was procedure failure (PF), the composite of technical failure, and adverse in-hospital events including all-cause death, myocardial infarction, stroke, and target vessel revascularization (MACCE), as well as pericardial tamponade. We stratified the procedures as PCI for chronic total occlusion (CTO, n = 2720) and PCI for non-CTO (n = 9818). Logistic regression demonstrated a significant association between fluoroscopy time and procedural failure with a significant interaction with PCI type (both p < 0.001). The odds ratios (OR) of procedural failure for a 10-min increment in FT were 1.15 (confidence interval (CI) 95% 1.12-1.18, p < 0.001) in non-CTO PCI and 1.05 (CI 95% 1.03-1.06, p < 0.001) in CTO PCI. The optimal cut-point for prediction of PF was 21.1 min in non-CTO PCI (procedural success in 98.4% versus 95.3%, adjusted OR for PF 2.79 (CI 95% 1.93-4.04), p < 0.001) and 41 min in CTO PCI (procedural success in 92.3% versus 83.8%, adjusted OR for PF 2.18 (CI 95% 1.64-2.94), p < 0.001). In CTO PCI, the increase in PF with FT was largely driven by technical failure (adjusted OR 2.25 (CI 95% 1.65-3.10), p < 0.001), whereas in non-CTO PCI, it was driven by major complications (adjusted OR 2.94 (CI 95% 1.93-4.53), p < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Prolonged FT is strongly associated with procedural failure in both non-CTO and CTO PCI. In CTO PCI, this relation is shifted towards longer FT. The mechanisms of procedural failure differ between CTO and non-CTO PCI.