Why We Need Hyperaemic Agent for An Accurate FFR Measurement?

COOKHAM, U.K. - Nov. 17, 2014 - PRLog -- This minimally invasive catheterization procedure is a great alternative to open surgeries as it cuts down the recovery time, reduces pain and avoids scars. Angioplasty procedure and stenting are the most popular interventional cardiology procedures that are performed to treat a diseased heart. Often due to a blockage in the artery, people have a heart attack, which means, if they receive an effective angioplasty procedure at the earliest opportunity, they will live. Not just for heart attack treatments, but this percutaneous treatment is used to reopen and expand the stenotic arteries thereby avoiding the risks of myocardial ischemia and several other cardiovascular diseases.

However, placing of stents during the interventional angioplasty procedure to widen the narrowed coronary artery has been under question, because several clinical trials and research findings have stated that this interventional procedure has no extra benefits in treating Coronary Artery Diseases (CAD). Moreover, researchers also discovered that medical therapy is  just as effective as stenting in most situations. So what we need here is a diagnostic technique that will help to ease the decision making of whether to opt for drug treatments or Percutaneous Coronary Intervention (PCI) on CAD patients. The answer is Fractional Flow Reserve (FFR), an accurate diagnostic tool used to determine the ischemic significance of lesions. Over the years, FFR assessment technique has turned out as an integral tool in the catheterization laboratory for optimizing the treatment strategy of CAD patients. The well validated index provided by the FFR helps the interventional cardiologist to decide on the need for revascularization.

Fractional Flow Reserve performed along with the cardiac angiogram demands a maximal vasodilation or maximal hyperaemia, as the FFR value is linearly related to the maximum blood flow. Clinically, Coronary hyperaemia (an increase of blood flow) is induced with vasodilators or effective Hyperaemic agents. Pharmacologically-induced hyperaemia leads to maximal vasodilatation of the coronary micro vessels resulting in accurate FFR value. Though there are several vasodilators available, the main attributes of an ideal hyperaemic agent comes down to providing a sustained hyperaemic response, low cost and with little or no side-effects. To put it in a nutshell, Fractional Flow Reserve when carried out in accordance with its prerequisite conditions ensures reliable and safe results.

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