Relationship between angiographic late loss and 5-year clinical outcome after drug-eluting stent implantation

Purpose: Currently, insufficient data exist to evaluate the relationship between angiographic late loss (LL) and long-term clinical outcome after drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation. In this study, we hypothesized that angiographic LL between 0.3 and 0.6 mm correlate with favorable long-term clinical outcomes. Materials and Methods: Patients were enrolled in the present study if they had undergone both DES implantation in single coronary vessel and a subsequent follow-up angiogram (n=634). These individuals were then subdivided into three groups based on their relative angiographic LL: group I (angiographic LL <0.3 mm, n=378), group II (angiographic LL between 0.3 and 0.6 mm, n=124), and group III (angiographic LL >0.6 mm, n=134). During a 5-year follow-up period, all subjects were tracked for critical events, defined as any cause of death or myocardial infarction, which were then compared among the three groups. Results: Mean follow-up duration was 63.0±10.0 months. Critical events occurred in 25 subjects in group I (6.6%), 5 in group II (4.0%), and 17 in group III (12.7%), (p=0.020; group I vs. group II, p=0.293; group II vs. group III, p=0.013). In a subsequent multivariate logistic regression analysis, chronic renal failure [odds ratio (OR)=3.29, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.48-7.31, p=0.003] and long lesion length, defined as lesion length >28 mm (OR=1.88, 95% CI: 1.02-3.46, p=0.042) were independent predictors of long-term critical events. Conclusion: This retrospective analysis fails to demonstrate that post-DES implantation angiographic LL between 0.3 and 0.6 mm is protective against future critical events.