OBJECTIVE

To compare the immediate and long-term results of single-stent methods of percutaneous coronary interventions (PCI) (linear stenting with / without final kissing balloon inflation (FKBI)) in bifurcation lesions of the left main coronary artery (LMCA) in patients with chronic coronary artery disease (CAD).

MATERIAL AND METHODS

We analyzed 82 patients with chronic CAD (70% men) who underwent PCI with implantation of drug-eluting stents for LMCA bifurcation lesion between 2017 and 2020. Median age of patients was 60 years (95% CI 57.1—61.3). Patients were retrospectively divided into 2 groups: group 1 — stenting with FKBI (n=64), group 2 — stenting without FKBI (n=18). Propensity Score Matching (PSM) was used to ensure group comparability.

RESULTS

The median follow-up period was 21.5 (95% CI 19.7—27.1) and 9 months (95% CI 8—20.4), respectively. There were no significant differences in the risk of cardiac death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, stroke, revascularization, restenosis or stent thrombosis. The 1^st group was characterized by significantly longer surgery time (44 min, 95% CI 43.6—55.5, p=0.048), higher mean number of balloons (3.5±0.7, p=0.00001) and coronary stents (1.4±0.7, p=0.00019). Two techniques were effective and safe in CAD patients with «true» and «false» bifurcation lesions of the LMCA.

CONCLUSION

Single-stent LMCA correction in CAD patients without concomitant multivessel disease, severe arterial wall calcification and diabetes is an effective and safe method of revascularization. Stenting with and without FKBI demonstrated comparable results in immediate and long-term follow-up period. These methods are preferable for CAD patients with various bifurcation lesions of the LMCA.