This volume is the fourth in a series on quantitative coronary arteriography (QCA) published over the last seven years. Every two years the advances in this exciting field are presented by their leading experts. There is a significant growth in this field which has translated into the increasing sizes of the volumes published over the years. In addition to covering the developments in the more traditional items such as QCA and other modalities, and coronary blood flow and flow reserve, the following subjects have been emphasized in this particular volume: quality control in QCA; QCA in the major regression/progression trials; QCA in the major restenoisis studies; QCA after recanalization techniques; and QCA and infracoronary prostheses. In addition, an extensive overview is given of ZCA equipment and technical requirements. The book provides a comprehensive, overview for all clinicians and physicists actively involved or otherwise interested in the developments in quantitative coronary arteriography.

In the past five years, interventional cardiology has entered a new era of evaluating percutaneous transcatheter technologies to treat coronary artery disease and prevent restenosis. Cardiologists attempting to follow this field may be confused by the growth and expansion of new devices, the technical details relevant to each device and enthusiastic claims of success. This monograph is a comprehensive assessment of restenosis from the perspective of these new technologies including stenting, atherectomy, rotational abrasion and lasers. The international breadth of experience is reflected in the summary from both sides of the Atlantic, at times with conflicting observations and results which can be in itself valuable, given the diverse experience to date. In addition to the summaries of the early and late results of these new devices, issues in the methodology of restenosis research are addressed, including limitations of quantitative coronary arteriography in evaluating the new devices and advances in alternatives to arteriography such as intrevascular imaging. This text aims to weave many of these concepts together, establishing the ground work for further development of mechanical approaches to limit restenosis. It is intended for use by interventional cardiologists interested in practical and research aspects of restenosis.

This volume is the fifth in a series on quantitative coronary arteriography (QCA). The following topics, which all currently are and continue to be issues of extensive discussions in the research and clinical communities, are covered in great detail in this volume: endothelial function; comparisons between digital and cine coronary arteriography; inter-laboratory variation between QCA Core Laboratories; the developments in digital archival media; intracoronary pressure, coronary blood flow and flow reserve; quantitative and qualitative features in regression/progression studies; QCA in recanalization studies; and finally the current position of rivalling modalities as coronary angioscopy, intraluminal imaging with ultrasound and fluorescence spectroscopy. This book provides a comprehensive, overview for all clinicians and physicists actively involved or otherwise interested in current developments in quantitative coronary arteriography.

The prevalence of coronary artery disease is increasing due to rising rates of obesity and the fact that a greater number of people are living longer. Coronary Atherosclerosis: Current Management and Treatment addresses this leading cause of death worldwide. Atherosclerosis has a broad range of disease manifestations depending on the degree of the stenosis and the functional status of the coronary plaque. This volume, written by a leading international team of editors, addresses the pathophysiology of the disease, established and novel diagnostic approaches (both invasive and non-invasive), treatment methodologies (including treatment algorithms), and differing perspectives on treatment, including future therapies and long-term outcomes. The inclusion of personal perspectives from experts, full-color images and ancillary video files make this a key resource. Key topics include: Pharmacology of coronary artery disease (CAD) Up-to-date evidence on pathophysiology Invasive and non-invasive imaging Current evidence for risk stratification Clinical decisionmaking Coronary Atherosclerosis: Current Management and Treatment provides a state-of-the-art review of current knowledge to aid specialists, general physicians, and cardiologists in training, in the diagnosis, risk stratification, and management of patients with diverse presentations of coronary atherosclerosis.

Coronary stenting is the most commonly used method of myocardial revascularization, with approximately 2 million stents implanted in 2004 throughout the world. The development of drug eluting stents has resulted in very low rates of repeat intervention and will further increase the scope for percutaneous coronary intervention. The evidence from large randomized trials is generally accepted to be the gold standard source of information for patient care in interventional cardiology. However, it is well recognized that information from these trials is frequently insufficient to guide the wide-ranging clinical situations found in routine practice. In this context, decision-making is often based on a composite of information from multiple clinical studies, pathophysiological considerations and importantly, personal experience or 'gut-feeling'. This book, written by internationally recognized experts in their field, provides clear and concise recommendations regarding various challenging clinical situations facing the interventional cardiologist on a daily basis.

Leading interventional cardiologists, including Patrick Serruys, Eric Topol, David Holmes, Thomas Luscher and others provide the gold-standard reference on the treatment of restenosis (coronary artery blockage) for interventional cardiologists. Dr. Serruys, who pioneered the use of drug-eluting stents, and other pioneers in the field cover everything from non-invasive imaging, to eluting stents, to brachytherapy through to the latest molecular biology-based treatments including antisense, stem cells and gene therapy, making this an essential reference for all interventional cardiologists.

Coronary Atherosclerosis: Current Management and Treatment addresses the leading cause of death worldwide - coronary artery disease. Atherosclerosis has a broad range of disease manifestations depending on the degree of the stenosis, and the functional status of the coronary plaque and is a disease cardiologists manage every day. Prevalence of coronary artery disease is increasing as a greater number of people live longer and rising rates of obesity contribute to poor health.

This brand new title, written by a leading international team of Editors, addresses the pathophysiology of disease, established and novel diagnostic approaches (both invasive and non-invasive), treatment methodologies (including treatment algorithms), and differing perspectives on treatment including future therapies and long term outcomes. It includes every aspect of coronary artery disease and highlights the optimal treatment for different clinical scenarios. The inclusion of personal perspectives from key opinion leaders, full color images and ancillary video files make this a key resource.

Key topics include:

• Pharmacology of coronary artery disease (CAD)
• Up-to-date evidence on pathophysiology
• Non-invasive imaging
• Current evidence for risk stratification
• Invasive imaging/cutting edge technology
• Clinical decision making from masters in the field

Coronary Atherosclerosis: Current Management and Treatment provides a state of the art review of current knowledge to aid specialists, general physicians, and cardiologists in training, in the diagnosis, risk stratification, and management of patients with diverse presentations of coronary atherosclerosis.

Pioneers in the field of transcatheter aortic-valve implantation demonstrate:
anatomy and postmortem studiespatient selectiondescription of devices and loading techniquesimaging techniques: pre-, intra-, and postprocedureanesthetic carevascular accesspercutaneous aortic balloon valvuloplastyvalve deliveryvalve deploymentmanagement of complicationsICU careoutpatient carenew devices
WATCH AND LEARN over 200 video clips supply real life "how-to" examples (DVD included!)
VISUALLY DRIVEN CONTENT with 500 images-over 200 in full-color!
INCREASE SUCCESS/AVOID COMPLICATIONS AND FAILURE-by choosing the right ingredients for successful outcomes. From patient selection protocols to post-procedural care-the book shows you how
BUILD MASTERY with tips and tricks that would take years to develop
HIGHLY REGARDED TEAM OF INTERNATIONAL EXPERTS-who pioneered these techniques-show you time-tested techniques, proven to work

Given that for centuries, the standard tool to understand diseases in tissues was the microscope and that its major limitation was that only excised tissue could be used, recent technology now permits the examination of diseased tissue in vivo. Optical coherence tomography (OCT) has promising potential when applied to coronary artery disease. OCT has the capability to identify coronary plaque and to distinguish between plaques that are stable and unstable. If the plaques are stable then OCT can direct percutaneous intervention (angioplasty or stenting). Optical coherence tomography is a light-based imaging technology that allows for very high resolution imaging in biological tissues. It has been first applied in ophthalmology, where it soon became the golden standard for the assessment of (epi-) retinal processes. The unique imaging capabilities have raised the interest of researchers and clinicians in the field of cardiovascular disease, since OCT offers unique possibilities to study atherosclerosis pathophysiology in vivo. With over 1.1M Americans having a heart attack this year because of unstable plaque rupture, OCT may have an increasingly important role in the early diagnosis of coronary artery disease. This unique publication offers the reader the basic background to OCT and its role in the diagnosis and management of coronary artery disease. The Handbook of Optical Coherence Tomography in Cardiovascular Research introduces the cardiovascular application of this technology. Clinicians, biologists, engineers and physicist are discussing different aspects of cardiovascular OCT application in a multidisciplinary approach. The handbook offers the readership a concise overview on the current state of the art of vascular OCT imaging and sheds light on a variety of exciting new developments. The physics, technical principles of OCT and its application in a broad spectrum of cardiovascular research areas are summarized by highly recognized specialists. The potential of OCT in peripheral and coronary arteries and in developmental cardiology are described. Each research area is introduced by a clinical expert in the field followed by discussion of different aspects from an engineering, biomedical and clinical perspective. Specifically, the current capabilities for plaque characterization, detection of vulnerable plaque, guidance of interventional procedures, Doppler-assessment, and molecular contrast imaging are being described. The Handbook of Optical Coherence Tomography in Cardiovascular Research targets researchers and clinicians involved in the field of atherosclerosis. The summary of basic physics, engineering solutions, pre-clinical and clinical application covers all relevant aspects and will be a valuable reference source.

Since publication of the First Edition, advances in the diagnosis and prevention and treatment strategies of the vulnerable plaque have necessitated this greatly expanded second edition. With several new chapters covering mainly diagnostic and treatment options, The Handbook of the Vulnerable Plaque will remain the benchmark text for all interventional cardiologists treating vulnerable patients by providing the physician with comprehensive insight into the world of the vulnerable plaque.

While all interventional cardiologists have access to pharmacopeial texts and databases and are aware of the growing number of pharmacological agents in the armamentarium, questions arise as to the ideal agent or combination of agents in differing patient situations.
This superb text offers the reader coverage of all the major pharmacological therapies used in treating the cath lab patient from the practical, personal perspective of those actively involved in interventional cardiology.

Over the past few years, the focus in interventional cardiology research has centred on reducing restenosis with the use of antiproliferative pharmacological agents. The use of these drugs, hitherto, has failed, most probably because of low active drug levels at the target site. This problem led to the development of local drug delivery using stents, since they can serve as a reservoir for local drug administration and are in immediate contract with the coronary artery wall, thus ensuring maximum delivery of the pharmacological agent. Drug-eluting stents provide an entirely new spectrum of potential therapies for restenosis.
Handbook of Drug-Eluting Stents, under the editorial direction of Patrick Serruys, one of the world's leading interventional cardiologists, and Tony Gershlick, a pioneer in the field of drug-eluting stents, provides the reader with up-to-date information on which stents and pharmacological agents in use or about to be launched, the kinetics of the drugs involved, and what the future may hold.

Contents:
1. The amg ARTHOS and ARTHOS^TInert Coronary Stent Implantation Systems 2. The Antares Starflex Coronary Stent System 3. The AST SLK-view Stent and Delivery System 4. The BeStent2 Stent 5. The biodivYsio AS, OC, SV Stent Range with PC Technology^TTM 6. The Bx VELOCITY^TTM Stent 7. The Carbostent SIRIUS Stent 8. The Cordynamic Apolo Stent 9. The Coroflex and Coroflex Delta Coronary Stent Systems 10. The Duraflex^TTM Coronary Stent System 11. The Express Coronary Stent System 12. The GENIC DYLN Stent 13. The GENIC, GENIC SV and GENIC LV Stent Systems 14. The Genius Coronary Stent 15. The Igaki-Tamai Stent 16. The JOSTENT Coronary Stent Range 17. The Lunar Coronary Stent System 18. The Maeo Stent 19. The Med-X Flexy Stent 20. The Medtronic AVE Modular Stents ^TTM Coronary Stent System 23. The Multi-Link RX PIXEL^TTM Coronary Stent System 24. The Multi-Link RX Ultra^TTM Coronary Stent System 25. The Nexus and Nexus II Stents 26. The NIR and NIRFLEX Coronary Stents 27. The Prolink Stent 28. The ProPass Stent 29. The Coronary R Stent^TTM 30. The Rithron and Rithron-XR Coronary Stents 31. The Seaquest Stent^TTM 32. The Spiral Force Stent 33. The Tsunami Coronary Stent System 34. The Zebra Stent Section II: Drug-Eluting Stents 35. The Background, Rationale for and Current Status of the ELUTES (EvaLUation of paclitaxel Elusting Stent) Trial 36. The Biocompatibles' Drug-Eluting Stents 37. The Boston Scientific Antiproliferative, Paclitaxel Eluting Stents (TAXUS) 38. The Multi-Link TETRA D^TTM Drug-Coated Coronary Stent System 39. The Ohytis DLC (Diamond-Like Carbon) Coated Stents 40. The Phytis Double-Coated Stent 41. The Quaman QuaDDS-QP2 Stent 42. The Sirolimus-Eluting Bx VELOCITY^TTM Stent: Preclinical Data 43. The Sirolimus-Eluting Bx VELOCITY^TTM Stents: Clinical Data

While all interventional cardiologists have access to pharmacopeial texts and databases and are aware of the growing number of pharmacological agents in the armamentarium, questions arise as to the ideal agent or combination of agents in differing patient situations. This superb text offers the reader coverage of all the major pharmacological therapies used in treating the cath lab patient from the practical, personal perspective of those actively involved in interventional cardiology.

Surgeons refer to this classic text again and again, partly because of the clarity of its innovative format, so useful and popular that it has been copied by others. This technical manual, now in its fourth edition, profiles all of the commercially available stents and some of those in early registry. The technical specifications of the stent and delivery systems are tabulated; each stent is illustrated in its unexpanded, mounted and expanded form (depending on the type of stent). Angiograms show the stent in situ. Handbook of Coronary Stents is a necessary adjunct for all those involved in interventional cardiology.

Coronary stenting is the most commonly used method of myocardial revascularization, with approximately 2 million stents implanted in 2004 throughout the world. The development of drug eluting stents has resulted in very low rates of repeat intervention and will further increase the scope for percutaneous coronary intervention. The evidence from large randomized trials is generally accepted to be the gold standard source of information for patient care in interventional cardiology. However, it is well recognized that information from these trials is frequently insufficient to guide the wide-ranging clinical situations found in routine practice. In this context, decision-making is often based on a composite of information from multiple clinical studies, pathophysiological considerations and importantly, personal experience or 'gut-feeling'. This book, written by internationally recognized experts in their field, provides clear and concise recommendations regarding various challenging clinical situations facing the interventional cardiologist on a daily basis.

Leading interventional cardiologists, including Patrick Serruys, provide the gold-standard reference on the treatment of restenosis for interventional cardiologists. Dr. Serruys, who pioneered the use of drug-eluting stents, and other pioneers in the field, cover everything from non-invasive imaging, to eluting stents, to brachytherapy through to the latest molecular biology-based treatments including antisense, stem cells and gene therapy.