A modified directional atherectomy catheter for resection of calcified atherosclerotic plaques

Background The purpose of this study was to determine the feasibility of resecting calcified atherosclerotic plaques in human cadaveric vessels by using a modified directional coronary atherectomy catheter and to correlate these results with bench tests using an in-vitro sea coral model. Methods The conventional directional coronary atherectomy catheter was modified by changing the cutter blade to a tungsten carbide material and by increasing the torsional strength of the drive cable. The performance of the modified directional coronary atherectomy (DCA) catheter was compared with the conventional catheter using a sea coral model to simulate calcified material. Then, 10 human ex-vivo arteries (eight with calcification) were treated with both conventional and modified catheters, and the results studied with intravascular ultrasound and confirmed by histologie examination. Results Using the modified directional coronary atherectomy catheter it was possible to perform effective and consistent longitudinal cutting, and to resect a significantly larger amount of coral (1.0 ±0.1 mm2 versus 0.2 ± 0.1 mm2 with conventional cutter, P