EXPERIMENTAL INTRACORONARY STENTING - COMPREHENSIVE EXPERIENCE IN A PORCINE MODEL

Appropriate animal models for intracoronary stenting are most importan t for improving understanding of the pathophysiology of acute occlusio n and long-term re-stenosis, which currently limits the safety and eff icacy of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty in humans. Sin ce the anatomy and physiology of swine coronary arteries closely resem ble those of humans, the procine model should be ideal for testing of stents. This is a comprehensive report on an experimental set-up in pi gs, communicating in detail the necessary techniques as well as some m odifications facilitating safe intracoronary stent placement and succe ssful follow-up studies for weeks or months. Stent procedure is perfor med in mechanically ventilated and haemodynamically monitored animals under balanced anaesthesia. Intracoronary application of flow wires al lows the assessment of local flow conditions, flow properties and coro nary flow reserve. Real-time intravascular ultrasonography (IVUS) prov ides detailed information on coronary morphology and enables the appro priate sizing of the coronary lumen. From our own experience, we like to propose that the use of the porcine model has the potential to gain new insights into the pathophysiology of intracoronary stent placemen t-associated complications and allows for the study of modifications i n techniques and materials, and the development of novel pharmacologic al therapeutic strategies.