Porcine coronary imaging in vivo by optical coherence tomography

Objective - A high-resolution coronary artery imaging modality has the pote ntial to address important diagnostic and management problems in cardiology . Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is a promising new optical imaging tec hnique with a resolution of approximately 10 mu m The purpose of this study was to use a new OCT catheter to demonstrate the feasibility of performing OCT imaging of normal coronary arteries, intimal dissections, and deployed stents in vivo. Methods and results - Normal coronary arteries, intimal dissections, and st ents were imaged in five swine with OCT and compared with intravascular ult rasound (IVUS). In the normal coronary arteries, visualization of al I of t he layers of the vessel wall was achieved with a saline flush, including th e intima which was not identified by IVUS. Following dissection, detailed l ayered structures including intimal flaps, intimal defects, and disruption of the medial wall were visualized by OCT. IVUS failed to shaw clear eviden ce of intimal and medial disruption. Finally, the microanatomic relationshi ps between stents and the vessel walls were clearly identified only by OCT. Conclusions - In this preliminary experiment, we have demonstrated that in vivo OCT imaging of normal coronary arteries, intimal dissections, and depl oyed stents is feasible, and allows identification of clinically relevant c oronary artery morphology with high-resolution and contrast.