Prognostic significance of complete coronary revascularization in patients with stable coronary artery disease

Abstract

Coronary revascularization procedures are an integral part of the treatment for stable coronary artery disease (CAD), especially in patients with an unsatisfactory response to medical therapy and/or in the presence of comorbid conditions that worsen the disease prognosis (e.g., low left ventricular ejection fraction, left main coronary artery stenosis, etc.). One

of the main goals of myocardial revascularization is achieving complete revascularization (CR), which, according to most (though not all) studies, can improve the prognosis of the intervention. However, it is known that in a number of patients, CR is difficult to achieve due to clinical-anatomical, technical, or procedural factors. The influence of these factors and the lack of a universal definition of CR make it difficult to make a decision on the volume of revascularization in real clinical practice. In this review, we provide definitions of complete and incomplete revascularization and summarize the evidence linking the achievement of anatomical and functional CR with adverse outcomes in patients with multivessel disease and stable CAD.