Immediate effect of percutaneous myocardial laser revascularization on hemodynamics and left ventricular systolic function in severe angina pectoris

Experimental data suggest that myocardial revascularization with a high-energy laser may cause a significant reduction in left ventricular (LV) function immediately after creation of myocardial channels. We sought to determine if percutaneous myocardial laser revascularization (PMR) causes immediate deterioration in hemodynamic parameters or regional LV systolic function. PMR was performed in 40 patients (mean age 62.9 ± 10.8 years) using the Eclipse Holmium laser (26 had PMR alone; 14 patients underwent PMR plus percutaneous coronary intervention). Intracardiac pressures and left ventriculograms were recorded before and after PMR. Regional wall motion was assessed using the centerline method. A mean of 18 ± 5 channels were created per patient. There was no significant change in LV ejection fraction immediately after PMR (56 ± 9% vs 55 ± 10%, p = 0.25). No deterioration in regional wall motion was demonstrated in the lased region (mean chord motion for anterior wall PMR: −1.5 ± 0.8 before vs −1.5 ± 0.8 after the procedure, p = 0.93; inferior wall PMR: −1.5 ± 0.9 before vs −1.6 ± 0.8 after the procedure, p = 0.43). Similarly, there was no change in the number of hypokinetic chords in the treated region. Systemic blood pressure, LV end-diastolic pressure, heart rate, and right-sided heart pressures were not significantly different after laser revascularization. In patients with refractory angina, PMR did not cause immediate deterioration in hemodynamic status or regional LV function.