Saphenous graft atherosclerosis as assessed by optical coherence tomography data for stenotic and non-stenotic lesions from the OCTOPUS registry

INTRODUCTION: Coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), although widely used for a long time in diffuse coronary artery disease (CAD), has serious limitations associated with graft aging and its degeneration. AIM: The relationship between saphenous vein graft (SVG) plaque morphology assessed by optical coherence tomography (OCT) and clinical findings has not been elucidated yet. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We compared the morphology of SVG in stenotic vs. non-stenotic lesions using OCT imaging in 29 patients hospitalized in our center within the OCTOPUS registry. RESULTS: Stenotic lesions were characterized by higher incidence of thin-cap fibroatheroma (TCFA) (33% vs. 0%, p = 0.0048), thrombus (28% vs. 0%, p = 0.0008), lipid-rich plaque (LRP) (75% vs. 35%, p = 0.0013) and plaque within the SVG valve (19% vs. 0%, p = 0.0114) as compared to non-stenotic lesions. Patients with intimal tearing or rupture (ITR) were older (75.8% vs. 68.9 years, p = 0.047) and had lower left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) (32.0% vs. 49.7%, p = 0.001) and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) (36.0 vs. 73.6 ml/min/1.73 m(2), p = 0.010). Patients with calcified lesions vs. those without had lower high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol (33.2 vs. 44.1 mg/dl, p = 0.018), similarly to those with ruptured plaque vs. those without (28.3 vs. 41.7 mg/dl, p = 0.047). CONCLUSIONS: Presence of ITR was associated with advanced age, decreased LVEF and renal insufficiency. Decreased concentration of HDL was associated with higher occurrence of calcified and ruptured plaque.