Left brachial artery: one more way to percutaneous insertion of IMPELLA 2.5L circulatory support for high-risk percutaneous coronary intervention – a case report

BACKGROUND: Percutaneous circulatory support allows the performance of coronary interventions in ever more complex anatomic and clinical situations. The large-bore systems currently available need a suitable vascular calibre to be inserted restricting percutaneous access mainly to the common femoral artery. CASE SUMMARY: We present the case of a 64-year-old man, admitted with an acute coronary syndrome and congestive heart failure, due to triple-vessel coronary artery disease with left main involvement and left ventricular dysfunction. He was successfully treated with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) supported through an IMPELLA 2.5L circulatory system. Concomitant severe and diffuse peripheral vascular disease did not allow femoral insertion of the circulatory support which was therefore successfully introduced through a left brachial percutaneous approach. DISCUSSION: To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of a brachial, percutaneous placement of the IMPELLA 2.5L system to support a high-risk PCI procedure. In appropriately selected patients, this approach could be an option when common vascular accesses are not available.