The feasibility of Kimny guiding catheter for ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction

OBJECTIVES: The Kimny guiding catheter is a single universal guiding catheter used for performing percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in both the right coronary artery (RCA) and the left coronary artery (LCA). Although this guiding catheter has been shown to yield high procedural success rates in nonemergent conditions, its feasibility for patients with ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) remains unknown and therefore needs to be further investigated. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively enrolled 62 consecutive STEMI patients who underwent primary PCI using the Kimny guiding catheter from January 2016 through December 2017. We then evaluated the rates of engagement and procedural success for PCI of the LCA and RCA with the Kimny guiding catheter. RESULTS: Primary PCI of the infarct-related artery (IRA) by means of the Kimny guiding catheter proved to be successful in 61 of the STEMI patients (98.3%). Besides, the procedural success rate was found to be 100% (44/44) for the LCA and 94.4% (17/18) for the RCA (P = 0.293). With regard to contralateral (non-IRA) angiography, engagement rates of 97.4% (38/39) and 100% (18/18) were obtained for the RCA and LCA, respectively, (P = 1.0). No coronary artery ostial dissection was observed during the procedures. The mean number of total catheters used for each patient turned out to be only 1.035. CONCLUSION: Using the Kimny guiding catheter for primary PCI is feasible and results in high procedural success rates, particularly for the treatment of the LCA, with fewer catheters, and at a lower cost.