Devising new tests that better predict which patients with coronary heart disease should receive a stent

A prospective comparison of the diagnostic utility of invasive coronary physiological indices and quantitative perfusion MRI in patients with coronary heart disease and indeterminate (grey-zone) fractional flow reserve values

Coronary heart disease is caused by blockage in the coronary arteries - the vessels that supply blood to the heart muscle. Fractional flow reserve (FFR) is a method of measuring pressure waves in the coronary artery to estimate the severity of artery blockages. It is used to select people who are most likely to benefit from unblocking the artery by inserting a metal tube or stent. But at the moment FFR cannot always accurately determine if stenting is needed, and some people can be over-treated with current practice. The BHF has awarded a grant to Professor Keith Oldroyd at the University of Glasgow to assess people with coronary artery blockages with a new technique that measures pressure, flow and resistance in their vessels, and which may more accurately predict the treatment they should receive. To check the accuracy of their new method, Professor Oldroyd’s team will compare their results with MRI scans of the patient’s heart, which pick up areas of the heart with poor blood supply. The researchers hope that analysis of these individuals using MRI as well as a combination pressure and flow measurements will help to better define the treatment they should receive.