Multicenter Intravascular Ultrasound Validation Study Among Heart Transplant Recipients

• Published in: Journal of the American College of Cardiology 2005-05, Vol.45 (9), p.1532-1537
• Main Authors: Kobashigawa, Jon A., Tobis, Jonathan M., Starling, Randall C., Tuzcu, E. Murat, Smith, Andrew L., Valantine, Hannah A., Yeung, Alan C., Mehra, Mandeep R., Anzai, Hitoshi, Oeser, Brandy T., Abeywickrama, Kamal H., Murphy, Jane, Cretin, Nathalie
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0735-1097; 1558-3597
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jacc.2005.02.035

We sought to assess the validity of first-year intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) data as a surrogate marker for long-term outcome after heart transplantation. Cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) is a major impediment to long-term graft survival. Intravascular ultrasound is more sensitive than coronary angiography and detects intimal thickening (early CAV) in the coronary arteries of the donor heart. Single-center studies have suggested first-year IVUS results might be a surrogate marker for long-term outcome. First-year IVUS results and subsequent five-year clinical follow-up data were reviewed in 125 heart transplant recipients from five institutions. The IVUS tapes (at baseline and one year) were re-analyzed at a core IVUS laboratory. The change in maximal intimal thickness (MIT) from baseline to one year was recorded for several matched sites in the same coronary artery. Patients were classified into two groups: those with ≥0.5 mm in the MIT in any matched site (group 1) and those with MIT