Prediction of successful guidewire crossing of below-the-knee chronic total occlusions using a Japanese scoring system

To develop a scoring system that can adequately predict a successful guidewire crossing (S-GC) of below-the-knee (BTK) chronic total occlusions (CTOs) in angiographic evaluation. A retrospective, multicenter, nonrandomized study examined 448 consecutive BTK CTOs in 299 patients treated with endovascular therapy in seven Japanese medical centers from April 2012 to April 2020. The cohort was classified into two groups: an S-GC group and a failed guidewire crossing group. The final logistic regression model created by a backward stepwise multivariate logistic regression model included five variables: “No outflow of the target vessel,” “CTO length ≥200 mm,” “Reference vessel diameter