Lesion Complexity and Angiographic Outcomes in Radial Access Percutaneous Coronary Intervention

Background: Percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is increasingly performed from the radial arterial (RA) access site. Few studies have examined the interaction between a default radial approach, lesion complexity, and angiographic outcome. This study investigates lesion complexity, arterial access route, and angiographic outcome in routine clinical practice by default radial operators. Methods: All cases of PCI over a 12‐month period (Jan 2005 to Jan 2006) at our regional cardiac center were prospectively entered into a database detailing arterial access route, target vessel and lesion characteristics, and lesion‐specific angiographic outcome. Angiographic success was defined as residual stenosis