Advancing Complex Coronary Artery Disease Interventions
In This Article
- Massachusetts General Hospital interventional cardiologist Darshan Doshi, MD, is leading investigations to improve care and available coronary interventions for complex and high-risk coronary artery disease
- Interventional cardiologists at Mass General pursue research projects that utilize large, prospective databases and strategic industry collaborations
- His team is studying indications for atherectomy and percutaneous coronary interventions through coronary CT and aspiration and mechanical thrombectomy for saphenous vein grafts
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Interventional cardiologists at Massachusetts General Hospital are pursuing clinical investigations to determine best practices for treating complex coronary artery disease (CAD) and evaluate novel therapeutics to manage patients safely and effectively.
"Patients with advanced coronary artery disease tend to have complex lesion subsets, poor hemodynamics and advanced comorbidities," says Darshan Doshi, MD, an interventional cardiologist in the Corrigan Minehan Heart Center at Mass General. "Typically, these patients have been excluded from many clinical trials, so the data around them is not well-known. What we try to do with my research is bridge that gap."
Complex Coronary Artery Disease Research Increases Coronary Interventions
Dr. Doshi's team has employed a variety of approaches to rigorously investigate complex and high-risk CAD. These methods have utilized large, open, prospective databases to monitor outcomes after effective therapeutic coronary interventions. Researchers have also collaborated with strategic industry partners to participate in investigator-initiated clinical trials. Current research projects include:
- Establishing indications for atherectomy and percutaneous coronary interventions through coronary CT
- Determining if aspiration and mechanical thrombectomy should be indicated for saphenous vein grafts
- Ascertaining the efficacy of complex coronary interventions through novel coronary parameters as measured through invasive physiology
- Studying the safety and effectiveness of new stent systems in the treatment of subjects with de novo or restenotic coronary artery lesions
"A significant portion of patients with advanced coronary artery disease aren't able to be treated through anything but medical therapy. Within interventional cardiology, there seems to be a risk/reward paradox, meaning that the easiest-to-treat patients get what they need while those who are harder to treat are less likely to receive needed care," Dr. Doshi says. "Our hope is our research will enable us to offer those who need treatment the therapeutic options they aren't getting."
Dr. Doshi notes that Mass General offers a unique opportunity to conduct far-reaching, impactful clinical and translational research. "It doesn't matter if you're a nascent investigator or a multi-R01 funded investigator. This institution provides you the resources to be successful, and because we are home to some of the best and brightest minds, lends itself to natural collaboration and cross-pollination."
Learn more about the Corrigan Minehan Heart Center
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