Intracoronary Thrombectomy With the X-Sizer Catheter System Improves Epicardial Flow and Accelerates ST-Segment Resolution in Patients With Acute Coronary Syndrome

Abstract
Background — In patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS), percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) may cause thrombus dislodgment followed by reduced flow and impaired microcirculatory function. We prospectively compared conventional PCI to a strategy of additional pretreatment using the X-sizer thrombectomy system. Methods and Results — Sixty-six patients (51 [77%] men; 54.9±9.9 years) with ACS (49 with ST-elevation infarction [STEMI]) and suspected intracoronary thrombus were randomized 1:1 to pretreatment with X-sizer and conventional PCI alone. Various aspects of epicardial flow and microvascular function were studied. Baseline data were similar in both groups. Postprocedural TIMI 3 flow was obtained in 90% of X-sizer–treated patients and in 84% of controls (NS); however, corrected TIMI frame count was lower in X-sizer– treated patients (18.3±10.2 versus 24.7±14.1; P P P 50% was observed in 83% of X-sizer–treated patients and in 52% of controls ( P 50% (OR 4.35; 95% CI, 1.13 to 16.9; P Conclusions — In ACS with suspected thrombus, pretreatment with the X-sizer catheter system improves epicardial flow and accelerates ST-segment resolution compared with conventional PCI alone.