Coronary angiography

The technique involves the passage of a catheter to the heart. The radial approach is now commonly used in coronary angiography, as it comes with a lower risk of complications compared to the previous femoral or brachial routes. (1)

This technique may be used to:

• measure pressures within the heart and great vessels
• to perform coronary angiography - contrast can be introduced into the coronary arteries - this is a technique used to define the anatomy - and thus patency - of the coronary arteries
• assess oxygen saturation via blood samples
• perform other procedures - angioplasty, valvuloplasty, cardiac biopsy
• perform intravascular ultrasound

Note - conventional angiography is invasive. In addition to providing therapeutic options, invasive angiography remains the gold standard in diagnosing most intravascular pathologies. Advances in imaging technology in the last three decades have expanded the scope of angiography to include non-invasive techniques using CT and magnetic resonance imaging technologies. (2)

Reference

1. Tavakol M, Ashraf S, Brener SJ. Risks and complications of coronary angiography: a comprehensive review. Glob J Health Sci. 2012 Jan 01;4(1):65-93
2. Alfakih K, Byrne J, Monaghan M. CT coronary angiography: a paradigm shift for functional imaging tests. Open Heart. 2018;5(1):e000754