Femoral or Radial Approach in Coronary Chronic Total Occlusion

Pecutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) of chronic total occlusions (CTOs) is most commonly performed using bilateral transfemoral access and 8 French guiding catheters. However, transfemoral approach (TFA) is associated with higher risk of vascular access complications.5 It has been reported that using transradial approach (TRA) reduces vascular complications and may be associated with a better clinical outcome. Transradial access is also used in complex PCI interventions.There is a growing body of evidence regarding the use of this approach also in CTO procedures. In available literature, all studies comparing TRA vs. TFA in CTO consisted of single center and single operator experience. Besides, none of them is randomized. To fill in the gap, we sought to examine the technique and outcomes of transradial vs. transfemoral CTO PCI in a contemporary multicenter randomized study.