Immediate and short-term results of a 1988-1989 coronary angioplasty registry.
 To determine the relevance of recent refinements in angioplasty technology to our particular practice, the records of 507 consecutive patients undergoing a first percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) at our center between October 1988 and May 1989 were reviewed.
 At the time of PTCA, 41% of these patients had class IV angina and 44% were identified as having multivessel disease.
 Dilatation was attempted in 734 lesions (mean 1.5 per patient), of which 95 (13%) were chronic total occlusions.
 Overall, 69% of the 734 lesions were judged anatomically complex, and, in dilating these lesions, a rail-type device was used almost exclusively.
 Successful dilatation was achieved in 659 of the 734 (90%) attempted lesions.
 There were low incidences of the major complications of death (0.4%), myocardial infarction (1.8%) and emergency bypass surgery (1.8%).
 Acute rethrombosis occurred in 54 patients (11%).
 In these patients, initial strategy of repeat dilatation was successful in 38 of 47 patients (81%).
 Overall, primary clinical success at PTCA was achieved in 480 patients (95%).
 At a mean follow-up of 7.5 +/- 1.5 months in 497 of the study patients, the event-free rate (freedom from cardiac death, myocardial infarction, repeat PTCA or coronary bypass surgery or recurrence of severe [class III to IV] angina) was 71%.
 In conclusion, despite the often complex coronary disease in patients currently presenting to our center, a high initial success rate and acceptable short-term outcome of PTCA was achieved.
