The pipe and the plug: Is unblocking arteries enough?

摘要

It seems anachronistic that we still debate how best to fix the plumb- ing of clogged arteries. Our understanding of the pathogenesis of acute coronary syndromes has evolved in leaps and bounds since the first attempts at coronary revas-cularization. And yet, as Aggarwal et al discuss on page 515 in their analysis of the FREEDOM trial, practical and technical questions about how best to open coronary blockages remain clinically relevant, even as we develop strategies to reverse the atherosclerotic processes that created those blockages.