MUHC honored to perform first procedure using new coronary angioplasty tool

Dr. Stéphane Rinfret, chief of the catheterization laboratories at the MUHC

MONTREAL - The Interventional Cardiology Service of the McGill University Health Center (MUHC) had the honor of hosting representatives of the company Vascular Solutions this week for a world first. Dr. Stéphane Rinfret, chief of the catheterization laboratories at the MUHC, and his team, performed two coronary angioplasty procedures using a new device called the TrapLiner. It was the first time the tool had been used in patients anywhere in the world, following its recent approval by Health Canada.

The TrapLiner differs from current technologies used in coronary angioplasty in that several instruments can be used simultaneously during the produce because of their arrangement in concentric circles inside a catheter – a design partially based on the engineering principle behind the telescopic rod. “I believe this technology could be seen as a game changer,” said Dr. Rinfret, who performed the first two procedures using the TrapLiner. “Combining several technologies in this way allows interventional cardiologists to treat patients faster and more safely than before, and with less bleeding.”

“We designed the TrapLiner to facilitate the procedure used to treat chronic total occlusion (CTO). This modest innovation could turn out to be very helpful, reducing some of the difficulties we encounter in these long procedures,” said the creator of the device, Dr. Christopher Buller, chief of interventional cardiology at St Michael's Hospital in Toronto. “We are very pleased to use the catheter for the first time in Canada, here in Montreal. This confirms a solid Canadian expertise in the field of complex angioplasty.”

“The unparalleled performance of the MUHC's new chronic occlusion program, led by Dr. Rinfret – a world leader in this procedure – combined with the cutting edge facilities at the Glen site, made it an obvious choice to conduct the ‘first in human’ trail at the MUHC," said Chad Kugler, vice president of medical affairs and chief engineer of Vascular Solutions, the US-based company that manufactured the device.

A CTO is a blockage that is very difficult to correct with angioplasty or to treat with bypass surgery.  It is frequently present in patients who already underwent bypass surgery in the past.  The MUHC has gained worldwide recognition for its CTO percutaneous coronary intervention program, and Dr. Rinfret’s team has already performed over 150 procedures this year, with more than 90 per cent of patients experiencing substantially improved quality of life.

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