New invasive assessment measures of coronary artery disease severity

Ischemic heart disease is the leading cause of mortality worldwide. The assessment and treatment of patients with ischemic heart disease have advanced greatly over the past decade. Particular attention has been given recently to the recognition of lesions that cause ischemia or that are prone to plaque rupture. New invasive measures of coronary artery disease have been developed, including fractional flow reserve, intravascular ultrasound, optical coherence tomography, and most recently, near-infrared spectroscopy. These technologies have helped to guide the assessment of hemodynamically significant lesions and have shown particular promise in guiding percutaneous coronary interventions. However, mortality and the rate of revascularization have shown mixed results to date. This review seeks to investigate the use and potential benefit of these technologies, with particular attention to clinical end points.