Transmyocardial Revascularization

Transmyocardial revascularization is an experimental approach, and studies are being conducted in patients with end-stage coronary artery disease in whom conventional therapeutic options have been exhausted. The objective is to create multiple intramyocardial channels with the use of laser technology (e.g., carbon dioxide and Ho-YAG lasers) within the myocardium that facilitate oxygenated blood flow from the left ventricle and, thus, myocardial oxygenation. This method of myocardial oxygenation is observed normally in reptiles, where the sinusoids clearly maintain adequate myocardial oxygenation.