DISCO COMPLEX Trial
Research type
Research Study
Full title
DIStal versus COnventional radial access for COMPLEX large-bore percutaneous coronary intervention: The DISCO COMPLEX randomized trial
IRAS ID
348649
Contact name
Juan Fernando Iglesias
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Geneva, Cardiology Department, Interventional Cardiology Unit
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
DISCO COMPLEX is a randomized controlled trial initiated by the investigator, with the principal investigator and sponsor being the University Hospitals of Geneva. It is a multicenter and international study that will include a total of 708 patients from Switzerland, Belgium, Italy, UK, and Germany. The study aims to compare the conventional radial vascular access route with an alternative access route, called the distal radial approach, located at the anatomical snuffbox or the back of the hand, in patients indicated for a so-called complex angioplasty. This includes procedures like left main coronary artery angioplasty, chronic total occlusion, highly calcified lesions, or coronary bifurcation lesions requiring a large vascular access (7 French).
DISCO COMPLEX will be the first randomized study in interventional cardiology aimed at demonstrating the superiority of the distal radial approach compared to the conventional radial approach in terms of the rate of radial artery occlusion. If the study hypothesis is confirmed, preserving radial artery patency through the use of the distal radial approach would allow patients to retain their radial artery as a potential conduit for future procedures, such as repeat interventions, coronary artery bypass grafting, or an arteriovenous fistula in case hemodialysis is needed.
Additionally, the study will include a pre-specified sub-study within the protocol, DISCOPHILE COMPLEX, which will assess the function of the hand used for the complex angioplasty access one year later. This assessment will be conducted using validated questionnaires as well as motor and sensory tests to detect any sequelae in the patient with each of these vascular access routes. Our hypothesis is that the distal radial approach is not inferior to the conventional radial approach in terms of hand function after one year.
REC name
London - Dulwich Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
25/LO/0023
Date of REC Opinion
11 Apr 2025
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion